A Chat with John Economaki, Founder and President, Bridge City Tool Works

Our philosophy here from a marketing standpoint is that to address those concerns, what I have to do a better job of — and this has always been the case — is relaying to people the idea that tools, by definition, aren't being used the majority of the time. So my theory is, is there not a function that can take place while they're not being used? Could they not sit there, and due to their form and their manufacture and appearance, couldn't they be part of the process of getting someone to do their very best work. Couldn't you gain something from a tool that's not being used? I believe you can. But then there's this group that just says you don't need to spend $80. I say,"Yeah, I know, but I don't have to spend $250,000 on a Lamborghini to know it looks cool." I wouldn't say it's not needed. But it's this pragmatic mindset that tends to reject things that aren't as dumbed down as you can get. For my core group, that's not a problem, but for the bulk of my potential customers, that's a stumbling block.