Direct Channels Have National Bankers Supply Counting Its Money

* The housefile at the time was well below 1,000 buyers, most were inactive or one-time buyers;

* The catalog hadn’t been reprinted in over six years;

* The philosophy and culture within the company was stale and lacked vision; and

* Not surprising, growth was limited or negligible.
For the first few years, Shields continued to operate at the status quo by mailing to the pre-existing housefile and not searching for prospects — basically, seeing minimal, if any, growth.