General Motors clueless (again)

For most of the last century, marketing professors would crow: "The railroads didn't understand they were in the transportation business. They thought they were in the railroad business."

Today one has to wonder about General Motors, which in the last century was known as GM.  GM this week sold its train division.  Previously, we had believed the train division was Plan C, in case the auto divisions went into decline (they are going into decline).

"Drive in dinner, drive in movie, then we go for a drive."  Ann Southern, in 1950s movie The Blue Gardinia

One has to wonder whether marketing professors will say the same thing about GM they said about railroads.  Meanwhile, we heard this week about a college in the Twin Cities that will start a new program for training (no pun intended) conductors on freight trains. Freight train loads are up substantially, being one-third the shipping cost of using trucks.  More NineShift happening on the rails.....

Comments

[Harold Jarche]

Great blog. Just came across it, and now I have to get your book!

Cheers;
Harold