Adam Moore
Follow at http://twitter.com/seriousshops
Hello! This is where I get to unleash my wisdom (there's got to be some of that in here.) My favorite topics are eCommerce (of course), Programming, Puzzles, Organic Food, Natural Living, Consumer Reviews, Vegetarianism, & Parenting.
As the lead virtuoso at SeriousShops.com, I'm charged with building our brand and telling the world about our "product". What is our "product"? Well, I'm not talking about one of the thousands of items in our warehouse; I'm talking about the reason why folks like you click "checkout" rather than "back". The products in the warehouse are the vehicle, if you will, by which we can deliver our real product: A premier shopping experience founded on the pillars of superior customer service, aggressive pricing, free shipping, and hassle-free returns.
SOME HISTORY: In 2002, we had a dream to create a niche eCommerce retail website. While holding down other full-time jobs, we started with the idea of selling Art Packs; ready-made supply bundles for art students at art schools throughout the country. We soon realized that we were biting off way more than we could chew. Just to be competitive on Sharpies we needed to buy a pallet, which at the time was simply out of our range. After re-evaluating, we decided to hone in on a smaller market: puzzles. SeriousPuzzles.com was born. We chose puzzles because we loved them, we collected them, and we knew then as we know now, you have to have a passion for what you sell. We focused on metal disentanglement puzzles and planned on opening some local mall kiosks to compliment our online plans.
SeriousPuzzles.com was an immediate success and we quickly opened SeriousChai.com, just two months later. Serious Shops, and the idea of a network of highly focused specialty eCommerce retail stores were becoming clearer. Serious Shops was operated out of our basement in Raymond, Maine until 2005. During that time we also launched: SeriousElements.com & SeriousStrategy.com. Not everything we tried worked. Like most entrepreneurs and risk-takers, we made mistakes, and occasionally, we went down some rabbit holes. We weren't fazed: you can't embark on a long journey without stepping in some pot holes.
In 2005, we moved our HQ and all of our operations to Delran, NJ. We sized up our space a few more times, and opened several new stores. We became a local employer and we transformed our thrifty basement operation into a thriving "above-ground" operation.
NOW NOW: As of 2009, we currently employ just 11 virtuosos who handle all aspects of the business from package fulfillment to web programming, from accounting to customer service, and everything in between. We've remained true to our beginnings, we're still thrifty, and we focus mainly on superior customer service and low prices. We are a team of highly motivated virtuosos, with only 11 people we manage over 100 vendor relationships, pick, pack, & ship hundreds of shipments per week (many within minutes after they're ordered), and we personally answer all customer calls between 9am and 6pm EST M-F. As of August 2009 we currently sell over 8,000 products on our websites.