BigLaw clients and prospects meeting in the wood-paneled conference rooms might be wondering if the coffee, cream, sweetner, and edibles are private label or brands. A rider on that question is if the supplies were purchased in a discounter like Aldi or Wal-Mart, not a classy gourmet store with those 100s of varieties of imported cookies.
If what they are consuming represents private label and bargain shopping, then they should consider negotiating for alternate billing arrangements. Since BigLaw is watching its pennies, so should they.
For the financial information company Motley Fool I take a look at the shift in the consumer economy. Here you can review how I connect the dots.
If partners have told you to purchase coffee room supplies at Aldi or even dollar stores and transfer them to a Whole Foods bag, then I want to hear from you. So might Abovethelaw.com blogger and Aon in-house lawyer Mark Herrmann. In his second book "Inside Straight," published by the American Bar Association, Herrmann chronicles the ethos of BigLaw. What John Updike was to the suburbs, Herrmann is to the legal sector. His third book or next post on ATL could deconstruct the shifting economics of client hospitality. Will new business in the legal sector come to be developed over a salad, chips, medium size drink, for $8.62, no tip at Panera?
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