Algernon Mark Bartell, August 22nd, 2022

Algernon Mark Bartell, August 22nd, 2022

In this interview, Algernon Bartell talks about owning five different businesses in the Detroit area.

Detroit Historical Society

Detroit Historical Society

en-US

Algernon Mark Bartell

Algernon Mark Bartell was born and raised in Detroit and now owns five different businesses across the Detroit area.

Lily Chen

Detroit, MI

8/22/2022

01:06:14

Taylor Claybrook

Lily Chen [00:00:02] Okay. So today is Monday, August 22nd, and it's around 12:15. This is Lilly Chen, and I'm doing an interview for the Hustle Project at the Detroit Historical Society, and we are so excited to be interviewing our honorees. So go ahead and state your name and then spell it out in full.
Algernon Bartell [00:00:24] Algernon Mark Bartell, A-L-G-E-R-N-O-N M-A-R-K B-A-R-T E-L-L.
Lily Chen [00:00:32] Perfect. And, uh, go ahead and tell us the name of your businesses and each address.
Algernon Bartell [00:00:41] Well, I have five businesses on the avenue of fashion. It's Times Square Custom Clothing that's had 19150 Livernois. And then there's this Mad Hatter is at 19164 Livernois Suits For Less is at 1931 Livernois. The Red Door is at 19330 Livernois. And that's it, I believe, was that five?
Lily Chen [00:01:09] I don't… I wasn't counting.
Algernon Bartell [00:01:10] You know, I think that was five. Times Square, Mad Hatter, the Red Door, the Shoe Box. Oh, I'm sorry. The shoe box, 19186 Livernois.
Lily Chen [00:01:20] Okay. And what was your first store?
Algernon Bartell [00:01:24] The first store was. Originally when I started, it was called Image Revolt. I started that in 1991. And then I opened up 42nd Street, which is on the east side on Mac. Okay. But I didn't include it as my sixth store.
Lily Chen [00:01:44] Okay.
Algernon Bartell [00:01:44] That's my.
Lily Chen [00:01:45] You know. So you're on the East Side?
Algernon Bartell [00:01:47] I'm on East Side of on Mack and Cadieux. Lily Chen [00:01:49] Okay.
Algernon Bartell [00:01:49] Yeah. 17301 Mack avenue.
Lily Chen [00:01:52] Awesome. So before we get into, you know, the whole history of your business, tell me about are you are you from Detroit?
Algernon Bartell [00:01:59] Yes, I'm from Detroit. Born and raised here. I'm the 12th of 14 children.
Lily Chen [00:02:04] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:02:05] Okay. My mom and dad my dad worked at Ford. My mom was a homemaker and is about 14 years old. I said, Dad, can I have some money? He says, in the garage. I said, What do you mean it's in the garage. That Rake or that shovel,
you take your pick? And I've been eating in every sense. But if I can say the most proudest moment was I was working when I worked at McDonald’s, and I won Employee of the Month. That was just it's things like that you don't forget. I was so happy. I won employee of the month. Because I knew it wasn't my own business, but I just put my all into it. That's what I try to do with everything I do, put my all into it and try to get the best results.
Lily Chen [00:02:51] Yeah. Are you a West Sider?
Algernon Bartell [00:02:55] Yes. West Side. West Side. Born and raised. Went to the first, second and best high school in the city.
Lily Chen [00:03:02] Oh, yeah. Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:03:03] McKenzie was the number one. McKenzie was number two. And McKenzie was number three. Now, the rest of them can fall in line where they may start or, you know. Yeah, but I would lived til retirement and joy road area.
Lily Chen [00:03:16] Okay. I went.
Algernon Bartell [00:03:17] To McKenzie. Wow. High school. Yes.
Lily Chen [00:03:19] Are you still on the west side?
Algernon Bartell [00:03:21] Yes, I'm in West Suburbian now.
Lily Chen [00:03:23] Okay. All right. Um, so it sounds like you had a you had a good childhood.
Algernon Bartell [00:03:29] A great childhood. I mean, so much love, so much compassion, a little competitiveness. But when you have 14 children, 14 siblings is going to be that. But yeah, my mom and dad did a great job. And, you know, three of them have have went on home. But, you know, of the 11 that I left, we, we, we, we are very tight knit family. Yeah, yeah. Because I have brothers this have a store on avenue of fashion. I have nephew that have three restaurants on avenue of fashion.
Lily Chen [00:04:01] Oh, wow. Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:04:03] Yeah. And I have a brother that I have a store around six mile in Southfield, so we, you know. Our. Stick our chest out moment. Well, my stick my chest out moment is employing other people. That's the joy. That's the joy that I get. That's that's what's most satisfying. It's not a car. It's not a house. It's not a watch or anything like that. I, what drives me is putting food on other people's table while helping other people.
Lily Chen [00:04:34] So across all of your stories, how many people do you employ? Algernon Bartell [00:04:37] 19.
Lily Chen [00:04:38] Wow. Yeah, 19. That's awesome. And I'm sure you've employed many through the years.
Algernon Bartell [00:04:42] Yeah, many through the years. But, yeah, this is the, this is the most employees I had because the business was. They had a little pickup over their own avenue fasshion doing construction.
Lily Chen [00:04:55] Yeah, I remember that.
Algernon Bartell [00:04:58] Yeah it was construction. My guys and I want to come in, but I don't want to get my truck dirty this too dust deal with that. So, you know. But we weathered the storm. Yeah. And through the grace of God, we opened up another store in a pandemic.
Lily Chen [00:05:10] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:05:11] I mean, and that's that that in itself was amazing. When others folded others closed, others went out of business, we was able to increase our production and increase our employ meant to other people in the middle of a pandemic. I'm grateful.
Lily Chen [00:05:30] Yeah, I'm grateful. So it sounds like. So your family still close and they also are entrepreneurs, some of them, right?
Algernon Bartell [00:05:38] Yes.
Lily Chen [00:05:38] Yes. So, yeah. And it must be really fun to get to see them succeed on avenue fashion, too.
Algernon Bartell [00:05:43] Yes, yes, yes. It's it's real. And everything is different. Everything is different. That's what's so great about it. We're not all doing the same thing. Yeah. Like mines are more dressy clothes and my little brother at a store called Simply Casual, he is is more casual than my nephew. We have restaurants over there, Kuzzo's chicken and waffles and a new restaurant, Petty Cash just opened and in about three months, they're going to be a seafood bowl over there.
Lily Chen [00:06:12] Wow. Yes. Yes. Um. I have eaten so many times at your nephews. Algernon Bartell [00:06:22] Oh, at Kuzzo's?
Lily Chen [00:06:24] Yes.
Algernon Bartell [00:06:24] Yes. It's a staple.
Lily Chen [00:06:26] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:06:27] It's a staple. And what I'm so proud now that I was here the other night, I have this t-shirt that I created, and I can't keep it. I sell a lot of them and anybody know anything about Beverly Hills? You have to go to Rodeo Drive. You go to Chicago. You must go Michigan Avenue. Mm hmm. You go to New York. It's Fifth Avenue. You go to London. It's Savile Row. You come to Detroit. It's the Avenue of Fashion.
Lily Chen [00:06:55] Yes, absolutely.
Algernon Bartell [00:06:56] So, that's that's that's that's that's the destination spot.
Lily Chen [00:07:01] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:07:01] And that stretch of businesses is the biggest black ownership of business in the country.
Lily Chen [00:07:09] Mhm. I didn't know that.
Algernon Bartell [00:07:10] Yes. It is the biggest black ownership of businesses in the country. But whether black or white, blue or green, I just want it to be nice.
Lily Chen [00:07:19] Yeah. Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:07:20] You know, and then that's. I'm not so much, um into that. But just long as it's nice. Long as we can be if we can become like a Rodeo Drive or Michigan Avenue.
Lily Chen [00:07:35] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:07:35] I mean, you know, to eat an elephant is one bite at a time. Lily Chen [00:07:39] So.
Algernon Bartell [00:07:40] Yeah, we're chopping that. You know, we're chomping on the elephant.
Lily Chen [00:07:43] Well, we should feel I mean, we're we should feel so proud to be to such an entrepreneurial city because we are the blackest city in The States.
Algernon Bartell [00:07:54] Yes.
Lily Chen [00:07:55] Right. Blackest city in the states. And so, of course, we should have an avenue of fashion and have all of those businesses there that are run by black business owners that are so successful.
Algernon Bartell [00:08:04] Yes.
Lily Chen [00:08:04] I mean, it's so cool to see that. And I remember the construction. It was really, really irritating.
Algernon Bartell [00:08:10] It was brutal. It was brutal. I mean, guys would call me, say, oh, listen, I don't need a suit, man, but I just got a car wash. I'm like, really? Really. You can't spend an extra $8 to get the car wash again, if that will do that. But that was some excuses. But we weathered the storm. Yeah. And then the pandemic and when everybody coughed, once I coughed five times.
Lily Chen [00:08:32] Mhm.
Algernon Bartell [00:08:33] You know, but, but the Lord was able to sustain us and. Lily Chen [00:08:39] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:08:41] Looking forward to doing more.
Lily Chen [00:08:43] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:08:44] Doing more.
Lily Chen [00:08:45] So, um, take me back to you said 1991 was the first one.
Algernon Bartell [00:08:50] Yeah, 19. This is how this happened. I used the 1991. What? Have to go back to the full story. So a guy was going out of business. My brother was going to the store. I just started going to church heavy, and I needed suits. So my brother said, this guy's going out of business. And I went in there and I started buying some suits because it was, you know, he was going out of business. It was real inexpensive.
Lily Chen [00:09:15] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:09:16] So I started buying a suit and the guy said, Can you sell any can you sell a suit? I'm like, right. I ain't never sold no clothes, or had a job in a clothing store. And it's ironic. And I'll tell that story later. I said no. So then I said, I'll try it. I took a couple to church and I started selling. So I started out of a van. My journey began out of a raggedy van.
Lily Chen [00:09:39] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:09:40] Yes. Started selling suits out of a van. We'll go to the salons, go to different areas, go to old neighborhoods. Hey, man, I got these suits, and that's how I started. And I can remember I had. Suits in the back of the van and the van was ragged and it was it would rain. All right, then shift the clothing over so the clothes wouldn't get wet because that was the best I could do then. Yeah. And. Started in a van then I got businesses and and I started. The first store was an office building that the customer used to have to go down to the bathroom to change. It was that small. The office was so small, you had to go outside and change your mind. Literally, literally, literally. The offices were small. A little bigger than this. Not much, had a racks of clothes. Seriously. Racks of clothes in there. Had my desks. And I had my credit card machine. And I would say, hey, man, this new man going down to the bathroom as they were go down to the bathroom, put on a suit and come back and I would mark it up.
Lily Chen [00:10:50] Wow. Okay. We're talking like 15 feet by 15 feet.
Algernon Bartell [00:10:54] Yeah, we're talking small, little a little bigger than this. That much. So maybe the composite of that back room. Yeah. Yeah, that's what it was. And but I made money. Guys would come. There was a you in this cubbyhole and then they just would come. And then it grew and grew and grew. And I got my first store on Greenfield and Nine Mile. In that area across from the Wendy's right there. That was my trademark. And then I had that stove. Then I moved to the east side and I had two stores. There was Times Square. I mean, his image with Vogue. And then it was 42nd Street. And then I opened up Simply Casual on Seven Mile. And then I gave Simply Casual to my brother who owns it. It's on a corner of Livernois and Outer Drive.
Lily Chen [00:11:41] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:11:42] And then I came back on Livernois in 10/10/10. Yeah. Ten, ten, ten, 10th month 10th day. 2010. I came on and open up Times Square. Then after Times Square opened up, I opened up the Shoe Box. And then after the Shoe Box no Times Square then Suits for Less and then the Shoe Box. And then I moved Times Square and opened up the Red Door. And then. This May the 22nd. We do this annual event called 100 Minutes Suits, and it went viral. It went like I mean, literally viral on the Shade Room, like a over 1,000,006 views. Crazy like Charlie Langton, one of my good customers he's the moderator of my event. And everybody was calling me. So we celebrated that again on May 22nd and we opened up the hat store called the Mad Hatter. And that was this May. We did the event again. It was amazing. But yeah, that's how it happened. Times Square, Suits for Less, the Shoe Box, the Red Roor, the Mad Hatter. Yeah, the 42nd Street has always been on the east side, so.
Lily Chen [00:13:03] Wow. I mean, everyone knows about the 100.
Algernon Bartell [00:13:07] 100, minutes suits yeah.
Lily Chen [00:13:09] Yeah, yeah, I didn't I didn't even make the connection. And I didn't know that you were the one that organized that event.
Algernon Bartell [00:13:15] Yes, I did that. I did that. Charlie Langton, that's like my guy. And it was it was just phenomenal because my kids was of like, Dad, you made the shade room like, huh? What's the shade room? Then I looked it up and then Charlie, I called Charlie and said, Charlie, say, man, we up to like 600,000 hits. And that was like 9:00. He say, we got to go over a million.
Lily Chen [00:13:39] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:13:39] The next day, it was like 1,000,003. Then it got to, like, a million, man, I'm like, wow.
Lily Chen [00:13:45] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:13:45] Of this thing. And my hope to be to sharpen it every year. We gonna have Fashion Week. Mm hmm. The the and I want to profect it and clean it up and just, the sidewalks are so large over there.
Lily Chen [00:14:03] Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:14:04] I've got to be able to put runway chairs and extend it longer. Lily Chen [00:14:08] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:14:09] And probably get corporate sponsors and make this an event that you have to be at. Yeah. Like I'm going to Fashion Week in New York, you know, and we can create the same concept, the same concept as Rodeo Drive and Fashion Week in New York. So the Fifth Avenue is, you know, everybody flies in for that. And that's how we want this to become on the avenueof fashion. We want that to be that 100 minutes Suits.
We want it to just grow, have chairs on this side, chairs on this side, long red carpet, walkway. So the more we do it, it justs get bigger and bigger. It metastasizes. So and that's a good thing.
Lily Chen [00:14:48] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:14:48] That's a good thing. So I'm excited about that in the past. And I don't love I don't like Detroit. I don't, you know why I don't like Detroit.
Lily Chen [00:14:57] Tell me.
Algernon Bartell [00:14:58] Why. Because I love Detroit.
Lily Chen [00:14:59] Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:15:00] That's why I don't like Detroit. I love Detroit. It's, it's, I wouldn't want to live in any other city.
Lily Chen [00:15:07] Same.
Algernon Bartell [00:15:07] Period. I mean, I've been to, I love L.A.. I love, I really love New York. Yeah, I really love New York. I've been to several cities everywhere you can, but something about Detroit.
Lily Chen [00:15:19] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:15:20] Something about Detroit. This is just home, it's comfort. It's like comfort food. It's. It's steak and lobster. It's a wrap. It's everything, you know. Yeah. To me. So I'm, there's other places in the world where people can live. But Detroit is the city for me, I love it.
Lily Chen [00:15:39] Yeah. Something I love about our entrepreneurs and including you is that, you know, you're you're extremely successful, but you're here in the city. Yes. You're not like, you know, I'm going to go I'm going to go to New York or I'm going to go to Paris or whatever. So this is where it's.
Algernon Bartell [00:16:01] That this is for me. It is. That's why that T-shirt is so viable. And I got a card who works here, who was the moderator.
Lily Chen [00:16:11] Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:16:12] And I can't think of it, is it Erin, Erin?
Lily Chen [00:16:14] Elana?
Algernon Bartell [00:16:15] Elana? Yeah. She's seen the T-shirt. She was like, Wow, we need to partner.
Lily Chen [00:16:19] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:16:20] We want to put some of these here. So it is something that's going to it helps everybody on the whole block because it's not my store. I don't have and I have a store. I have a T-shirt with all my store. But this is representing the whole block.
Lily Chen [00:16:34] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:16:34] Is representing the whole block. So if you've got a hair salon or if you've got a bakery, if it's good times, if it's because those. Oh, that's the avenue of fashion. So I'm really advertising for you as well, you know. So that's what excited about Detroit because, yeah, yeah. I love this city.
Lily Chen [00:16:52] Yeah, something that I'm hearing from you that's kind of fun, is that, you know, you originally didn't start in fashion. Um, but now, of course, uh, it seems like you're you're genuinely excited by fashion.
Algernon Bartell [00:17:06] Yes, yes. And I, you know, always from a large family we didn't have much money. Mhm. And uh, my. I see what we call hand-me-downs. My brother's older clothes they would give me and I would dress in high school. Ninth grade I would get on a suit. I would wear that in high school. But I looked it's a picture. We have a family portrait in the Mad Hatter. I blew it up. It's like six by it's real big. And I'm sitting on my dad's lap. And my mom, my sister who manages my store, she's sitting on my mom's lap and other siblings are around. And my dad was well dressed and I had on a jumper with white shoes then. And this. I'm three years old. Mm hmm. So it must have been in me all the time. Yeah, but that's not the path that I took, so. We just had our one of our coaches pass.
Algernon Bartell [00:18:01] It was at McKenzie High School, a very popular football coach, to put some of the guys in the Hall of Fame, like Jerome Bettis from Detroit, Pepper Johnson from Detroit, three Super Bowls. Plus he went to coaching. Wow. Gilbert Brown. Super Bowl from Green Bay Packers. Yeah. Yes. He coached, he put a lot of people in in the Hall of Fame, and I was wondering, like, where did I get this selling ability from?
Lily Chen [00:18:30] Hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:18:31] And. A quick story. When I was in high school, I wanted to be around the basketball and the football team because I couldn't play, but I wanted to be around them. So the Coach Doe just said, Look man, here's this box of suckers. You got to sell these suckers to raise money for the football team. So, look, back in hindsight, that's probably where it come from. Yes, I was. And I had to speak at his funeral. I'm a minister as well. I had to speak at his funeral. And I was like, you know, Coach Doe was the one who gave me those boxes of suckers, so I can hang with the football team and go to the games. Because I used to go out, you know, between the breaks in high school I would sell the suckers and take it back to the football staff and they would get, you know, use what, they used it for gas money for the busses or for equipment, whatever they use it for. And that's where it came from. And fast forward, that was because I was working as I was in quality control at a small plant and yeah, I was there and I never will forget it is a guy dear friend of mine and I actually worked fo him. Just came to spend about $10,000 at my store.
Lily Chen [00:19:39] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:19:39] My old boss, they was getting married. Him and his brother, good friends. But I remember it like it was yesterday. I was at work and it was like a little plan and I'm like and I started selling clothes out of my car. I'm like, Steve, listen, man, I need to take an extra half hour. I got a customer that wants some clothes. He said, Look, man, you'll be back, right? So I leave work and I sell clothes and make $977.
Lily Chen [00:20:07] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:20:08] Never will forget it. I'll never forget that number. $977. I say, wait a minute here. I'm making $7 an hour.
Lily Chen [00:20:15] Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:20:16] And it took me a half hour for $977. I say something's wrong with this picture.
Lily Chen [00:20:23] Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:20:24] So I begin to gather more clothing, and I've stepped out on faith. And he, I had a little pension from the company about $4,000. And I took that, turned it over, and I haven't looked back since. And that's how it happened.
Lily Chen [00:20:38] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:20:39] That's, uh. That's how that happened.
Lily Chen [00:20:42] Oh, it sounds like taking that leap of faith. You had to be so brave. Algernon Bartell [00:20:48] Yes.
Lily Chen [00:20:49] Yeah. And just trust in God.
Algernon Bartell [00:20:52] Yeah. Trust in God. Trust in my instinct, cause He always, You know you. Because my wife said, Will we be fine? I said, just don't worry, about it. He's going to take care of us.
Lily Chen [00:21:00] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:21:01] And six stores later and yeah so this was this was an amazing leap of faith.
Lily Chen [00:21:08] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:21:09] And I'm passionate about it, you know, and I say, if you love what you do, it's not a job now. It's not a job if you love what you do, it's not a job. Sometimes I can't stand Livernoise, but I can't wait to get back. It's almost like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. She wanted to go see the world, but then she realized there's no place like home.
Lily Chen [00:21:29] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:21:30] I'm like, man, I'm tired of Livernoise but then I get excited and go back on Livernoise. You know, that's just the ebb and flows of life.
Lily Chen [00:21:36] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:21:37] You know, because my job is beautiful. I don't stress. It's great and sometime to get. Maybe just the paperwork. But then when your like, heys I need, Hey man, I need a custom suit because I make suits. And for everybody, I mean,
have the police chief, Warren Evans, all the preachers. I just I haven't God has blessed me with a myriad of clientele, all the top lawyers in the city, they just, you know. And that's what makes my job exciting.
Lily Chen [00:22:14] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:22:15] And I like it.
Lily Chen [00:22:16] Well, everyone needs a suit.
Algernon Bartell [00:22:17] Yeah, everyone needs a suit or some shoes or a hat, you know? And that's how the hat stand came about. Because I didn't want to. I didn't want to be a shoe store to sell hats, and I didn't want a clothing store to sell hats. So and they'd like right in between, you know, it's like, here's the clothing store, here's the hat store, there's the shoe store. So it's like a one stop shop.
Lily Chen [00:22:42] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:22:43] You know, it's like, wow, I'm like, man, they keep asking me for these hats, say I'm going to open up a hat store. Competition is healthy. It is because people say, well, somebody else said, well, listen, if you go to the mall, Neiman's is there.
If you go to city, I mean, it's you have Sax, you have Nordstroms, you have Macy's. And they all survive. Mm hmm. So, you know. Everybody don't want to eat the same thing every day. Much as you like lobster, you don't want to eat it every day. But if you like steak, you don't want to eat steak every day. You know, variety is the spice of life.
Lily Chen [00:23:25] Yeah. Yeah. Tell me, um. I mean, you have six stores. Yes, ma'am. Tell me, what is your favorite thing about each store?
Algernon Bartell [00:23:37] The hats that the hats, the décor or the merchandise which one?
Lily Chen [00:23:43] Either.
Algernon Bartell [00:23:43] Okay and what I pride myself in that this. We have water, we have everybody say they comment. This must be your store just because I just seen all this candy and snacks in another store. So in all my stores, you got big bowls of candy and you got big bowls of snacks sometimes be you know that like, wait a minute. Oh, no. I got to get something to eat out, I'll come back. But grab that chip, that'll kill the hunger pangs. You know, and water. I try to accommodate them nice and clean. Well that well decorated. And people always say it is, you know what? No, no, no, no. If I can put a suit and tie method of colors, if you can match colors, if you can match the suit, you can match furniture. Same thing. It's just a different object, you know. So I have I think I have a gift because I decorate all my stores and then they're like ,who did it, it's incredible. I don't do the building. I got to builder, but I decorate all the stores.
Lily Chen [00:24:51] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:24:52] And the most. What I love about the hat store is the variety. And the Big to Johnny Depp. You come to the store there’s a big Mad Hatter poster, about 15 feet. Blew up. Take all the pictures from the Mad Hatter and everybody. And I'm a marketing guy, sp we buy a hat, you get a box, you've got to take a picture, market it, and
you see the Mad Hatter. That's what I tell people. Buy famous. Y'all going to see this Mad Hatter scene. It's going to be is going to be on MSNBC. Mm hmm. This is going to be the place to go. And that's why I do it. Because it's so odd. It's a big 15 feet emblem of the store. Yeah, the Mad Hatter. And so the diversity in the Mad Hatter, which I like, what I like about my main store, which where I'm at Times Square, is the custom clothes. I like to create something from scratch. And I have many suits on the on the rack. But when you want that one something special, that one of one, what I call has certain fabrics, I have one fabric I make the suit and can't make it anymore.
Lily Chen [00:26:03] Wow. Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:26:04] I call that the 1 to 1. So that's what I'm most excited about, man. I need something in 14 days, I got to get it made. I'm having a big wedding and I can produce.
Lily Chen [00:26:13] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:26:13] Yeah. The shoe store. Any kind of shoe scans, gym shoe, all kind of shoes, casual dress. We have that. That's what you think about shoes. It is shoes for less. The name speaks for itself. Some people don't have a lot of money, but they still want to look nice. You know, so. Sense for us because we send people over there all the
time, all the time. And I can't afford to let them go over there. Oh, wow. Thank you. And they happy. And the Red Door is a Lady Shoe Store. And the colors are, it's self explanatory. The doors are red, you know. And it's a beautiful store. Beauteous Decorated nice and 42nd Street is the most eclectic. It's the most aesthetically beautiful store because I got columns and different moldings and things. This is the smallest one, but it's the aesthetically most beautiful store. Yeah, it's on an angel that's over there across from Grosse Pointe over down Guildford and Mack. But it's a beautiful store. So each one of my different none is, no repeats. This one is unique unto themselves.
Lily Chen [00:27:28] Yeah. I mean, to run all of those stores, you must have. I mean, you said you have 19 people you have a big team.
Algernon Bartell [00:27:35] Right.
Lily Chen [00:27:36] And tell me about that moment when you had to when you went from, you know, just you to actually trusting other people to take on your stores.
Algernon Bartell [00:27:45] Yes. it's kind, it’s kind of a hard thing to do, but you got to let it go or you won't grow. Because I can remember some days when I would be in a store by myself all day. No one coming. As I said, it's going to get better. Then I would come in. I was there, I'll be with you in a minute and I'm there trying to say it was two or three people said this is not going to work, so I get another help, then I get another help. But as it grew. So let me just open up this store and open it and people will come. And it grew like my main store someday will have. Three or four people on the floor. But up to the point now that if it's not custom, I'm not going to service them because I can't. I can't you know, I have I have to do to the ordering, have to do the buying. I have to do the payroll.
Lily Chen [00:28:36] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:28:37] So I'm only getting up if it's a custom because that's different. I got to get a better manager and me make sure that's right. Yeah. So my other staff, they
can have a lot of other stuff. And the shoe store I got guy that used to run shoe store, that was 30 years that had been business. I don't look over his shoulder. You all tell me what to get, long as the numbers are right, we're good. Lady store it. Exactly. I've never got. And that's funny. I went. Oh, lady stores those like the ladies. But you guys, if you want a six, you got to bring out ten pair of shoes. So, of course, I get dressed, I get dressed, I'm sharp. One of my guys say, Al, I can't come in today. I said, okay, I'll work the store. I got dressed. Oh, Man, I'm crushing that killed these ladies. I'm going to sell a lot of shoes. I'm going there, Me and my guy. So I go in there and she said, I need a six. I go back and get a six. Do you have it in something else? I'm like wait a minute, hold on. So I say, you got to take care of is. And I just said the rest of the day, I said, I'm not. No, no, no. I can't do this. I can't do this.
Lily Chen [00:29:45] A girl loves her choices.
Algernon Bartell [00:29:47] Right? And I didn't know that. I did not know that. So what I did, I said, look, you take care of this and let me take care of it. I would just sit here and do me and you can, you know, do all that. And I went back to my store. I'm so happy that Vasto and I have managers. Yeah. My son in law, in the shoe store and they great with it, they good with it. But I just when I could because I felt even help. I guess I'm spoiled now because even helping guys that come off the street want a two piece outfit, but I can't do everything. So right now I'm just trying to perfect custom. And I hired the people to do everything else, and it runs real well doing that way. I can't be. I can't be two places at one time and learn everybody's job. I think, yeah, it's just physically and mentally impossible.
Lily Chen [00:30:44] You, have you.
Algernon Bartell [00:30:45] To pick people to. I've been very successful at picking people, managers and paying them well. And you know.
Lily Chen [00:30:55] Um, so it must have been, it must be really cool to get to see people kind of grow into leadership positions.
Algernon Bartell [00:31:01] Yes, yes, yes. It's it's it's cool. My sister's got it. Took me a while to get it. But, you know, I say now got to she take the pressure when you see her. See what, what? What? I'll get hassled. But they won't hassle my sister. That's how it is. Oh, that's nice. And they got. Okay. They got easy on their lady, they, you know, a little softer tone and kind of souls after a lot of seasoning and whatever she says she got into
y'all see her. Man, I need you to go with this because you got away from it. Then you know that soft lady voice, they kind of like, okay, then. So. You got to use what you got. I pay her well, that's my right hand.
Lily Chen [00:31:47] Yeah,.
Algernon Bartell [00:31:49] That's my right hand.
Lily Chen [00:31:49] Um. Do employ a lot of a lot of women in the 19.
Algernon Bartell [00:31:54] I have one, two, three, four. The lady she runs, well my sister. I have a lady manager that runs the shoe store. My sister run my store.
Lily Chen [00:32:05] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:32:06] And have other ladies, too. But the other three stores are male managers where she was, she didn't want her and Stacey. Stacey demanded a store to herself.
Lily Chen [00:32:16] Yeah. Cool. Yeah. Um, you know, of course you're experiencing, like, success now, and you're able to kind of relax. Tell me about some of the bumps on the road earlier.
Algernon Bartell [00:32:28] Oh, wow. Many bumps. The bumps is because you have tradeshows and you go to Vegas, you go to New York and you go. You have to you have to learn. It's just a learning, just like anything else. It's a learning curve because it's like you have a smorgasbord of everything. And what I want to get that. I want to get that. I want to be back. I want to sell that. I want to sell that. And two things. You can't always get what you like, cause you might not like what I like. You know, you can get what you sell. Everybody's not going to buy what you want.
Lily Chen [00:33:11] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:33:12] You know what I mean? So you have to. That's a learned behavior. You have to learn that. Your eyes are bigger than your pocketbook. Especially when they want to give you terms, because in businesses it's called net 30, net 60. And I used to do that. And then you look up 30 days, this bill is due, this bill is due, this bill is due, wait a minute, I still got stuff. So that was a learning curve. So now, everything in all my stores is paid for. Period. No net 30. If I can't buy it, I don't want it. And I was able to learn that business like that because you go to Vegas and you see all this stuff and so you have to temper and this a learned behavior you have to temper because you know, you got the new shiny truck. I can get it, I can move it, but it will always happen like that. So because I'm. So it's a learn, that was a learning thing. 2008 was kind of rough.
Lily Chen [00:34:11] Yeah,.
Algernon Bartell [00:34:11] The market crash was rough on everybody. Lily Chen [00:34:14] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:34:14] I think I lost a store in 2008. I did. What did I lose? I lost the store. A closed store, we reopened a couple of years later. I think I lost 42nd Street in 2008. Yeah, lost 42nd Street but, you know, when I regained, I opened it back up. Yeah. That's what happened in 2008 because, the learning curve. A learning curve. And then when everybody, that was the housing market, the bubble, right?
Lily Chen [00:34:46] Yep.
Algernon Bartell [00:34:47] Yeah. The bubbles, it's pretty rough. And then. And I used to have a lady, a lady store. Nice. Um. I always had unisex stores. But when the bubble came. places with high-end lady pieces. And when the bubble come in was like, Whoa, wait a minute, the, the discounters came in, the T.J. Maxx's and it was home and did all those behind. So I just stuck to the man business. It was more for me. It's more profit for me. Just stuck to demand. And didn't I just do lady's shoes. You guys have so many choices. I'm jealous. I'm jealous of how ladies get dressed because you can put a scarf, a handbag on, glasses. There's so many ways tied around that. And I love fashion. Yeah, I love fashion. So you guys have. You guys have us. 80-20, the guy put on a suit, shirt and
tie, but then let you guys do a wrap. Wide-legged pants, short-legged pants, a jacket, a bandana, a purse. Just accessories can make it everything for you guys.
Lily Chen [00:35:55] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:35:56] Accessories can make everything for you guys. I love lady, women fashion, but I just. Right now. Just the shoes for me. Somebody else can do that. I love it. I love the creativity. I love it. I just didn't want to
Lily Chen [00:36:12] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:36:12] Get back into lady's.
Lily Chen [00:36:14] Tell me about what the avenue of fashion was like in the nineties. Algernon Bartell [00:36:19] And the nineties. So I came over then and it was down. Lily Chen [00:36:23] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:36:24] It was horrible. Oh, yeah. In the sixties, it was like the place to be. Sixties. Early seventies. You know, I was born in '60. And there was a, because you had Bee Seagulls on the corner. You had Jack's Place, you had First Shop. You had everything everywhere at the time, and that was the place to be. Car lot. Car. Lots. Up and down the. You know, you guys that show car lots, it was the place to be. It was like an extension. It was only two places, downtown and avenue fashion. Hmm. Right. And then, you know. Poverty came in and hit it hit it hard in the 80's it was you know yeah but survived and you know just went down. But the recreation of it. The the vision of the foresight. And. Is if. If it's two things then. And I'm excited about Gucci opening downtown. But if we had a major, that's the only thing we missed. We missed two things. And I always say I put it on my pay like you crazy. Is it really coming? No, I deal in faith. If we had a Garrett's popcorn. Or Chick-Fil-A, that, that I'm serious, that would separate. Because you've been to Chicago, right?
Lily Chen [00:37:52] Of course.
Algernon Bartell [00:37:53] Chicago on a corner. I would just then I'd bring back my 30 bags of popcorn from Garrett's. Chicago has a Chick-Fil-A. Chick fil A's builds are usually the way you can park and drive around. But Chicago has one. They have a two story Chick-Fil-A. Unlike Chicago, Michigan and a couple of doors from Gucci and it's a two story Chick-Fil-A. Like wow if we can have if we added Chick-Fil-A over there or Garrett's popcorn something that's, that's historically, people would just come and just walk the block. They come for that and they find something else. And we go visit the park. Oh a shoe store, buy pair of shoes because, um, those two things. We just need one major. You know, if we had a major issue, even even as things get better and Gucci, do what they do. Maybe I'm almost praying that we get a Gucci outlet. You know because the Gucci have outlets that they do stuff that they don't.
Lily Chen [00:39:02] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:39:02] That they you know things that they don't sell they cut the price or whatever. That could be a you know what, I can't go to Gucci or Somerset, but I can go to the outlet and get something. And so I'm I'm hopeful. I'm prayerful. I mean, that's
why I seen the vision. And that's why I opened the five stores. I'm like I'm thinking, let them in. I'm not going to let nobody just come open right next to a find opportunity.
Lily Chen [00:39:27] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:39:28] You know, but I'm done. I don't want to do any more. I'm good, I'm good.
Lily Chen [00:39:32] Really?
Algernon Bartell [00:39:33] Yeah, I think I'm good.
Lily Chen [00:39:34] Six is your max.
Algernon Bartell [00:39:35] Six is, I just accepted another job pastoring a church So six is done.
Lily Chen [00:39:41] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:39:41] Yeah. Six is done. I'm done. I've been helping, you know. Now, somebody else wanted in our system entirely, but far as hands on.And doing that now and I'm done. I'm, you know. Comfortable enough and I'm good. But you know, you never say never. I'm just thinking but you really you never say never.
Lily Chen [00:40:01] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:40:01] Because somebody will find somebody to do some, you know, the best person to do something. Somebody that's busy. That's the best person. If you want something done, get somebody that's busy because they already doing it with somebody who's not busy and you go make them. That's not going to happen. You got to find somebody with passion, with fire, with with with drive.
Lily Chen [00:40:23] Yeah. You know.
Algernon Bartell [00:40:24] So they say for you all, you want to get some done, find somebody who's busy to do it. So I'm never I've never say never. I just thought about that. Never say never.
Lily Chen [00:40:33] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:40:33] Never say never. Because. I could even expand Times Square. You know. Get that one customer to make like that one leBron James or that one Warren Buffett customer that just can point, you know. So never say never.
Lily Chen [00:40:57] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:40:58] Never say never.
Lily Chen [00:41:00] So you've been on the avenue of fashion for a long time. Tell me, um. Do you have any favorite stores that you don't own that you like to visit?
Algernon Bartell [00:41:15] Restaurants or stores.
Lily Chen [00:41:16] Either.
Algernon Bartell [00:41:17] Restaurants I love. Good Times on the Ave. My buddy Nick owns that. I love Good Cakes and Bakes. I love good cakes and Bakes, that's amazing. And, of course you know I love Kuzzo's.
Lily Chen [00:41:36] Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:41:36] I ate their breakfast yesterday. Um. Joe's Gallery. She did a lot of things for me. She got pictures that she framed for me and did for me in all my stores. As a matter of fact, she framed the family portrait. They have amazing pieces in Joe's Gallery.
Lily Chen [00:41:53] They do.
Algernon Bartell [00:41:54] Amazing pieces in Joe's Gallery. Yeah, I love Rhonda. The house of morrison with the shoe store. She does a lot of repairs for me. And she has a great product and a great work ethic so I love that about her.
Lily Chen [00:42:12] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:42:12] I've yet to. I love the Narrow Way.
Lily Chen [00:42:16] The coffee?
Algernon Bartell [00:42:17] Yeah, I love the Narrow Way, and I love the the the new juice thing. What is it, two doors from my hat store. I could see it, it's in my head. They got the all natural juices, all natural, no preservatives. And I drink one every day. It's. Man, I don't its name, but it's two doors from the hat store. And they do a great, great bit. I think they both open up downtown too. They do a great business all natural no sugar, no preservatives. Energy Zone. That's what it is. Energy zone,Yes, Energy Zone.
Lily Chen [00:42:57] Some health food in there.
Algernon Bartell [00:42:58] Yes. Energy Zone. Yeah. And a and I haven't tried that vegan place, but that's like fire.
Lily Chen [00:43:05] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:43:06] Trapped Vegan. Oh, my God. It's like they outside all the time. They're very diverse clientele outside that. It's a nice place. I've been trying to try it but they're busy.
Lily Chen [00:43:21] Yeah, they win a lot of awards.
Algernon Bartell [00:43:22] What? Trapped Vegan?
Lily Chen [00:43:24] For their Vegan food. Yeah, yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:43:26] Yeah, I'm gonna try it, but I can just see, And they're always that busy, they're busy.
Lily Chen [00:43:32] Yeah, it really sounds like. Hearing you talk about other businesses that there's a community there.
Algernon Bartell [00:43:41] Yes.
Lily Chen [00:43:41] You know. You know the other owners.
Algernon Bartell [00:43:43] Yes. Yes, I know, April. I know Derek that runs that, and I know Don from share, I know everybody that's basically on the block. Theres other hat stores on the block other clothes store, the Broadway clothing down going towards kind of north of, I mean, south of seven mile there's another store? So eventually they're thinking that it's not impossible for this to go to Davis.
Lily Chen [00:44:09] Oh, that'll be long.
Algernon Bartell [00:44:11] They think that it could go to, eventually, it could go to Davis. But, um, we just need some, I don't know. We need that major. We need that one or two major. And, we need the banners and they said they worked on the banners. I think the banners would even you know, you go to any neighborhood and you have the banners back in Grosse Pointe, you've got Grosse Pointe Park banners or whatever the banners, Avenue. University Common banners. We just we we have the light poles. Matter of fact, Avenue of Fashion is the only place in the city that have the double light poles. We have the poles that light this way and light that way. Courtesy of Warren Evans. Yes.
Lily Chen [00:44:56] I didn't know that.
Algernon Bartell [00:44:57] Yes, you look up, we got the light poles that light here and has the arm on and light the sidewalk too. It's the only place in the city on avenue of fashion and so on that pole you got the two things where you can put the banners. I think that would help us tremendously. And I'm really I'm hopeful, a lot of faith. I think that the Avenue of Fashion can be, like those other people, we could be second to none. Yeah, not to not…. I mean, but Rodeo is I mean, we have to go a long way, but. What it means to you. It's what it, what it really means, because, I mean, they have all the stores I'm talking. Yeah. Glitzy, Louie Vuitton, Gucci, Ferragamo, Christian Louboutin. What other ones. Etro. Whatever high end thing it is, Rodeo has, and it's beautiful.
Lily Chen [00:45:58] But they're not Detroit.
Algernon Bartell [00:46:00] They're not Detroit. They have Christmas in summer, or Summer Christmas. What is it? I was out there in Christmas and I mean, it was 80 degrees, with Santa Claus and December. Christmas in December. That's what they have out there. And then the magnificent mile in Michigan is beautiful. Michigan Avenue. Magnificent Mile. That's beautiful. So we want to rival that. We want to copy that. We want to press that. That's why I'm saying. Diversity is good. Diversity is really good and I'm very prideful. There's a lot of black bean stuff in there, but diversity is cool.
Lily Chen [00:46:42] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:46:43] Because God is a diverse God. So the rest of the. Lily Chen [00:46:46] Yes, He is.
Algernon Bartell [00:46:47] You know, you can bring all you know, you can't put him in a box. Should we be put in a box? And I don't care who you are, what color you are. Next to me is nice. You know, that's my take on it. I don't, if I put money in my stores. Everybody has to put money next to you. Because you can't take it all home. You want it to look nice. Presentation is everything. First impressions the lasting impression. I come in your store and sell it to others. At least in. Looking around, I'm like, okay, well, I'm never I'm not coming back. Just like gas stations and gas station that don't mine, that don't uh manicure their grass and trash is everywhere. And I'm not then even stopping. And that's another thing I pride myself on trying to keep my stores clean, neat and presentable and good customer service. And people come back. They appreciate that.
Lily Chen [00:47:47] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:47:48] Really appreciate that.
Lily Chen [00:47:50] Yeah. Well, it's cool to hear you talk about your hopes for the future and where the avenue of fashion can go. And it's such a beautiful place because, you know, everyone has been to Michigan Avenue, but, um, you can't see the diversity there. But you can, you feel like you are supporting black business owners that are Detroiters when you are on the avenue of fashion. And um, you know, they don't do fried chicken like we can do it.
Algernon Bartell [00:48:21] Right, right, right.
Lily Chen [00:48:22] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:48:23] Right.
Lily Chen [00:48:24] So, um, okay, so any, I have just a few more questions for you about anything that I haven't asked you that you want to share.
Algernon Bartell [00:48:33] No. I don't think I can think of anything.
Lily Chen [00:48:37] Okay. Um, so the last couple of questions are, one is, what does hustle mean to you?
Algernon Bartell [00:48:45] Hustle means so many things. The Grand Hustle is this. And some people take that out of it. It is not something that may have a negative connotation. And I don't know why. Pete Rose was called Charlie Hustle. And I don't know if you you may be a little too young to know about Pete Rose. Pete Rose was a baseball player.
Lily Chen [00:49:14] Okay.
Algernon Bartell [00:49:15] 5000 hits.
Lily Chen [00:49:17] Oh, wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:49:17] And he's the one that had a gambling problem. They didn't want to put him in the Hall of Fame. But his name was Charlie Hustle because he always ran it out. You know, even though he was out, he would run through the base path is Charlie Hustle. So hustle is not. And I don't know how I got to a negative connotation any
China hustle made in China hustle but hustle to me is being determined taking that I can conquer the world, but I'm not going to quit. I would do it grinding. Uh, don't stop. He that fails the plan, plans to fail. There's no. Might not do it today, but I've got to try again tomorrow. So, that's what hustle is about, I still I still hustle and it's not a bad turn and Detroit hustles they do. Detroit is a hustling town because nobody's going to give you nothing, nothing comfortable sleeping but a dream. Now if you, you lazy. Lazy and hustle don't even go in the same sentence. They can't. You got to get it. You got to burn it. You got to get it. And that's what Detroit is about. Detroit is about hustle.
Lily Chen [00:50:42] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:50:43] And I say to customers and never say the store. Yes. And I will do it no more because I don't have time because my work and then that Instagram and that I work, I get off sometime at eight and I go home and I don't get off into twelve it because I'm posted and so much money. I see that picture. I seen it.
Lily Chen [00:51:04] Yeah
Algernon Bartell [00:51:05] That's hustling. I'm going to bed literally hustling, you know, posting pictures, making tiktoks, literally. What are you doing? I'm hustling. That's what I do. You know what I mean? Not doing that slick, that underhanded. So you can take that
connotation out of that. I'm grinding. I'm working. Right. But I used to call people, hey, man, I got a new suit in. I got a new suit in, man, when you gonna come see me. I had a I used to have I still got to book you. You would look at my book in my studio, no way to throw that book away. Coffee spilled, old numbers, but I don't even use it. I haven't used it. Three Because my business is so is I don't use it no longer. Yeah, but I used to have customers I had to store set about. True story. And that's how you it because if you if you don't close miles don't get fit, you know. So. I used to call my cousin, man I got this new suit, and if you get a chance stop by, Alright man. So I had this one customer calls if you call my phone one more time man, when I see you back, they don't call my. It's got real ballistic. The next day, not two days, the next day he came and spent about $4,000 the next day. I mean, I'm sorry. I just was, you know, it was one of them days came and what you got. But had I not, that's how I used to get my customers. And I'll be there when I get, you know. Then I come to see you. But you got. Okay, I'll be there. But I don't have to make those calls no longer.
Lily Chen [00:52:43] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:52:43] Because the six stores the pressure, it's almost I don't even do cards anymore. I just said avenue of fashion because if you get on avenue of fashion you going to find me. You don't have to, I was that. And I know you would, man. This is my guy, one of the prominent preachers in this city. He just got elevated to presiding bishop. And I make his clothes I make his suits good for the visors. White, renowned recording artist Bishop Jacob Shears. So I'm at his church and uh, we get through the service. Hey, there's my buddy Al Bartell, make 90 percent of my clothes. Y'all go sing on avenue of fashion, if you mention my name, he probably will give you a discount. Like, 15 people came up to me for cards.
Lily Chen [00:53:34] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:53:37] And I didn't have any. Avenue of Fashion y'all find me. Because I'm program now used I could go anywhere without a card but they doing a digital
cards now and everything is so digital and so it's like, guys get a card, you got a card. But the only reason I don't do it because I got five businesses.
Lily Chen [00:53:55] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:53:55] On the most popular street in the city right now. So, Good cakes and Bakes helped me. Kuzzo's helped me. Good Times on avenue helped me. Ronda, helped me. Everything on the avenue of fashion helped me, because I just say the avenue of fashion. And so that's my card. You found me, I'm on avenue. So I mean, that's that's a good thing right now,.
Lily Chen [00:54:25] Of course.
Algernon Bartell [00:54:26] But that's what I tell people. You'll find me on Avenue of Fsahion. I don't carry cards like that.
Lily Chen [00:54:31] Yeah. Better for the environment anyway.
Algernon Bartell [00:54:33] Is better for the environment. Yeah. But I use that also because I used call people.I used to be in my office, Hey. What's up? Hey, man, I got some new shoes in come by and see me when you get a chance. Man, when you coming by. And, you know, I used to have a credit system, too. Wow. Yeah. Guy used to be, I mean, I I used to, I've said a lot. I'm just saying a lot Am I talking too much?
Lily Chen [00:54:59] No.
Algernon Bartell [00:54:59] No. I used to have young ladies, right? Work for me. And all the salon guys, the salon guy, they spend a lot of money because they make a lot of money. They would come around and I would to have like the young lady that worked for me go buy on Saturdays and collect cause I would give them credit.
Lily Chen [00:55:19] Hmm.
Algernon Bartell [00:55:20] Yeah. This was 500 men. I got 100 right now, but I'm a pay on every week. Okay, 6:00 I have her go up to the salons. You know, this is back in the 90's. They would come back with like 1500.
Lily Chen [00:55:35] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:55:35] Pick it up. 150, 100 there. And there's some of my guys, they be on book. Man I need a suit, but I don't got all the money. Okay. Boom. But I don't do that no more.
Lily Chen [00:55:46] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:55:48] I don't do that no more. But I lived like that for a minute. I lived off of that because I had a guy that I could trust.
Lily Chen [00:55:54] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:55:54] But there's some time you got to stop because they, they got when they ain't the money to pay you and get a new outfit. They go buy a new outfit and
then, you know. But yeah, but I don't do it. But that was, that was in the nineties, 93, 94, 95, 96. Somebody had guys on credit or whatever.
Lily Chen [00:56:12] Wow. Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:56:13] But it worked, though. They were paid. You know, I get burned once or twice, but, you know, I didn't. 9/10 it worked, so.
Lily Chen [00:56:20] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [00:56:21] But that was it. That was part of, that's hustling. Yeah, that's, that's is hustling because you need to sell it. They don't have all the money. They might not have the money, but you need to get somebody. My mother used to say that, and it's better than men. You know? So you got to get some. Mm hmm. They say I got my money at home and then arrested profit. And now I've put it on something else. So that's hustling. Hustling is the grind, the grit, the determination that I'm not gonna quit. His name was tracks I never forget his name. Man, you call me one more time, the next day not two days, that next day he came and spend about 5000. And then you got to hustle. You got to have this. Somebody say something. And I thought this was I had to look it up, man. You got this silver tongue. And I thought that was a negative connotation, too. But it's not. I look at can look this up. And you, man, I've got to get out of it. You got a silver tongue man. Means that you can talk people into anything. Even my cousin Dalton, Aw man there you go, cause there ain't no quitting. You bought one suit, you need this one for that event. You need that color. You got that shoe. Did I say that shoe? Well, you need that color. What about getting some ties, getting some cufflinks? I'm always selling cause I'm in that mode. I'm in the zone. I'm like Michael Jordan in the 96 playoffs, you know?
Lily Chen [00:57:44] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:57:44] I'm like that. Like Clade out of step shooting three I mean because you in that zone. Yeah and that's what hustle is and that guy will tell me that man. They let me go. Nope. I'm keeping my word this time he ain't gonna quit. But exactly the angles. If you in my store. I tell people I can't sing, I can't dance, but if I see that credit card. Oh, that's like turning on the lights. Show me that credit card. It's you at my mercy. Cause that's what I do. That's hustling. You don't need one suit, you need two. You need three shirts and ties. you need that pocket square, you need that cufflink. You got some cologne. You need to go smell that. They at the counter. They wrapped the suit up and put that on it. Oh, man, that's a hustler. But that's how I got 19 employees, right? Because you have to they got to be paid. And the greatest thing, when I write the check check don't box that so you sleep at night. There's always somebody that that's one of the worst feelings in the world. I've done that. If I say everybody, I've done it early. Wrote a check, the checked didn't clear. For an employee that would go on and get the money. But it just that's so horrible feeling.
Lily Chen [00:59:08] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:59:10] Yeah, that's a horrible thing. So I did that maybe once or twice early. Like in the nineties, but thank God I haven't had that situation.
Lily Chen [00:59:19] Yeah, yeah.
Algernon Bartell [00:59:20] But that's a horrible thing. You have to hustle. That's what hustle is.
Lily Chen [00:59:26] Yeah. What about the word hustler?
Algernon Bartell [00:59:31] I don't like the word hustler because that gives that's a negative. Well, not to say that we're hustle. The hustler, I guess, it's synonymous. Oh, he could, he hustles, get back and hustle. But it's not a negative term because just like give back a hustle on defense in the sports term. Oh. He's bustling, he's hustling. So hustler, I don't know, maybe the music culture had made it a negative connotation, you know, but in its purest form, it just means determined.
Lily Chen [01:00:15] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:00:16] Don't stop. Aggressive. Because you've got to be aggressive. You know, that's what I mean. You have to be aggressive. You can't be lazy and hustle cannot be in the same sentence. Now, hustle and aggressive there synonymous. But a lazy and hustler. No, no, no, no. But the not the connotation is like, you go to the pool hall and these, or, white men can't jump. Remember that movie?
Lily Chen [01:00:55] Mm hmm. Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [01:00:56] That was a hustler. They tried to play like they didn't know one another. You get the guy on the basketball. Let's see. That's the hustler. Or like in the Color Money. See, l'm a movie guy too. The Color of Money with Paul Newman and Tom Cruise great movie and, believe it or not. Yeah, King of King and King of Scotland, great actor Bobby Johnson with the bad eye, Forest Whitaker was in the movie. He was a hustler. Then, you know, you don't show your skills until you know. Or you got some loaded dice. That's a hustler. And that's the negative connotation. That's, We don't, we shy away from them. We don't do that. But the grind, the aggressiveness and the passion when you hustle, that's that's what Detroit is.
Lily Chen [01:01:51] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:01:51] In the legal sense.
Lily Chen [01:01:53] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:01:54] And and then the product make the product matters. Yeah. Sort of the hustle, the product matters. Oh he hustling, he out there hustling. So that means you out there selling something, you know, you got no business selling.
Lily Chen [01:02:06] Mhmm.
Algernon Bartell [01:02:07] So that I guess the determining the product determines the, the definition of the word to.
Lily Chen [01:02:14] Yeah. Yeah. So. Last one is a fun question. Okay. Your hustle turned into your main gig.
Algernon Bartell [01:02:24] Yes.
Lily Chen [01:02:25] So what is your new hustle? What's your new side hustle?
Algernon Bartell [01:02:29] I don't have a side hustle, but my new side hustle this. Yeah. Tell him what I just talked about. The pastoral. That's not a hustle, that's from God. Not that. But my side would just be maintaining this. What I have built and what I've created. That's that's the new thing. Just to create it too. Management is my hustle now.
Lily Chen [01:02:54] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:02:54] So to speak. To be able to manage and cultivate and show and teach. Mentorship is everything. Success without a successor is not success at all. Let me say it again. Success without a successor is not a success at all. That's why it passed down from generation to generation to generation. Because you have to you have to leave it to somebody.
Lily Chen [01:03:18] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:03:19] You have to show them everything. And I don't hold back nothing. And what was the true? When people call me, I have a guy that has three four stores. Although he said Call me, say I give him every vendor. Some people don't do that. And being selfish and stingy, you won't be blessed. Because I didn't hold back no information. All my friends say, look, call this person called this person call this person. He you call me crying, saying, man. I just want. Anybody want to share that information?
Lily Chen [01:03:54] Wow.
Algernon Bartell [01:03:56] And that's selfish.
Lily Chen [01:03:57] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:03:58] Selfish. Because the more the merrier. And that's all. But you're not my competition. Meat is not my competition. If God do what He going to do, I'll be all right.
Lily Chen [01:04:08] Mm hmm.
Algernon Bartell [01:04:08] And that's what. That's. That's everything, everything revolves and depends in my trusting God. Yeah. Every success I had. And every failure I had He held me up and every success I had, he pushed me through. You know. So that's what that's that's what it is to me. You have to you have to be and you really have to be selfless.
Lily Chen [01:04:31] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:04:32] To pass it along, you have to be selfless. You have to be compassionate and. Engaging to help somebody else. Because if if I help the person next door to succeed. Just for instance, in my store it's another store that was. I guess they didn't have the wherewithal to keep it up. So I painted her as I painted mine, as your next door to me, you're a reflection of me. So if it costs me money. You don't have the money to do it, but I don't want to just do mine and yours look bad, so, And it's so close. So, that's why I was talking about everybody. Nice has no pigmentation. It doesn't. Class has no pigmentation, and nohow has no pigmentation. I love to be the whole African-American
black. But before It'd be that, I want it to all be nice, if that makes sense. That makes sense.
Lily Chen [01:05:35] Yeah.
Algernon Bartell [01:05:36] Yeah. I'll sacrifice for somebody that don't take of business just because it's my ethnic group. For somebody to take care of my business. Ethnicity doesn't matter to me because, like I say, God is colorless. It doesn't do well in that. So. Selflessness. You have to be that. Giving yourself just share if you going to grow.
Lily Chen [01:06:07] Yeah. Well, thank you for talking to me today. Algernon Bartell [01:06:10] Okay. You're welcome.
Lily Chen [01:06:11] This was excellent. So I'm going to stop the recording.