Cash Is King

CHAPTER 5Production

“Oh, the purple cow!” Bob lamented as he and Yusef crested the hill and saw the Owens plant in the valley. A few years earlier, a young and earnest architect suggested they paint the new factory purple. “Purple? Who paints their plant purple? Let's stick with grey,” Bob argued at the time.

The young architect clearly anticipated resistance and proceeded with a soliloquy on the virtues of purple. “Rising from the field of wildflowers, this will not just be a factory, it will be a beacon. It will announce … no, it will shout out that this is a place of hope and optimism. Inside these purple walls great people will be doing great things. Children, passing by in yellow school buses will point excitedly at the big purple cow in the field. Purple is both regal and accessible. Purple is profound. Owens is profound. This is no ordinary factory; this is an Owens plant! This will be known as the purple cow in the valley. Great people doing great things inside!”

Silence. Bob remembers looking around the conference room. Surely this was a prank, and someone was filming him. When he finally realized that the architect was serious, he cleared his throat and thanked the young man, excusing him so the board could consider the design. In hindsight, Bob always regretted that he and the board did not wait a bit longer before they burst out laughing. Was he still in earshot? Bob, to this day, felt bad about that.

If the young architect did hear the laughter, it was he who got ...