Adam Reisfield's West Coast Experience

Summary

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On the team adventure, we had the opportunity to talk with a variety of interesting people and see some very unique businesses.  The first business we visited was called Boys Fort, and also contained a business called Frock within the store.  While talking to the owner of frock, we learned some interesting aspects of Portland retail that we may not have thought about.  Frock sells crazy patterned socks, signs with wierd expressions, and other local, vintage, funky, and obscure products.  The owner says she has been operating for 1 year, with the Boys Fort location being her second location.  When asked about the "keep Portland weird" theme, she said that her products actually are meant to cater to the "weird" population of the city itself.  She said her previous location was actually located in Seattle, and even though she offered similar products, she could not find the same kind of success.  

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We met with another nice lady who told us about the importance of work-life balance in Portland.  People really value having time to spend with friends and family, being able to enjoy the outdoors, and live a balanced lifestyle.  The biggest problem with the current wellbeing of Portland right now she identified to be the influx of people.  As the city grows, prices for apartments are increasing with the overall cost of living, and people who have lived in the city for their entire lives are being forced out.  The lady says she has countless friends who have experienced this tragedy, and it is a real problem in the city.

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Several people that we talked to also gloated about the trolly system.  They said it was clean, efficient, and a great method of communication around the city.

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Key Takeaways

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• The "keep Portland weird" theme is maintained because it works in a circular motion.  The population is weird because the businesses are weird, and the businesses are weird because the population is weird.  This back and forth points towards the city maintaining its unique culture for quite some time.

• It is always important to get the full view of a situation.  Most people would view the success of the city in purely positive ways, but there are actually significant downsides to the cities growth.