Diary / Justbobbi / Sep 26, 2022
J.Crew's Mickey Drexler on Business, Retail & Steve Jobs
Written by: Bobbi
Mickey Drexler is one of the coolest people I know. He's been a role model for me and now he's a dear friend. Mickey is responsible for the Gap in the 90s, J.Crew, and for making one of the first Apple stores. Throughout my career, he's been the one to show me the importance of being myself. On the podcast, we talk business, the future of retail, and working with Steve Jobs. Listen to the full episode here.
On working with Steve Jobs...
I always admired him immensely. He had an amazing vision and he was articulate. His brain was extraordinary. The board meetings were an extraordinary experience, listening to him talk about wanting to do a car or wanting to do this and that.
On the future of retail...
I think it is getting better, in general. It's kind of a new game. There are a million startups out there chipping away at big companies. It's a tough business. The product becomes important, execution is important, digital and online are important, marketing is important, the personality is important and managing a really good company is all really important. It's not as much fun as it used to be, but it is what it is.
On who he likes to hire...
I don't know if I'm orthodox or un-orthodox, but I look for fast walkers. I like people who walk fast. You want them to be a little fast walking, even at interviews. I look for people who are a little nervous, a little insecure. People who are successful always want to do better. They are not cocky or arrogant about their success. I look for people with a high E.Q. - emotional intelligence. I look for intuition. I look for jobs that stand out. I love people who work at restaurants. I like people who I can learn something from. If I sit down with someone and I don't learn about anything they do, I don't think they will be good communicators or bosses. Without a team, you're nothing.
On what drives him...
Creativity. Building. Imagination. I can't rest my imagination, so that drives me.
On his news routine...
I used to be a religious New York Times reader and now I read it before I go to bed, I just go online. I'm a news junkie. I read online at night, the newspaper is always old news the next morning. The night before I read the Daily Mail, that covers the New York Post and Page Six.