Spirited Work

In the early 1980s, Joe Marver owned a women's discount apparel store. It was nothing notable.

One day, Joe looked across the street and saw a huge line, an Apple store-like line. He stepped out of his clothing store, wiped his brow, and gawked at the crowds. It was mid-October and the neighboring costume store was booming.

Joe chewed, stewed, and brewed. Why were people over there and not over here? What did all these customers want, and could he deliver it?

The following year, Joe opened a Halloween-themed pop-up store. He started with costumes and grew to wigs, accessories, makeup, and more. Joe grew his enterprise to sixty stores, operating seasonally, before selling his company in 1999. If you've been to a Spirit Halloween store, it's because of Joe.

But Joe Marver didn’t love Halloween. After selling his creation to Spencer Gifts, Marver admitted that he wasn’t a huge Halloween fan. Joe’s passion was entrepreneurship.

Passion doesn't build businesses, only work builds businesses. What fuels the work can be a passion, but it can be many things.

Don’t get tricked out of your treats. It's only good, spirited work that matters.

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