Why name it
ILNIK?
Have you ever been chased by a bear?
ILNIK is named after the Ilnik lagoon in Alaska where I got chased by a bear (not the bear to the left, the one that chased us was MUCH bigger). I was 17 years old, a commercial fisherman on the Aleutian Chain in Alaska. I decided to go for a walk down the beach with a friend. We saw something way down the beach and just kept walking. Turns out it was a large Kodiak bear. Before long we realized that it was running. Toward us. Still a ways off, we turned around and started heading toward camp. Only minutes later we were running. So was it. The bear was much faster than us. It wasn't long before it was only 30 yards away. Standing on its hind legs, sniffing the air, something else caught its attention. We managed to get on the other side of a dead walrus that had washed up on the beach. I guess the bear decided that meal wasn't running. We walked away with a great story to tell.
This episode made a lasting impression on me. It represents the attitude that I believe retailers and brands need to have to succeed.
Recognize the threat
Know when to walk
Know when to run
Be faster than the other guy
Learn something from the experience
and finally...
Live to tell the tale
Mission
Create opportunity through retail
The change that needs to happen for retail to be great has to happen at retail. We aim to inspire, motivate, and coordinate the changes that need to happen for retail to be great.
Vision
Strong communities that provide opportunities
We believe that strong retail makes for strong communities. Strong communities create opportunities. Our work will create opportunity.
Method
Build relationships.
Build the relationship between brands and retailers so that the strength of each improves both.
Values
Everything that we do is run through the filter of our values. We understand that if you want to feel good about the work you're doing, you need to believe in what you’re doing.
Only great will survive
We believe in retail and understand that only great will survive. Bad retail is going away. Great retail is here to stay. We’ve built this philosophy into everything that we do at ILNIK. Part of our process is asking the question, “Is it great?” We either figure out how to make it great or it dies and we move on.
Do what is right.
Sometimes doing what is right is easy. Sometimes it isn’t. In every case we strive to do what is right. What is right for our clients. What is right for the project. What is right for our staff. What is right for the community. What is right for the world.
Wake up inspired.
We believe in following the dream. We also understand that every description of a dream ends with, “and then I woke up”. The best ideas are often born from a dream, an epiphany, a lightbulb moment. What we know is that is just the start. We are inspired by the dream and rooted in the things that it takes to make that dream a reality.
Value beats hype.
Hype is easy.The trick is to provide value to everyone involved. Doing business with ILNIK is not a zero-sum game. We work to make sure that what we’re doing is valuable, not just hyped.
If you are going to say yes, mean it.
Before we say yes to any job, idea, or solution, we’ve done our research to know what we’re getting into. That way when we say yes, we mean it. We’re committed to the job through all the challenges that might come our way.
The ILNIK team
Jeremy McKinley
Principle
From The GAP to Trek Bicycle, Jeremy has been living retail for close to three decades. His experience in marketing, operations, sales, and management provide a deep and diverse background to draw on. Jeremy believes that great retail is both possible and vital.
Dedicated retail pros
The team
A large group of independent retail professionals are called upon depending on the project and the client. ILNIK has working partnerships with experts in digital marketing, training, merchandising, and more.