More Than a Hobby

How a $600 Startup Became America's Home and Craft Superstore (The Inside Story of Hobby Lobby)

By: David Green, Dean Merrill

Narrated by: Tom Parks

Discover the behind-the-scenes story of the founding and exponential growth of Hobby Lobby.

Learn the secrets of retail success from the man you built America's home-and-craft superstore—from the ground up.

The retail industry has undergone enormous changes during the last thirty years. But there is one retailer that not only has remained consistent in the fluctuating—even tenuous—market but also has grown in the process.

More Than a Hobby takes you inside the story of David Green, the man who built the phenomenal success of Hobby Lobby. Green went beyond surviving in a competitive retail market to thriving, ultimately expanding his $600 start-up company into a $1.3 billion per-year enterprise.

Green's incredible accomplishments were based not on business-school theory but on his grassroots experiences as a store manager and his creative application of cutting-edge ideas, including:

• Allow managers to spend no more than thirty minutes per day on paperwork
• Instead of paying a middleman, assemble as much of the product as possible in-house
• Give buyers the freedom to purchase without restraint?but within the realm of common sense
• Keep God and family first

More Than a Hobby is a practical field manual, filled with revolutionary ideas for all those who dream of success in the world of retail business.

Honesty

Honest approach to their business creation and model. Success isn’t easy. Thisbis a private company and they want to keep it that way.

Very Inspiring

As an entrepreneur I am thrilled with the fact that a humble high school graduate using the wisdom of the Bible and common sense is able to build such a successful business. I have always known this is the path I want to take in my endeavors and this is solid proof that it works. From now on I will make Hobby Lobby a go to when buying supplies for my business and an example of how my business should be run.

Such Humility

What an amazing display of Christ’s humility. When we set ourselves aside and allow Christ to work through us we can admire the power of our Savior. A man who has every reason to be proud and selfish he instead chooses humility and service. Definitely a worthy read.

Eternal goodness

What a great book what an amazing man is very few people that I’ve ever met that I’ve done more good for others and Christianity than David Green. We all could be 1/100 as good as him the world would be a better place.

Great story, great information, great lesson

I learned about starting from nothing, retail, and the myriad of knowledge, skills, what to do and what to avoid aspects of building a great business. Paced well, organized expertly, presented like a story—which it is—and inspiring. Humbly gave me confidence to succeed. And to trust and obey God.