Feeling nostalgic about buyer-seller relationships

I read a recent article that cassette tapes are making something of a comeback, fed by what I believe must be misplaced “nostalgia.”

What is exactly to be nostalgic for with cassette tapes? Auto-reverse was slick enough, I suppose. But think of the lost cases, the poor sound, the dirt collected on tapes in the glove box, the bulky tape library mobile cases - ugh.

But there are some things to be correctly nostalgic about.

I asked this question to the LinkedIn Fresh Produce Industry Discussion Group:

What, if anything, are you nostalgic for relative to the produce business now compared with the way it used to be? What would you bring back?

Here are a few responses so far:

> The opportunity to talk with buyers. We’re losing relationships

> This business used to be heavily relationship based, sometimes to a fault, but at least you knew where you stood and people were upfront and (relatively) honest.

> Buyers are under tremendous pressure to keep margins high even against increased competition...for that and other reasons, relationships aren’t valued as they once were. Relationships today are more transactional than at anytime I can recall in my 40 years in the produce industry. On another note...bring back training at retail operations, there is a huge knowledge gap at a time when the proliferation of products has never been greater. The produce dept should be the most desirable dept to work in and build a career at retail.

TK: Relative to the industry, how would you answer the question? What do you miss now that you once had? What do you miss now that you never had?