The Territorial Behaviour of Lichen, Shops and Wolves
Life depends on chemical reactions to produce energy and to consume nutrients. While the plants and animals we eat come to our minds easily, there are organisms which rely on chemical reactions with non-living materials for nourishment.
Coral and Lichen are good examples. Take Lichen, an organism so successful and diversified that it covers an estimated 6% of the earth’s land.
That’s 2.2 trillion acres.
Lichens are often the first to settle in places lacking soil, and are therefore referred to as a ‘pioneer species’. They aren’t as passive as you might think at first, as they produce chemicals which inhibit moss growth, a clever tactic used to try and out-compete moss for the same territory.
Lichens are not parasites, and do not eat living things, and yet are living organisms. No one would argue that.
Likewise, business organisms rely on chemicals, law and money in order to function.
While they do not literally consume living things (some might argue that they do!) businesses grow, fight, evolve and die in a lifelong battle for survival.
I believe that thinking of businesses as living organisms will lead to interesting discoveries about business strategies, from a new set of first principles, and by tweaking many existing best practices.
Take the key importance of market competition, for example.
Business managers show territorial behaviour by watching their market/territory for actual or potential encroachment by other businesses.
This could be competing with another firm for a major government contract, or the ongoing consumer marketing battle between Pepsi vs Coca Cola.
The business organism’s brain (read: board of directors) decides whether they should or shouldn’t stifle the competing organism’s ability to function, and how.
This could be through overtly predatory tactics, or simply competing harder at all levels.
If all else fails, usurped businesses may have to pack up and head for new land, just as it has been for creatures since the dawn of life.
A classic business focused example of this would be the heaps of small grocers, butchers and convenience stores struggling to compete with supermarkets and online marketplaces.
Let’s consider the similarities between independent businesses and Ethiopian Wolves for a moment. Humour me. 🐺 vs 🛍 … 🧐
Ethiopian wolves live in packs that share and defend an exclusive territory, and yet they hunt alone on small rodent prey. It pays for these wolves to be independent most of the time, yet occasionally band together.
Small town shop owners live side by side as they compete against one another for the money each customer has to spend.
These independent retailers often come together, as they have in the UK so that they project one group voice in order to fend off incoming threats.
These threats to small town stores could be in the form of taxes and regulations, or a survival threat specific to one individual shop. The latter is reduced through business advice, benefits and assistance provided by the group.
Without these lobbying groups, the large supermarket chains would more easily lobby the government to push their own growth agendas, to the detriment of independents.
What I’m suggesting is that throughout history, unions, associations and even political parties evolve and grow when a (perceived) common threat to survival appears.
Although it may take thousands of generations for a species to embed such grouping catalysts into their societal survival strategies in nature. We can evolve and grow new and powerful groupings in a matter of days, months or years.
I’d like to compare lichen’s anti-moss tactics to that of independent shops.
I went to university in Bristol, UK and spent a bunch of time in or around the area of Stokes Croft and Gloucester Road.
In a 2016 report by Barratt Homes, Gloucester Road was reported to have the longest row of independent shops in Europe.
This is reportedly due to the mass of nearby middle class homes who want a personal service, something that supermarkets struggle to offer.
My theory is more pack-like with a smidge of a compounding effect.
I believe that because Gloucester Road is known for its independence, fiercely entrepreneurial spirits from miles around will dream of one day opening up a shop there.
Fun fact: Pieminister’s first shop was on Gloucester Road, for example.
The people who care most about being part of this tight-knit community will move to the area to share in the sense of belonging and pride.
Wannabe business owners know that the area is kind to independent shops. As it’s an established way of life, and a destination for tourists to the area with money to spend, perhaps it will be easier to start a shop there. Weigh that thinking up against considering somewhere else heaving with chain stores.
Meanwhile shoppers believe that by supporting independent businesses, they support a vibrant counter-culture.
Those who live and work in the area discuss the shops with their visiting friends and family with a sense of honour and respect. They embody pride in their purchases, and in their rejection of supermarkets.
They actively encourage more independence by shopping at small stores, which is a positive feedback loop.
Hand in hand with the counter-culture, the area is known for graffiti, and some local pubs and shops want graffiti on their walls.
I believe that the graffiti is a constant visual reminder and emotional catalyst for continued independent community pride.
So what happens when that community pride is challenged? When the survival of an array of different independent shops in the area becomes threatened?
Cue Tesco, 2011. Wading in against that burgeoning independent spirit, Tesco sets up shop in the area.
For those who don’t know, Tesco is a major supermarket brand in the UK accounting for nearly 1/3rd of the UK’s convenience store market.
After a sustained year of protests, Bristol’s elected representatives allowed Tesco to set up, despite the many people who sought to “safeguard the uniquely independent area that is Stokes Croft.”
The No Tesco Campaign even started a legal battle with Bristol City Council via a Judicial Review.
Despite the visceral reaction that Tesco still invokes for some locals, it has stood its ground. Other stores such as a Sainsbury’s have since opened up nearby too, albeit with much closer community consultation.
The pervasive independent spirit Stokes Croft promotes and spreads is similar to the chemicals the lichen puts out to decrease the growth of moss.
It is an aura intended to reduce the chains and supermarkets from opening in the area. After 2011, chain stores might think twice about Gloucester Road when other options are available.
Even when open, customer numbers and margins would likely be lower than other areas with the same demographics, as many locals actively shun chains.
As the independence and graffiti culture grows, so do does the likelihood of new adjacent catalysts. Gloucester Road shoppers are more likely to spend using the Bristol Pound (soon to be Bristol Pay) too, which keeps the money flowing locally, rather than draining out to national or international bank accounts.
The wolves use ‘visual’ catalysts like graffiti and Bristol Pay too, they scent mark their territories. If a small pack of wolves comes across this scent, they know they have been warned. If their pack is smaller than 20 strong, they might get aggressively and vocally booted out.
The wolves evolved another social catalyst too. They increased their hunting success rate when hanging out among packs of geladas, ‘old world’ monkeys which browse the land, grazing on grasses.
In fact, the wolves are actually about twice as successful at capturing rodents when in the presence of gelada herds.
A solitary wolf hunting for rodents among the monkeys will ignore the juvenile geladas, even though these are similar in size to some of their prey.
While the monkeys take flight from feral dogs they leave the wolves perfectly alone. Perhaps they feel some protection from them too.
The monkeys’ graze and dig and sometimes flush out surprised rodents. To the rodent, numerous grazing monkeys do not pose a threat, and so it is harder for the rodents to spot the wolf.
So while Ethiopian wolves and independent shops do not need help to hunt for their living, they understand that teaming up is vital, especially if your territory is under threat.
