Family businesses are struggling in the face of a sluggish economy and increased competition from the chains. So how do they succeed? By working smarter. They know their niche, and they know how they can best serve their customers, and how they can get the most out of their brand. This week, we visit Jack Ricks Glass in Atlanta, Georgia, to see how they are growing their family business. Read more
Employee leasing became a business buzzword in the 1990’s, but for Robert Boffa, Jr. of Personnel Coordinators, Inc, employee leasing was business as usual. Rob and his brothers Brian, Jon, and Daniel represent the third generation of PCI, a company that has been at the forefront of employee leasing for over 40 years. Read more
Fred Gaston of Insurenewmedia has positioned his company for success by melding advanced Internet technology with the traditional resources of his family´s 106-year-old company. Read more
When John Jowers went to work at his father´s appliance company, he never thought it would lead to a sideline business restoring antique refrigerators. But at antiqueappliances.com, these "cool" appliances are doing a hot business on the web. Read more
Tioga County, Pennsylvania, may be only a speck on the map, but local family businesses can thrive by extending their reach to the Internet. Houghtaling´s Garage has successfuly taken a Do-It-Yourself approach to their web presence that allows them to keep their profits in the community. Read more
E.P. Henry, founded in New Jersey in 1903 by Edward P. Henry, has always relied on technological ingenuity for the success of their concrete and paving products. That technology, which began at the turn of the century with wooden molds in Edward´s basement, has come a long way. It now includes 4 modern plants, 3 state-of-the-art finishing facilities and, of course, the Internet. Read more
Established by T. James Fernley in 1886, Fernley & Fernley knows the ins and outs of running a family business inside and out—not only because they are a family-owned business, but because many of the companies that comprise their client associations are family-owned. Read more
The Chicopee Provision Company, Inc. has survived 3 floods, a stock market crash, a World War that forced enormous restrictions on and rationing of meat, and now, in its 3rd generation, it is meeting the challenges of the 21st century head on. Read more
Jim McBride is the president of Affiliated Warehouse Companies, headquartered in Hazlet, New Jersey. Affiliated handles marketing, sales, and third-party logistics for public warehouses across the US, as well as in Canada, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Europe. Read more
Modern technologies like the Internet have revolutionized the way many of us do business, and have opened up many opportunities for new enterprise. And yet, all of these innovations pale in comparison with the "old-fashioned" values of hard work, fair business, and sheer strength personality. Read more
50 years ago, when Bob and Ray Bookout opened their tiny storefront in Niles, Michigan, they probably didn´t have anticipate that Bookout Furniture Inc. would grow to become southwest Michigan´s largest furniture source. They certainly couldn´t have foreseen that this success would be, in large part, due to the invention of the Internet. Read more
Bernie Polen is guiding a fifty-year-old family business through many changes: The incorporation of Internet technology, balancing inovation with tradition, and encouraging company growth at a time when the role of small family businesses in the meat industry is uncertain. Read more
