Thirty Years is a long time and yet, it seemed as if it was yesterday when I started the company in my garage so long ago. It was July 20th, 1987 and the time was ripe for this 29-year-old to strike out on his own path. I knew back then I was not made to work for others, I needed to work for myself, pave my own path and make my own decisions on how things are supposed to work.
Building a lasting company is not easy.
We went through at least 3 recessions IN THE PAST 30 YEARS, including the great one in 2009 that almost destroyed us. We started with one employee (Still with us today: Rick Gentry; then added another who is still here today: Stuart Zins. We have had at times as little as those 2 employees and up to 40 employees in 2005. Today we employ 26 people in two locations. We truly appreciate all of those who have stuck with us during the years, your contributions are innumerable to state here, but truly appreciated over the arc of time. The hard work and dedication you have for our company is why we continue to maintain our customer and vendor base over the past 30 years.
All of us at Quickscrews are greatly appreciative of those special relationships with our 2 primary Screw vendors, who have been manufacturing our Quickscrews product line for 25 years. The consistency and quality of the Quickscrews product line is unmatched in the industry. No one EXCEPT Quickscrews can claim the mantle of superior quality; as we have set that standard and all others will be forced to match or exceed what we have done for the past 30 years.
I have been very fortunate over the past 3 decades to have some wonderful individuals who were kind enough to offer me guidance and advice in my earliest years and throughout my career. I would like to take a moment here to thank every person on this list; as these individuals made contributions to my own growth as a CEO and human being.
1) Jerry Grinstain – Owner JG Sales and Marketing, Longtime friend and Mentor
2) Herman Fuchs – Owner/Founder – Uneeda Enterprises
3) Dave Natali – Owner Natco Fasteners – Former Employer – Helped me start the company
4) Pat Esrey – Owner – Esrey Supply
5) Lee Nitschke – Former Founder/Partner – Intercorp USA
6) Rick Martin – Vistage Chair Leader
7) Marty Berne – Salesmen Extraordinaire – Uneeda Enterprises
I wish to thank our long time loyal customers. Many of you have been with us since the beginning, an outstanding mark of your own; to enable your companies to trust us to support your distribution facilities for 30 years is a great honor. We are so thankful of all our customers who have stood with us for a very long time.
Through turbulent times like the typhoon in the Nineties that shutdown production of fasteners in Taiwan for 7 months. Surviving multiple recessions AND OTHER POTENTIAL BARRIERS, these customers always stood with us. Loyalty is always a premium in business, but after 30 years, the proof is in. We are so fortunate to have these types of companies and individuals stand by us, I cannot thank them enough for sticking with us through thick and thin times. I am humbled by all these facts.
You start out down a path so long ago, the path is long and winding while seeming endless with anticipation and excitement; you plunge forward and see what happens.
The friendships we have built, I will forever be grateful for.
These are the customers who have been distributing Quickscrews for the past 25 years: I would personally like to thank these loyal longtime distributors as they have stayed true to Quickscrews.
1) Charles McMurray Company – Thank you Lou, Charlie, and Jed McMurray.
2) MacMurray Pacific – Thank you, Carl Wildenradt
3) CHS Wholesale – Thank you, Dan Bauman
4) EB Bradley Company – Thank you Bob Bradley, and Don Lorey.
5) US Industrial Fasteners – Thank you Kevin Blackburn.
6) Advanced Hardware Supply – Thank you Kerry Groves.
7) CH Briggs – Thank you Bob Spangler.
8) Duo-Fast North East – Thank you Dan Steier.
9) Anderson Plywood Sales – Thank you John Arenson.
10) Kemp Hardware – Thank you Doug Kemp and George Ayotte.
In closing I would like to thank my lovely wife, Deborah who has spent the past 30 years in the shadows, behind me all the way. Successfully guiding; pushing and prodding when necessary, she raised all 3 of our boys while we were slowly building a National Supplier of Fasteners and Solar Brackets, including my first Patent in 2010, which Deb was truly the Muse behind the patent. Our eldest son Jared joined the company 3 years ago and is continually growing and learning the business from the ground up. He will eventually takeover my role as leader and CEO, but for now, keep on learning son, your time is soon to come.