Newsletter of the Alumni AssociationThe Evergreen State College
EvergreenLives:Entrepre-neursLee Riback & Susan Bogni
Editor's Note:This article is the second ina series on alums in variousfields. Since we recently helda seminar on small busi-nesses, the choice of entre-preneurs seemed perfect. Infuture issues we will coverother areas of interest suchas the arts, sciences, com-munications and social serv-ice. We need your help,though, to make the seriesrepresentative. Contact theeditor with ideas or reportson what you and other alumsare doing. A written reportwould help and an accompa-nying photo would be a realbonus.
Scott SalzerEvergreen alum Scott Salzer grew up around his father'sbusiness and he's a partner now. Scott's father, Jim, hasbeen a manufacturer's representative for FMC Corporation'smachine and power controls for nearly 20 years and nowruns Special Products Company, Seattle, which still repre-sents FMC, along with other lines like Doerr Electric, Ameri-can Autoguard and Magnetic Power Systems. If these namesare Greek to you, don't be surprised. The work of a manufac-turer's representative is virtually unknown to the general public.
Scott put this into perspective. "We call on constructionand operations engineers to get our products specified foreach particular job. Sometimes this equipment is purchaseddirectly by the engineers, so we make the sale with just theone call."
Scott and his father call on industry all over Washington,Oregon, British Columbia, northern Idaho and western Mon-tana. Their customers range from plants processing primarymetals like aluminum or steel, to wood products and evenwastewater treatment. Scott says he particularly enjoys thewood products industry. "Wood products people are really agood group to work with."
In addition to the travel and long hours, he likes to getout and do some fishing and just spend time with his family,wife Terre (Ferris) a 77 TESC grad and their son. He's alsoactive in the Alumni Association as a member of the Boardof Directors.
How did he become a representative after graduatingwith a science background at Evergreen in 1975? "Well, Ididn't want to go on to grad school with the cost and timeinvolved. I wouldn't have been done with school until I was27," he said.
Besides, growing up around the business, Scott likes theindependence of the work. "Like Evergreen, you only get outwhat you put into it. We don't have a salary here. We sell formanufacturers but don't work for them; we're really indepen-dent contractors."
Scott notes that Special Products Company will becomea stocking distributor this spring of FMC power equipment,as the manufacturer changes from a system of reps to one ofregional product inventories. This is a new challenge forthem, with the possibilities for future growth limited only byspace. Scott and Jim Salzer are full partners now and lookforward to their future. It should be an interesting and"independent" one.
Scoff Salzer in a rareappearance at the office
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Gift shop sister/partnerSusie Archibald
Jim Croft and Rod McClaskey at the counter of their store
Jim Croft and Rod McClaskeyIntense interests in electronics and speaker technology led tocollaboration in a hi-fi store for former Evergreeners Jim Croftand Rod McClaskey, two of three partners in Definitive Audio,Seattle's only "state-of-the-art" stereo outlet. They specializein stereo equipment which is the best available within a pricerange and sometimes, due to the up-to-date technology theyfeature, simply the best available. They find that some oftheir best customers are salespersons from other stereostores, a high compliment.
Rod has always enjoyed working with electronic equip-ment and runs the service end. "You can make anything specgood, so we had to do our own measurements," Rod notes,as part of their effort to stay specialized in a generalizedbusiness. New equipment is the lifeblood of their business,Rod said. "We do a lot of listening; we can't afford to takethe rep's word for it."
Jim was doing freelance speaker design just a few yearsago with the third partner, Jay Huber. "Our work was pio-neering at the time, the only such research in the USA,though now many are doing it," Jim reminisced. He still hasa couple of patents pending.
All three of the partners had been in the two specialty"state-of-the-art" shops in Portland and wondered why therewasn't one in Seattle. Jim undertook a study of the nationalmarkets with such specialty shops. He found that Seattlewas the only major metropolitan area in the country withoutone. In fact, he noted that all other markets were heavy withmail-order business from Seattle. It was obviously the righttime for such a move.
Though the time was right, it didn't save the principalsfrom going, "Around the clock, breakfast, work and morework," as Jim puts it.
The partners have moved their business from an out-of-the-way spot to Seattle's "Stereo Row" in the UniversityDistrict. Results are impressive as sales have doubled.
Susie ArchibaldSusie Archibald is a sister/partner in a downtown Olympia
§ift shop called, simply and appropriately, The Archibaldisters. It is a shop for those who indulge themselves in
lovely soaps, lotions and pleasant smells; in novelty itemslikeseashell night lamps, jewelry, beautiful occasion cardsand lots of other tasteful gifts. The two sisters, Susie andShelly saw a need five years ago for this type of shop inOlympia, backed their childhood dreams with personalsavings, and jumped into the world of small business.
Susie had previous experience in art and business at theUniversity of Washington. While at Evergreen, she was en-rolled in the "Women in Management" program and found itvery valuable. Her individual contracts supplied her with theskills a conscientious business person would need.
"Motivation and the real, heartfelt desire to own a smallbusiness," Susie says, are what kept the shop going andgrowing into an area success. She and Shelly both havefound long hours and hard work the lot of the successfulentrepreneur.
Susie says it doesn't take a lot of research to get into asmall business, but it does require re-education in currentbusiness trends to keep it going. "You've got to keep tryingto please customers and re-educate yourself to their needs,"is the message she relates to the prospective new entre-preneur. Susie added, "You always have to strive forimprovement."
