Precast Inc. - July/August 2008 - (Page 34) courtesy Mayer Brothers Inc. counselor, she decided to leave home for college at Bucknell University in central Pennsylvania to study Chemical Engineering. During the summer months, Nancy returned home and worked at the plant welding and collecting payments from delinquent clients. “My dad would have me drive to customers’ offices to collect payments,” she explains. “He said to me, ‘Sit there and stay until they pay you.’ Sometimes I would have to wait hours for somebody to come out of their office!” Nancy looked at it as a way to earn money over the summer, but Henry had a bigger plan in mind for the work his daughter was doing. He put half of all the collections she received that summer toward her college tuition. After Nancy graduated and worked for a few years at Procter & Gamble as a production manager, Henry called on her and convinced her to come back to the plant. “He had to twist my arm,” she says. “I was reluctant because of the number of family members in the business.” She eventually returned and helped where she could. “Anything Dad didn’t want to do always seemed to land on my desk,” she says, “especially dealing with regulatory, safety or environmental issues. When the MSDS book started to get passed around 20 years ago, dad pushed it over to me and said, ‘Here you go, you take care of this!’” Over time, Henry had made mention of retiring from the business and transferred ownership of the company to Nancy and her younger sister Joyce. But Henry wasn’t quick to leave the business that he had helped to build. After pouring his life into the company, Henry stayed around beyond typical retirement age and advised Nancy and Joyce in the business. “He was right here; a very hands-on kind of person running this business,” Mayer explains. “He grew it from nothing to what it has become, so it was hard for him to go.” something, they took it back,’ he warned.” Nancy thinks these lessons will serve her well in today’s economy. “My father never borrowed money, not a dime. He didn’t borrow to buy land or equipment. We had many emotional discussions over financing.” As the business has expanded and product lines changed, Mayer Brothers has on occasion borrowed to buy equipment. “We remain very conservative in borrowing, and that allows me a good night’s sleep,” says Nancy. “I know I have given up several opportunities for expansion over the years, but my father wouldn’t allow it, and now, in today’s market he gets the last laugh.” Nancy recalls Henry learning business from working at a local drugstore as a teenager. “He counted pennies and knew his costs. We still balance the checkbook to the penny every month.” Initially, Nancy had no experience in running a business. She learned what she could by following in her father’s footsteps, but as an engineer, she was still new to the business aspect. Henry passed on the importance of financial responsibility. Henry never liked to carry debts over from one month to the next and passed that same philosophy on to Nancy. One of her first big purchases as president of the company was a new crane truck. “I knew nothing about trucks, especially those that cost more than my house,” she says. “So I interrogated my precast friends and listened to their advice. Then I made a big spreadsheet to evaluate the best purchase and gave copies back out. I had to carry some debt on that truck, but I made it a point to pay it off before moving on to the next big purchase,” she recalls. Nancy employs the philosophy of paying off her debts and maintaining a positive balance in the bank, perhaps due in part to the memory of sitting in offices years ago and collecting money from debtors. That financial responsibility carries over to the decisions she makes today as well. Financial freedom Henry passed away in 2003, but he left many lasting lessons. “I remember him telling me how he saw his father lose everything in the depression. ‘If you owed the bank money on 34 JULY/AUGUST 2008 | PRECAST INC. Association assets When Nancy came to Mayer Brothers Inc. one of the biggest challenges was to learn about the precast concrete industry. She
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