Exiting: In a Family Way
by Barbara Manzi
In 1991, when I was laying the foundation for the company that would become my metals distributorship, Manzi Metals, Inc., I was making my routine cold calls when I reached a buyer for a local company that gathered raw materials used in computer circuit boards.
The buyer just happened to be my son Louis’ supervisor, and he confided that he was planning to groom Louis to become an assistant buyer, having found him to be a diligent and intelligent worker. At that moment, a light bulb went off in my head: “Bingo!” I thought.
I was looking for a sales person myself – to learn the metals business – and who better than my son? Louis was 22 at the time, just out of a four-year stint in the Navy, newly married, and chafing under the restraints of a salary that didn’t go far enough to support the needs of a young family. More…