What’s more difficult? Starting up a new company or taking over and changing the culture of a 4th generation small business? Join us today on the Small Business Show with our guest Rick Stuart from Listo, a company founded in 1921!

How would you handle taking over and managing employees that have known you since you were a kid? What about “updating” the culture of a company almost a century old? Would you rush in and be in a hurry to make changes to take advantage of current market opportunities, or would you take your time before you started making changes? Dave and Shannon explore these questions and more on today’s show.

During the conversation with Rick, we learn about the importance of pivoting into new markets (sound familiar?), going “low-tech” and getting smaller to grow. Listen in to learn about how Rick adapted himself and his small business to keep it moving beyond the first 100 years.

Chapters/Timestamps/Stuff Mentioned

00:00:00 Small Business Show #101 January 11, 2017
00:01:18 Interview: Rick Stuart from Listo Pencil Company <http://www.listo.com/pencil.htm>
00:02:01 Multigenerational (4x!) business
00:04:22 Low-tech is a quandary… or is it? <http://www.listo.com/pencil.htm>
00:06:21 Pivot, pivot, pivot!
- It’s (still) all about customer service
00:07:46 Started with… and returned to the family business
00:09:56 Running a company – and people – older than you are!
00:11:23 Changing (updating?) the company culture
00:15:07 “Go have fun with it, kiddo!”
00:16:33 Real estate as a hedge
00:17:56 Estate planning as part of a business plan
00:19:54 Looking at things from a different perspective – split out manufacturing
00:22:35 Shrinking to grow
00:25:33 Evolve: don’t hang on too long!
00:28:17 Let the brand live its own life
- “Be a steward of the brand”
- It’s OK to let a small business be small
00:31:09 Take time to Earn (trust) and Learn (the business)

The post Managing and Stewarding a 4th Generation Small Business – Rick Stuart from Listo Corp – Small Business Show 101 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

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