"July 20th, 1987 In the beginning", as told by Greg Wiener, Founder and CEO of Quick$crews® International Corporation:
On this day I had I began my journey into the world of entrepreneurship. At that time I had no idea my venture would become an international fastener company with over 800 products manufactured and sold from all over the world. In fact when I began, Quick$crews® was not even on my radar. I simply started as a company offering miscellaneous supplies to the Northern California local cabinet and woodworking industries. I sold pneumatic nails and staples, sandpaper, glue and fasteners. I drove around the Bay area in my 1981 Honda Accord drumming up sales with the customer contacts I had made as a nail and staple salesman. In fact if it weren’t for the support of my previous employer, Dave Natali owner of Natco Fasteners, I could not have started my company. In the beginning I did all I could to simply survive. I worked out of my kitchen and my garage. I rented a 3 bedroom home with two of my best friends and they ignored the fact that our home became a supply warehouse. At one point I even had boxes of screws stored in my bedroom, dining room, kitchen area you name it. My accounting system consisted of a clipboard with invoices on it waiting for the check to come in, so I could pay for the material I had just purchased. Ah, how I miss the good old days!
The journey for the next 5 years was built on the backs of individuals who put in the time, energy and sweat. Rick Gentry, Stuart Zins and I dedicated ourselves to building a company that would offer the best quality product and service at the most competitive price. I knew at that time if we could create an identity for others to recognize, do something that no one else was doing in our industry, then we could withstand the test of time and all challenges. We could become recognized in a world where very little recognition had ever occurred. It was during this time that I recognized our future and began developing the product definition and business model that has made us the largest supplier of Woodworking fasteners in the United States, and possibly in the world. It was then that the Quick$crews® name and identity was borne.
The 10 years following this period went by as if no time passed at all. We began to rise and formulate the relationships that still stand together today. Product depth and quality continued to grow, while distributors and users alike began to recognize our place in the industry. We became leaders and trendsetters establishing a business model never used in this industry. We were the first to have a color printed catalog with technical specifications in print for the customer to see and use. We used our extensive knowledge of cabinet and woodworking to create the largest line of fasteners in the industry. We used solution-based selling as the model for growth and acceptance by new customers. We forged exclusive partnerships with our overseas manufacturers to insure that product quality and consistency would always remain a forefront in our search for excellence. We opened a second warehouse on the East Coast to better serve our ever expanding customer base. We continued to rely heavily on the advancement of technology to improve our ability to perform on a level higher than any of our customer expectations. And we began selling 100’s of millions of Quick$crews® per year.
The past 4 years I have spent in the role of teacher, leader and guiding force for the future of Quick$crews®. In 2003 we reached the milestone of selling over 1 Billion Quick$crews® in one year. Not bad for a company that started in my garage almost 20 years ago.
I look back and realize how fortunate I am. I have a terrific wife, Debbie who throughout it all has been there to support me and our dreams and goals. We have three teenage boys, who by all standards are terrific kids and who may possibly one day carry on the torch and traditions established in the past 20 years. Today, we are on the forefront of a new generation of technology and the challenges we face on how to incorporate those changes into our business model and use them to continue to expand our company's growth and success. However, the key to our success truly lies in our past and we must never lose sight of where we have been, or we will not be able to get where we wish to go.
In the next 5 years, we will continue to be on the leading edge of the use of technology to enhance our business model and relationships with our customers. We will continue to find more ways to benefit our customers’ needs and meet their goals and expectations. We are in the customer service business and we understand the need to listen. We understand the importance of hearing what you want and need.
Many times I have told employees, customers and industry peers, that I have always felt that owning and running a business in many ways is similar to a river. That is, a river will always take the least resistant path to its end destination and so must a business. We started out 20 years ago as a local distributor of supplies for the cabinet industry and today we have become a worldwide leader of specialty fasteners. This is the path we have been led to; this has been the path of least resistance.
I thank all of you who have made this journey with me, for without you, Quick$crews® would not exist. I promise to continue to strive to be the best I can be and in turn offer all of you the best I have to offer. It is my hope, dream and expectation that in the next 20 years we will all look back and feel as fortunate as I do today.
Greg Wiener
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