Now into its third generation of family leadership, Kimball Midwest continues to thrive. Family leaders attribute success to always adhering to their mission and values as a people-first business. - BY BETTY ARMSTRONG

Sustaining and growing a family-owned business is challenging in many ways, but the McCurdys have overcome the hurdles. Second -and third-generation family members now lead it, and the company continues to grow as it heads into its second century. The secret sauce is a blend of excellent customer service, a positive and supportive work culture, a commitment to values and continuous improvement, and strict adherence to product quality standards. The company is commit- ted to providing high quality maintenance-grade products to its customers. One way they meet this commitment is to buy American, of which around 80 percent of their spend goes to American vendors, adding a domestic supply chain and patriotism to its blend of success factors.

Keeping it in the Family

The Kimball Co. was founded in 1923 in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1950, Pat Mc- Curdy Sr. became one of three Midwest Motor Supply owners and later the sole owner in 1978. In 1984, Midwest ac- quired the Kimball Co., and Kimball Midwest was born as a regional auto- motive supplier in Columbus, Ohio. It is one of America’s biggest industrial distributors known for its high-quality industrial supplies and strong focus on customer service. Driving the company’s success is adherence to values instilled in the current top executives by Pat McCurdy Sr., who passed away in 2002. They include two of his sons, CEO Pat McCurdy Jr. and COO Dave McCurdy, and his grandson, President Patrick McCurdy III, along with many other third-generation family members who are making significant contributions in the organization

Pat McCurdy Jr.’s father asked him to run the business after Pat McCurdy Sr.’s last partner died in 1978. At the time, the company had 10 employees and about $750,000 in sales. “Since the 1970s, we have always been about developing people, allowing them to be successful. We are a people business,” says Pat Jr.

This emphasis on the people side expresses itself in the core structure and interactions of the McCurdys with the business. To ensure that the family continued to avoid conflict and share key values, a Family Business Council was established to prepare the business for the potential leadership by younger McCurdy family members, some still in high school and college. In those meetings, the family discusses what it takes to work for and lead Kimball Midwest. Each future leader is asked to work for five years outside the business, and no special treatment is planned or expect- ed. Family members joining the business must be productive. The Family Busi- ness Council plays a crucial role in this process, providing a platform for open discussions, sharing of experiences, and learning from each other's successes and failures. This strategy works since most family businesses fail to make it past the second generation. Currently, third and fourth generation Kimball Midwest family members are now attending the Family Business Council.

Defining Itself as a Superior-Service, Value-Driven, Problem-Solving, People-Focused Organization

When describing what the company does, Patrick explains, “We're a sales organization that is trying to help customers with what we technically call Class C items. They're consumable maintenance-grade products for maintenance repair operations (MRO) across the country. We’re trying to live our daily mission to provide our customers with superior products, customer services and product availability to effectively lower their total maintenance, repair and operations costs.”

The leadership and sales teams are problem-solvers, often anticipating problems before customers recognize them. For example, the problem is not buying the lowest-priced drill bit. The problem is the need to drill holes. The solution looks at the cost of a hole, the time it takes to drill the hole, and the number of holes one drill bit can handle. “Ultimately, our business is around finding demonstrably superior products, preferentially made in America, that solve the problem better than anything else. So, you may know a competitor’s bit costs $1 and it does three holes. Our drill bit might cost $2, but we expect it to do 15 or more holes. That value then plays out, and we go to market through our salespeople.”

Though technology is important in product design and sales, Kimball Midwest is a people business first. It is a relationship business that stems from mutual respect, trust, and delivering results over time. A core value has always been “Made in America,” which will not change. Competitors have increasingly bought small consumable inventory items from places like China and India as domestic manufacturing capacity declined. However, Kimball Midwest prefers to buy domestically because if there is a problem, it can be traced back to the manufacturer for resolution. The company knows exactly where each component of each product came from. “We know where our products come from and can prove they meet all applicable standards and industry specifications,” explains Patrick.

Leading into the Future

Pat held the job Patrick now holds for about 45 years and read many books on lead- ership during those years. Patrick explains, “The vision is to remain family-owned and operated and to double sales every five years. Such ambitious goals keep our leadership committed to the business and doing what is necessary, like stocking needed inventory, increasing the SKUs, opening strategically located distribution centers, and building a great team.” Though the growth goal may not be met yearly, the company always strives for success, and all efforts are appreciated.

The pace of technology change presents many challenges. One of them is maintaining customer connectivity. Customers may reconfigure something on their end, and a small change can disrupt the relationship with the customer. “We have to just lean into the fact the technology changes and deal with it the moment change occurs,” says Patrick.

Kimball Midwest continually works to build good relationships with suppliers and a diverse supply chain. Pat points to small business roots. “We started as a small business, and it’s inherent in every single product class in the catalog that one or more small businesses in the U.S. are provided a high volume of work and generating a significant amount of revenue. Small, diverse suppliers are an important source of innovation that allows us and them to grow.”

Pat and Patrick have also created an organizational system that lets people bring their ideas, thoughts, and behaviors to the table, and then, as a team, make the best decisions possible. Patrick explains, “We try to stay in a position where we’re always following two simple rules: revenue before cost and better before cheaper.” Each associate is empowered to own their work.

Company with a Heart

Along with its family focus, Kimball Midwest is also a company with a heart. The firm has made millions of dollars of contributions over the years to various organizations. The company supports American Red Cross, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Cristo Rey High Schools, the Columbus Foundation, Meals on Wheels programs, English as a Second Language programs (Festa), and more. “You know that community involvement in giving is important, and I hope my children never feel any different,” says Pat. “And really, we're blessed to be able to do these things and help others.”