Special Report: NJ Family-Owned Businesses Honored

Fifteen top-tier family-owned Garden State businesses were honored yesterday at the 25th Annual New Jersey Family Business of the Year Awards Luncheon.

By George N. Saliba, Managing Editor On Oct 26, 2017

Family-owned businesses are a crucial backbone of the American economy, responsible for a staggering 64 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and, additionally, for employing 62 percent of our nation’s population, according to Al Titone, NJ District Director at the US Small Business Administration.

Titone was among an array of speakers at yesterday’s 25th Annual New Jersey Family Business of the Year Awards Luncheon, held at the Crystal Plaza in Livingston. The event honored 15 companies, and was sponsored by: the Rothman Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Fairleigh Dickinson University, PNC Bank, Sobel & Co., the New Jersey Business & Industry Association, Coughlin Duffy, Crystal Plaza and New Jersey Business magazine.

Titone added, “… I really found out how special the award winners are, [when I learned] that despite [of your] passion, despite your passing it on, [only] 30 percent [of family-owned businesses] make it to the second generation. Ten percent make it to the third generation.  That’s amazing. And that sounds a little bleak, doesn’t it?  Guess what?  It is about two to three times what the average small, non-family-run business gets.  So, actually, you are way ahead of the curve.”

According to Titone, these survival dynamics arise from: the complexities of succession planning; owners’ related reluctance to lose control when passing the business to the next generation; work/life balance and its relationship to “burnout”; and the ability for the companies to cope with change.

Titone concluded, “A smart family business keeps its edge by bringing in that second or third generation.”

Master of Ceremonies Sally Glick, principal of the firm and chief growth strategist at Sobel & Co., told the audience, “[Fairleigh Dickinson University] FDU has been at the forefront, since 1992 (for 25 years) putting the spotlight on the state’s family business community, recognizing the significant impact that family businesses have had on New Jersey’s economic landscape.

“[These businesses] have created thousands of jobs – hundreds of thousands of jobs – generating millions of dollars.  We heard the statistics that Al [Titone] shared with us, indeed family businesses are at the heart of state’s economy, and they are present in an endless number of sectors, from the manufacturing and distribution, to retail, construction, technology, auto dealerships, publishing, printing, hospitality, professional service firms, wineries, healthcare and so much more.

“While a family business starts with the vision of an entrepreneur, it is sustained through the decades by each generation making [its] own critical contribution to the family’s future success.”

Glick said that family-owned businesses: have a commitment to community, contribute to charitable organizations, encourage and engage their employees, focus on long-term strategies, invest in their dreams and hold fast to their core values.

She added, “And above all, they build a lasting legacy that is founded on family pride.  Every one of the families that we recognize today has created a distinctive business culture based in their families’ beliefs, attitudes and goals – and it is my honor to introduce them to you, now.”

Following is the complete list of the 25th Annual New Jersey Family Business of the Year Awards Luncheon honorees:

Category Winner (sales up to $10 million):

Chatham Moving and Storage

Category Winner (sales greater than $10 million):

Russell Reid Mr. John

Finalist (sales up to $10 million):

McRae Capital Management

Finalists (sales greater than $10 million):

Garden State Tile Distributors, Inc.

Huntington Learning Center

Semi-Finalists (sales up to $10 million):

Bellia Enterprise

Beneduce Vineyards

Intac Actuarial Service, Inc.

Jarmel Kizel Architects & Engineers

Key Properties

Semi-Finalists (sales greater than $10 million):

The Andersen Companies

Borden Perlman Salisbury & Kelly

Calandra Enterprises

Norwalt Design, Inc.

Wellshire Farms, Inc.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Stay tuned for complete coverage in the December issue of NEW JERSEY BUSINESS magazine.

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