When Ryan Hartmann was in seventh grade, he spent his summer doing what many other kids his age were doing – helping out at the family business.
One day, his uncle Joe, who was also his boss and the owner of Excelsior Appliance, pulled him aside and told him something that would prove to be extremely prescient.
“He said, ‘Hey Ryan, someday all of this will be yours,’” Hartmann recalled of the conversation that happened back in 2001.
At such a young age, Hartmann couldn’t fully fathom what his uncle was telling him. After all, he was still just a kid! However, he knew he enjoyed helping out at the shop, which has been a staple of the Excelsior community since 1958. He continued working as a helper throughout high school and in 2005, he joined Excelsior Appliance full time.
Periodically, Hartmann would think back to what his uncle had said to him, especially on days that were tough and frustrating.
“There were times when I wanted to quit,” he said. “But I found a way to stick with it.”
Five years ago, his perseverance paid off and his uncle’s prediction came true as Hartmann took the reins at Excelsior Appliance. Now the company is performing better than ever under Hartmann’s leadership.
“We’ve had record years the last two years in a row and made more in total revenue than the business has ever done before,” he said proudly.
That’s not an easy accomplishment when you’re going up against big-box retailers, but Hartmann believes that Excelsior Appliance’s commitment to serving customers with honesty and integrity gives them an edge over their competition.
“We’d rather fix the appliance you have than sell you a new one because they don’t make ‘em like they used to,” he said. “And if we can’t fix it, we can sell you a new one for a reasonable price and we’ll make it really easy and stress free. Ultimately, our goal is to do what makes sense for our customers, and that’s what makes me happy.”
Behind the scenes, Hartmann did deal with a few challenges associated with taking the helm of an existing family-owned company. Today, though, he’s thrilled to have a solid crew of 10 team members – including his wife, his mother-in-law, his aunt’s nephews, and some of his friends – who are all dedicated to keeping Excelsior Appliance running smoothly.
“I’m blessed and happy that things have worked out the way they have,” Hartmann said. “It’s more personal here and family owned. People have a say in what’s going on versus just being a number.”
Looking to take the helm of an existing company and hoping to make the transition as seamless as possible? Here are a few of Hartmann’s thoughts:
- Consider the company’s current employees: When you take over a business that’s already up and running, you’re likely to inherit the existing employees as well. And that can be a great thing! “You want to have a core of people who can help you through the transition,” Hartmann said. But should you end up not keeping the current team members on board for some reason, it’s important to coordinate with them well before ownership switches hands. From a bookkeeping standpoint, you’ll want them to help you get your accounts switched over, new passwords created and customers informed of the change. This can help prevent added confusion during an already challenging time.
- Maintain the level of service your customers know and trust: Having worked for Excelsior Appliance since childhood, Hartmann has a deep understanding of what his customers expect in terms of service. That’s why he’s developed a comprehensive onboarding process for new employees to help maintain consistency in the customer experience. “We don’t ever let anybody just jump into a truck and go out on a job,” he said. “They’ll ride along with more senior employees for three months to a year to make sure they’re fully trained and knowledgeable.” Additionally, he’s a big supporter of continuing education and he’ll hold classes and bring in manufacturers to keep his team up to date on new industry developments.
- But also be willing to adapt: For the first time in the company’s history, Hartmann plans to begin doing some marketing and advertising because he knows he needs to expand his customer base. Additionally, after being almost fully paper-based since 1958, Hartmann began adopting the use of tablets two years ago. “Finally, this year, we started going tablets,” he said with a laugh. “Yeah, it’s 2023 – let’s get with the times.” And should the technology fail to work like it did recently, he knows he can always go to Plan B – back to paper. It’s all about rolling with the punches!
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