Beacon Journal photos Bob Lux (left) and Dave Sutter divide the chores at the Excelsior Marking Co. Lux handles the financial and operational side of the business while Sutter manages the sales and marketing side..

Excelsior Making Its
Mark In Akron

Company, Founded in 1898, Has New Owners and a New Office

By: Mike Rasor

Posted on June 18, 2006

When you think about a business with potential for growth, a company that has been around 100 years usually doesn't come to mind. But that is exactly what Bob Lux and Dave Sutter saw in Excelsior Marking before they bought the product-marking company from the founding family in 2002 for $1.5 million. Sutter and Lux worked together at GBS Corp. in North Canton. After a management shift, they went looking for their own business. In Excelsior, they found a company with a strong customer base that had been doing very little to expand its business -- a diamond in the rough, as Sutter calls it. This year, Excelsior's revenue is on pace to be the highest since Lux and Sutter took over. The company moved from Stow to a new office in Akron on April 1.

1. What was the biggest driving factor in your decision to become an entrepreneur?

Sutter: I was just looking for the opportunity to control my own destiny, not to work for someone else and have a company that could grow and I could pass along to my family.

Lux: I guess I had done a lot of things in my life. I managed divisions of Fortune 500 companies. While I had an equity share in these companies, I was never the chief executive officer. And retirement didn't suit me very well. When Dave told me about it, it looked like it had some promise. I was motivated to step back into the work force again and create jobs and teach some of the younger people about business. I wasn't ready to play golf seven days a week.

2. How did you determine whether buying the company was a good investment?

Sutter: The company at the time had been in business for 100 years. It had seen better days. I asked the owner at the time, "How do you market the company?" He said, "We've been in business for 100 years and people know us and call us." I said, "That's great, but most of your customers probably passed away 50 years ago." I saw a company that had success with just word of mouth. I saw that with a little marketing, it could be a diamond in the rough.

3. Did your family and friends support your decision to go out on your own?

Lux: My children are all grown. My wife is a very successful attorney and she was happy to get me out of the house. I had her full support. Some of my friends thought I was a little nuts at my age (69), but they recognized it was something I needed to do.

Sutter: They were very supportive of it. I have two younger children. They look at this as some place they'd like to work someday. My wife is starting to work here part time.

4. In the dark hours of the night, what worried you most about your business in its early days?

Lux: Our challenge is the Chinese, who impact all parts of our business, particularly the tire part of our business. They present some pricing challenges, which are tough to overcome. Finding skilled and educated people is also a real challenge for us.

5. Do you think Northeast Ohio is a good climate in which to own a small business?

Lux: I certainly think Northeast Ohio has its challenges, labor force being one of them. I think we have our challenges as a state, in terms of making an environment business-friendly. I think some things are being done to improve on the stress that small businessmen have to struggle with. I think the climate is improving.

6. Is there anything you'd like to see in place in Northeast Ohio to help small businesses?

Lux: One thing that would be helpful is if our education system would produce stronger graduates with more technical training or expertise. We find that the level of educational competence of young people is a little distressing. We find they're really not prepared educationally. They don't spell well. They don't write well. They don't seem to have a good, solid education. Some have excellent computer skills, but it's almost robotic instead of thinking through what they are doing. They don't have good analytical skills.

Sutter: Locally, we've received good support from the city of Akron. We've been looking to move the facility for the last two years. It's been a difficult search to find a building to fit our needs. Once we did find some properties, the City of Akron helped get us settled in here.

7. Was your level of expertise enough to run the business when you began?

Lux: Most of my career has been in small businesses -- businesses whose revenues are less than $20 million. Dave has a lot of experience in the sales and marketing side. Mine is in the financial and operational side of the business. That is how we divide the chores in this business. We both understand what each other does, but we try not to duplicate what each other does.

8. What was the biggest mistake you made, and how did you fix it?

Lux: Underestimating the amount of cash that we needed to put up, up front. We found ourselves going through a cash struggle early on. We survived it, but if I did it again, I would've said we need to pony up more money.

9. You changed your logo and won a 2003 Greater Akron Addy Award for it. Did the fresh design translate to more business?

Lux: It's hard to tell. I don't know that the design did. The fact that we actually had brochures helped.

Sutter: It did help us internally and with customers to develop an identity. They see our logo and recognize it and know who we are.

10. What is it like running a business that is over 100 years old?

Lux: One of the challenges was that we have tried to change the culture of the company internally, and as Dave said, we tried to change our sales and marketing strategy.

Sutter: Being a 100-year-old company might have helped relieve some of the pressure. Even though we were making changes, people know that this company has been around. The company's longevity has helped while we make changes.

Mike Rasor can be reached at 330-996-3838 or mrasor@thebeaconjournal.com.

Copyright (c) 2006 Akron Beacon Journal
Record Number: 0606200178