When Rick Maxwell graduated from
college in 1976, his future father-in-law invited him to join the family business. He decided to accept, and
Maxwell spent the next two decades working his way up and growing the business’s
revenue.
While the revenue
had grown, so had
the number of family members, and
Maxwell now faced
working with people
with opposing
philosophies about
how to run the company. He and his wife decided to purchase
40 percent of the business, but they had to
find the funds to do so. He used his connections in the banking industry and
secured the money needed, but they personally guaranteed the debt, so failure was
not an option.
When he purchased the company in
1995, it came with a sales staff, service
technicians and existing customers, but
he didn’t have a support staff to handle
the day-to-day operations. In three
months, he had gotten furniture, computers, phones and additional staff to
handle billings, payroll and payables. At
this point, Maxwell named the new company OfficeWare Inc., which integrates
hardware and software for the reproduction industry.
Since starting the new business, he has
focused on his team and making a great
work environment for them. He invests in
new technology and rewards employees
for their efforts, giving the top employees a
weekend at a hotel and a five-hour, $1,000
shopping spree at Christmas.
He also creates long-term relationships
with customers by giving them value-added services to differentiate OfficeWare
and continue its success.
HOW TO REACH: OfficeWare Inc., (800) 888-2797 or
www.officeware.com