Millard, Klein grace Working Woman list
By Staff -- Industrial Distribution, 6/1/1998
Newton, Mass.--Women who call the shots at 500 of the nation's companies, including several industrial distributors and manufacturers, were honored last month by Working Woman magazine.The first list ever compiled of 500 of the largest women-owned and operated businesses in the U.S. included Suzanne Millard, president of Turtle & Hughes; Julia Klein, president of C.H. Briggs; and Jane G. Haley, president of Gosiger, Inc. The list includes women who own and manage the day-to-day operations of their companies, which range in size from $13 million to $14 billion in annual sales.
"It's nice to be recognized," says Millard, whose $150 million company has been named to Working Woman's list of women-owned businesses every year since it began in 1993 as a "Top 50" list. "We're working hard in our industry and have come up with some exciting new ideas in our business and it's exciting to see that it's working and that we're recognized sales-wise."
Turtle & Hughes, a third-generation family business, is a full-service industrial and electrical distributor based in New Jersey serving the industrial MRO market.
Beyond enjoying the national recognition of being named to the list, Millard is excited about the networking opportunities provided by the associated "Working Woman 500 Congress," designed to provide the nation's top businesswomen with educational and networking opportunities. "I enjoy the camaraderie," Millard says. "The networking between business women is what I enjoy the most. I think it's important for women businesses to support each other. That's what it's all about."
C.H. Briggs is a $35 million company that supplies the woodworking, decorative surfacing, kitchen, bath and furniture industries. "I'm thrilled to be on the list," says Klein. "Some of the biggest names in American industry are on the list and I'm honored to be included in a group with so many talented people."
In addition to being included on the Working Woman list, Klein has also been named one of Pennsylvania's 50 Best Women in Business for 1998. Women were selected for the Pennsylvania list based on their professional accomplishments and community involvement.
Both awards recognize the contributions Klein has made to the industry and to her community. C.H. Briggs is a third-generation family business that Klein did not envision joining when she first began her career working in politics. "I know more about hinges now than I ever thought I'd know," jokes Klein, who purchased the business from her parents in 1992.
Klein maintains that it takes the same effort for both women and men to succeed in distribution. "The wholesale distribution business is the backbone of the American economy," she says. "What keeps America running is what we sell and move around the country. To be successful requires folks who are smart and swift and who have a lot of heart. Women are particularly well suited to succeed that way."
In the end, the business has offered Klein the opportunity to meld her interests in job creation, economic development, and politics.
"Within weeks I knew that I had found a home," Klein says of her 1989 decision to join the company. "As the business continues to grow and change, I am continually challenged. I was looking for a place where I could have business challenges, play a role in my community and in politics, and raise a family. This is the perfect platform from which to do all of those things."
Manufacturers named to the Working Woman list include: Naomi Wilden, chair, Wilden Pump & Engineering Co.; Maricela Monstein, president, RAM Enterprises; Susie Walsh, president, Eastern Metal Supply; Lorraine T. Henry, chair and CEO, Henry Valve Co.; Nancy Kolligian, president, Distributor Corp. of New England; Judith Ashelman, chair, Lincoln Brass Works; Kathleen Ellison, executive vice president, B&K Electric Wholesale; and Mary Sheets, president, Rapid Industries.
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