When Phyllis Papani Godwin took over her father's small company 38 years ago, she had no idea it would eventually become a household name in New England. Now a corporate sponsor of the Boston Red Sox, Granite City Electric is known throughout the region as a large, innovative company. Radio and television ads, a display ad on Fenway Park's famous Green Monster, and a charity sweepstakes that lights up junior ball fields from Vermont to Rhode Island, have raised Granite City's profile from that of a local distributorship to a regional powerhouse. That's quite an accomplishment for a company that operates in the little-known world of electrical distribution.

But it hasn't been easy for this mid-size electrical distributor, which hit $100 million in sales in 2006. Granite City Electric's marketing investment is huge, and the company competes with some of the biggest sellers of electrical supplies in the world. Granite City Electric's president, and Godwin's chosen successor, Steve Helle, admits the company needs to think hard about its long-term survival as the big get bigger, the small get more specialized, and those in the middle get squeezed.

“We have to figure out what our niche is,” says Helle. “We can't be everything to all people selling true commodities. We have to pick market segments, grow fast and ramp this business to compete.”

Granite City Electric is doing all of that, expanding its footprint in New England while launching a specialized security products division to enhance its service offering. Known simply as its Technology Division, the venture began in 2004 and specializes in the design and sale of fire alarm and security systems—a growing industry, especially since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The company uses its local-touch service philosophy as a differentiator as well.

Godwin says she's undeterred by the obstacles facing mid-size, independent distributors. At 80, she still serves as chairman and CEO and plays an active role in Granite City's marketing programs, in particular. She's a driving force behind the Red Sox partnership, which the company has expanded each year since signing on with the organization in 2004. And though she admits it's difficult to measure the impact of such efforts, Godwin says she's convinced the marketing campaign is working. Since 2004, sales are up 65 percent and the company has grown from 15 to 20 locations—proof to her that the Granite City story is reaching a wider audience of the right people. The company has even expanded its sports marketing efforts recently, becoming sponsors of the NFL's New England Patriots.

“Steve and I both have a very strong marketing orientation,” explains Godwin. “[Marketing] is what I like to do best. It's also, I think, what I do best … I've always been concerned about marketing in the sense of how we present ourselves.”

In addition to partnering with the Red Sox, Granite City re-branded itself in 2004, spending months developing a new logo and company slogan: “We do it right. Now!” It was another big investment, designed to go hand-in-hand with its high-profile advertising campaign. Godwin and Helle say they spend more on their Red Sox sponsorship each year than most distributors their size spend on yearly marketing programs altogether, though they won't reveal the dollar amount. And they say they're amazed by the recognition the program has brought.

“I don't know if we'll ever be able to quantify the impact,” Godwin says. “But: People know our name.”

Godwin's father, Nicholas Papani, founded Granite City Electric in Quincy, Mass., in 1923. An Italian immigrant, Papani became an electrician after returning home to Massachusetts from WWI, and he quickly saw the need for an electrical supplies distributor on Boston's South Shore. Godwin describes Papani as a “traditional Italian father,” who never expected his daughters to join the company. He made sure they were well educated—Godwin has an undergraduate degree from Brown University and a business administration certificate from Radcliffe College—but the goal was for them to become good wives and mothers, as Godwin explains it.

Late in his life Papani changed his thinking a bit, offering Godwin the chance to run Granite City Electric on her own. It was 1969 and she'd recently divorced, having spent the previous 20 years raising her own two daughters. Granite City Electric had just one location and was serving customers in southeastern Massachusetts, including Cape Cod and the islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard. She told him she'd think about it.

Though she'd worked for a few years when she was in her 20s, Godwin says she wasn't ready to run a small company. She wanted to learn more about business, so she enrolled in the executive MBA program at Boston's Suffolk University. She officially became president of Granite City Electric a few years later.

Godwin describes herself as a “big thinker,” and one of her first tasks was overseeing a geographic expansion of the company. She opened a branch in Plymouth, Mass., further down the South Shore; in South Yarmouth on Cape Cod; and one on Nantucket. The company grew steadily throughout the 1970s and '80s, reaching $23 million in sales by the early '90s. At that point, Godwin says she realized the company needed to get bigger or she needed to sell.

She decided to grow. Helle came on board in 1999 and sped up the growth process by making Granite City's first acquisition—JG Temple, with locations in Vermont and New Hampshire. Venturing North of Boston was crucial for Granite City Electric, and the firm soon added branches and made another acquisition in Lowell, Mass., about 30 miles north of the city. Two more acquisitions—Electric Supply and Repair Inc. in western Massachusetts and The Whelan Co. in Hartford, Conn.—helped round out the mix and fueled the company's drive to hit $100 million in sales.

Today, Granite City covers every New England state but Maine, selling electrical supplies and lighting to residential and commercial contractors, institutions and retail customers. Electrical contractors make up nearly 80 percent of that customer base. Helle says the company has plenty of room to grow in New England, citing a $2.1 billion market for electrical supplies in Massachusetts; he says the entire New England region represents about $4 billion.

Gaining market share in New England is the philosophy behind Granite City's Red Sox sponsorship. Godwin's son-in-law Leo Meehan, a member of Granite City's board of directors and president of regional office supplies company W.B Mason, had worked with the Red Sox in a similar partnership and suggested the move. Helle and Godwin say they realized it made perfect sense when they learned the Red Sox are the most recognized brand among men age 18 to 60 in New England.

“We thought, that's our world,” Godwin says. “And Red Sox Nation is our geography. So why not piggyback onto New England's number one brand?”

It was a high-profile move for a relatively small company, but Granite City took the leap, becoming a corporate sponsor in 2004, the year of the Red Sox' historic World Series victory. The next step was to advertise on radio and television, which required another leap of faith, as Godwin puts it.

“We realized that being inside the park was one thing, but it was nothing compared to the coverage you could get on TV,” she says.

Advertising inside the park reaches 36,750 people (the capacity of Fenway Park) per game; advertising on radio and television reaches more than two million people, Helle explains. So the company started a campaign on sports radio and TV's New England Sports Network, which broadcasts each game and features pre- and post-game coverage. Granite City eventually became a sponsor of one of the post-game shows, Extra Innings Extra. The “name drop” benefits to that program alone are what put Granite City in the big league, Helle says.

“I really didn't understand it in the beginning,” he says. “The post-game show wasn't the big deal. It was the mention of our name throughout the game. [The TV station's] goal is to get you to stay on the station. So, they would say throughout the game, 'Be sure to watch Granite City Electric's Extra Innings Extra after the game.' That was the grand slam.”

Like Godwin, Helle says he's not sure how to gauge the impact of Granite City's investment in the program. And he admits that the 18- to 60-year-old male market in New England fits just part of Granite City's target—they must also be a buying influence at an electrical company. But he says he's sure of one thing: The program has helped shatter the myth that Granite City Electric is a small company that only handles small orders.

Granite City's display ad on the Green Monster sits next to that of two major New England companies six times its size—W.B. Mason and plumbing and heating products distributor F.W. Webb. And there's a more crucial point: as part of the sponsorship, Granite City is billed as “the official distributor of electrical supplies for the Boston Red Sox.” The company wanted to let people know it could compete with the big guys, Helle says, and the ability to light up Fenway Park seemed the perfect way to do that.

“It takes a million watts to light Fenway Park, but only one distributor to keep it lit,” Helle says. “We stayed on track with that premise.

“It's Fenway Park. You can't have the lights go out there. We don't supply power, but we do sell first-class, quality material. And we make sure it's there on time.”

Granite City began that part of the deal by supplying something very simple—lightbulbs. The relationship has grown to include a range of electrical supplies and lighting, and Fenway Park ranks as one of Granite City's top customers today.

The distributor's growth is good news to longtime suppliers like Square D, which sells its entire line of electrical switchgear, controls and automation products through Granite City and has worked with them for more than 70 years. New England area sales manager Van Donnelly agrees the company's marketing efforts are a gamble, but says they seem to be paying off.

“This gives them a total New England exposure,” he says. “The sponsorship is a major risk, but at the same time they did that, they grew their stores and their market expanded. Now they're a household name around New England.”

Granite City's Field of Dreams sweepstakes bolsters their reputation, too. It's part of the Red Sox partnership and has one goal: To provide and install lighting for a junior baseball or softball field somewhere in New England. Each year, city and town representatives write to Granite City explaining why their little league or high school teams deserve to play under the lights. Godwin says the sweepstakes combines the best of business and community, bringing together Granite City's suppliers and customers in an effort to do something good for kids. Marketing the program is expensive because it's promoted during the Red Sox games at Fenway, on the radio and on television, and it takes time to evaluate the entries, she explains. But Granite City gets help from vendors and customers who donate products and services to complete the project.

“We're known for Field of Dreams now,” says Godwin. “And it is such a positive recognition because people say, 'What a great company, they do things to help kids.'

“And it's true; we do it because we give kids the opportunity to play under the lights. And what could be better? That never would have come about without the Red Sox.”

One of Granite City's best customers, Glynn Electric, installed the lights for two of the Field of Dreams winners. Company vice president Mike Glynn says he's glad to be part of the project.

“We do it because it's for the kids, and because Phyllis [Godwin] asked us to,” Glynn says. “We'd do anything for her. This year, the response we've gotten has been phenomenal. And we're not even advertising, we just install the lights. The goodwill you get from it is incredible.”

Glynn Electric is a full-service electrical contractor with 180 employees and has been a Granite City customer for more than 20 years. Glynn says the Field of Dreams sweepstakes encapsulates Granite City's business philosophy, especially its focus on service.

“They're pretty amazing for a company that deals in commodities,” says Glynn. “It's all about relationships with them. Their corporate culture is that service is number one. For example, they hold customer forums where they find out how they can provide better service.”

Granite City's Night Train service is a product of that customer feedback. Orders received by 6 p.m. are delivered overnight to a drop box at the customer's shop, job site or home, so the products are there first thing in the morning. It's Granite City's answer to being the first delivery of the day.

“The idea is that it's waiting for you,” says Helle. “You don't have to come to us and you don't have to wait for it.”

Granite City Electric started the Night Train service four years ago, using its fleet of 35 delivery trucks. Helle says it's no easy task, but technology helps. As the company's grown, it's had to beef up its back-office systems to keep pace with customer demands and with the competition. Like marketing, technology is an ongoing investment that Helle and Godwin say is vital to the firm's survival. It helps them provide tailored service to each customer—large or small, contractor, institution or homeowner.

“I think what we're trying to do is walk in with a menu and say: Select,” says Helle. “You can come to our place and get it; we'll deliver it to you; we'll put it in a secure place—and how about we deliver it in the middle of the night? Thirty-five percent of our deliveries go out after midnight and before 6 a.m.”

When asked about Granite City's market strategy going forward, Helle thinks for a minute and says, “We're a large 'mom and pop' that can execute and play with the big boys. We have that familiar, family touch that [Nicholas Papani] started and Phyllis [Godwin] has continued. We need to hold on to that, and we also need to expand.”

Godwin agrees, citing the family culture that permeates Granite City Electric as another vital piece of its success story. She emphasizes the service her company provides and the values it brings to the marketplace, calling Granite City Electric a “principled company” that attracts like-minded employees, customers and vendors. One of her proudest accomplishments in recent years is the development of a set of core values that drive Granite City Electric. A product of managers and employees, the core values “guide our actions, behaviors and business decisions,” according to Godwin. The core values are respect, integrity, accountability, pride and commitment.

“Core values are values that will never change,” says Godwin. “The more I look at our core values, the more I'm convinced that you attract employees that share your values, and in turn you attract vendors and customers that share those values. It's something very subliminal.

“Highly principled companies, which we are and hopefully always will be, attract highly principled people. It sounds a little offbeat and a little spiritual—I'm a very spiritual person anyway—but our core values really drive the way we operate.”

Mike Glynn agrees. He says he remembers when his brother Matt Glynn, president of Glynn Electric, was a struggling young contractor and Granite City Electric helped keep his fledgling company afloat.

“There were some hard times,” Glynn says. “They really helped him and worked with him to keep him in business. They wanted him to succeed.

“From Steve Helle all the way down to the delivery guys, they really care about you. When you deal with them, you become part of the family.”