Business
Relative Ease
PHOTO BY GLENN TRIEST
Compromise
Larry, Ceil and Sandi Stocker
of the Berkley Flower Shop.
and respect
are the key
ingredients
to running
a family
business.
SUZANNE CHESSLER
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
Ilt seems a lot of
attention is paid
to family values
these days — in the press, on TV
and at get-togethers where peo-
ple talk candidly about what mat-
ters to them.
There's one group of people
who each day translate family
values into dollars and cents —
husbands and wives, fathers and
sons, brothers and sisters, as well
as all other combinations of rel-
atives intent on working side-by-
side in businesses they jointly
own.
Is there a secret to maintain-
ing close personal ties among rel-
atives in business together? Some
say yes. And is there anything in
the Jewish heritage that keeps
family businesses strong? That
got yes answers, too.
Everyone has to bend and re-
spect each other's ideas," said
Sandi Stocker, who joined her
husband, Larry, and her moth-
er-in-law, Ceil, in operating the
Berkley Flower Shop.
In business for more than 50
years and following their clien-
tele from Detroit to the suburbs,
the Stockers define their prima-
ry service as creating beautiful
weddings to fit any customer's
budget, although they also take
care of the other events tradi-
tionally observed with colorful
bouquets.
Ceil Stocker learned her trade
from her late husband, Ben, who
was taught his skills by an uncle,
another family florist.
Larry Stocker knew from an
early age that he wanted to con-
tinue the family enterprise and
attended the Bill Hixson School
of Design in Lakewood, Ohio,
where he earned a degree in flo-
ral design and management.
Depending on the time of year
and the number of events they
have to take care of, the Stockers
employ between two and five full-
and part-time staff members.
Because they have been in
business for so long, the Stockers
enjoy taking care of successive
generations of customers in one
family. They often feel a person-
al bond with these individuals,
and no written contract is re-
quired.
"We all get involved with the
planning, and it's probably made
us feel closer," Ceil Stocker said.
Another business that has
been operating for more than 50
years is Wallside Windows Inc.
Started by Martin Blanck, who
still spends some time on the job,
it is now primarily run by his
sons, Stanford and Stuart.
The Taylor-based company
employs 200 people who manu-
facture and install vinyl replace-
ment windows.
According to Stanford Blanck,
the pros of working together in-
volve being able to trust one an-
other while holding onto the
sense of family unity. He de-
scribes one recurring problem as
the difficulty in coming to an
agreement when each family
member has a different idea
about resolving a particular is-
sue.
"We're close-knit, and so we
eventually compromise," he said.
Stanford Blanck thinks Jews
have a survival instinct and the
wherewithal to see everything
through: "We're fighters in a
rough business," he said.
Gerry Goodman, who founded
Wells Freight & Cargo in 1975,
also is a survivor in a tough mar-
ket. With her husband, Walter,
who joined her after the business
was up and running, she sells
dinnerware, glassware,
crystal and cooking uten-
sils at discounted prices.
Seven full- and part-
time employees work out
of the couple's Birming-
ham store.
"There was a time in
my generation when we
used to play store, but I
have learned that a real
store is better," said Mrs.
Goodman, who intro-
duces her grandchildren
to the world of commerce
by letting them mark the
merchandise and hand
out small gifts to young-
sters brought along by
adult customers.
"I think that two peo-
ple can have a successful
store without one
leader," Mrs. Goodman
said. "It's like dancing;
sometimes you're perfect
together, and sometimes you're
stepping on each other's toes."
The Goodmans have had mul-
tiple careers independently. She
was in advertising, and he was
in economics and teaching.
"Everybody has to bring a tal-
ent, and everybody has to have
space," Mrs. Goodman com-
mented. "There has to be mutu-
al respect.
"I used to invoke a rule that we
weren't going to bring the busi-
ness home, but that was impos-
sible. We've found it's given
another dimension to our rela-
tionship."
Part of the positive feelings
have come from Mr. Goodman's
making sure others know that
Mrs. Goodman is the founder and
president of the firm, especially
when anyone stereotypes the
male as the decision maker and
directs business conversations to-
ward him.
The Mosses, who operate Ad-
vance Plumbing and Heating
Supply Co., are a family divided
— between two stores, that is.
Ron Moss, son-in-law of 1920
business founder Harry Cher-
nick, works out of the Detroit fa-
cility, while his son Jeff is at the
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