Company History
Maco Office Supplies was established in 1952 in Jersey City, NJ, and moved to its current location at 1000 Kennedy Boulevard, Union City in 1961. MACO began as a full-service stationer providing business stationary including logo design, general merchandise, office machinery and furniture. Maco Office Supplies quickly became well known in the area, and began establishing commercial accounts that remain its customers today. As the area began to grow economically, more businesses were coming to Hudson county. By 1961, within 10 years of its establishment , company moved to a 5,000 square-foot building. Four men Harry Casner, Harry Goldberg, Charles Kreitman and Sidney Reissman, would run MACO for the next 27 years. Together they built a successful business well known throughout Hudson County.
Maco had operated primarily as a commercial source providing daily deliveries, with only a small retail business. But as the area grew, the retail business increase significantly. Plans were outline to open a showroom/retail store. In 1996, the retail store opened, with a purple and peach color scheme. It was met with excitement and praise by the local community. A glass, diamond-shaped display case welcomed customers as they entered. A 40-foot counter provided an ample customer service area, with cubicles creating workspaces for employees. The exterior was redone. And the mansard roof prominently displayed the letters: MACO.
Also in 1986, Ricky married Sharon Giannattasio, who joined the Maco staff. Initially, Sharon worked in the retail store and currently designs office interiors. She was responsible for expanding the furniture sales division. Ricky’s Sister, carol, came to work at the store too, and is now responsible for developing and maintaining commercial accounts.
Throughout Maco’s history, two employees have played integral roles in the company’s development. Norma Messina has served as bookkeeper for over 35 years, and Irene Gerding has been Maco’s billing clerk for over 25 years. Another important figure has been Gilbert Sunshine, Maco’s accountant for nearly 50 years. “Maco has been providing quality products and office furnishings for almost half a century,” says Ricky Reissman. “ We have watched our customers businesses grow over the years and are proud to have helped them. We Have been a part of our customers success through our commitment to customer service, prompt deliveries and innovative products.”
Press Release
While everyone talks about growth, some resellers actually go out to the market and do what they can to stimulate sales. That’s been the approach at Maco Office Source, Union City, N.J., where growth rocketed to close to 30 percent during 2009. “At the start of the year we thought could increase business from current customers by at least 20 percent and increase annual sales by 5-10 percent by adding new accounts,” says Sharon Reissman, marketing manager and furniture sales associate. “For over 30 years, business was strong with an annual increase in sales; however, the market changed in 2008, and we needed to change our approach,” says Ricky Reissman, president/CEO of Maco. The company increased marketing flyers and added a new school catalog with hundreds of additional products. Existing customers who were prime candidates for JanSan sales were targeted. “We also changed the last word in our name from “Supplies” to “Source” because we’re not just office supplies, we are a one-stop source for everything from paper clips to toilet paper,” Ricky adds.
An emphasis on school products along with JanSan helped Maco attain its goal of increasing business. The company has a solid customer base with municipalities and schools, but with the introduction of United’s School Catalog in 2009, the company’s school business received a renewed push. “We used the school catalog for the first time last spring,” says Sharon, “and it has been great for us.” Using the new catalog as leverage, Maco exhibited in a trade show for teachers for the first time, and that effort resulted in some significant new business. When a teacher came by who was already purchasing from Maco, Sharon would give her a catalog and ask if she would bring it back to her school and give it to the principal or whoever did the purchasing.
“We came back with 95 leads from the teacher show, and I received five calls after the show for product,” she says. Helping to revitalize growth was a re-emphasis on JanSan products. Maco had been active in the market with C-fold towels and toilet tissue it purchased from another vendor. “Now United Stationers has come into the market in a much bigger way,” explains Ricky. “We’re sending our sales staff to United for JanSan training because we think there’s an enormous potential for growth. We have gotten tremendous support from United in helping us increase our sales through marketing and training in various areas.” Strong Organic Growth Selling more to existing customers follows from the personal relationships that are maintained with Maco’s customers. “The customer is happy doing business with us, and in most cases they aren’t as satisfied with the service they receive from larger suppliers,” says Sharon. “People are getting
back to doing business locally and doing business where they have a relationship. Our slogan is ‘A Trusted Name in the Industry.’ That’s been our approach for more than 55 years, and it speaks louder than any gimmick or advertising campaign.” Ricky has run Maco for 30 years, caring for his customers with a genuine passion to satisfy his customer’s needs. Sharon joined the company in 1986 when the two married, and she focuses on marketing and furniture sales. The Reissmans and the Maco sales staff have been resourceful in their approaches to growing business with existing customers. They asked one customer in the cleaning business what they could do to get a larger share of his business. In this case, Maco was more innovative and asked how the cleaning company brought product to its customers. “We told him we could ship product to his customers so he wouldn’t have to load it on his trucks,” says Sharon. Now Maco ships cleaning supplies, toilet tissue, and C-fold towels to the cleaning company’s clients. This is just one example of a creative solution that resulted in more business from an existing customer. “We do retail really well and, at times, our store is our biggest advertisement,” says Sharon. “People like to come into a store and look around.” The store has a prominent location on Kennedy Boulevard, a major thoroughfare, and based on her research, Sharon estimates that close to a million cars drive by the store every year. A new banner was added recently on the building’s mansard advertising 27,000 office products in stock or available the next day at 8 a.m. “Walk-in traffic has increased since we put the banner up, so we think it was a highly successful marketing tool that also promotes the early store opening time of 8 a.m.,” says Ricky.
Time for a Facelift The store was ready for a facelift, and last summer some college students were hired to work on the facility. They repainted the store, broke down the aisles, and created a more open environment. “It had been like a grocery store atmosphere with aisles loaded with product,” she says. “Now there’s just one main aisle, there are four pedestals, and the walls are slot wall with pegs.” The majority of the retail floor is now devoted to furniture, and a portion of that display has been designated as a working showroom. Sharon moved her office and her purchasing manager’s office onto the floor. The purchasing manager received a whole line of Alera furniture with a transaction desk to promote the Alera line. As soon as it was put on display, two similar desks were sold.
The store was originally a car dealership and the outside features a solid wall of windows. Last summer when the work was being doneon the interior, the exterior was also updated. The side of the building was painted and new banners were hung. There are close to 20 glass windows on the outside, and these are painted with a variety of offers. For instance, one presents HON chairs at 50 percent off, while another showcases brand name paper for $30 a case. While putting prices in the front window with a product as volatile as paper might seem risky to some, Sharon contends it makes perfect sense. In continuing communications with customers, she impresses them with the fact that the low-priced paper they see in the market is probably imported from Asia. “What customers don’t understand is that eventually low-cost paper could damage their machine,” she says. Customers might save $2 or $3 a carton with cheaper paper, but at the same time they insist on only running the OEM toner cartridges because they’re concerned about print quality. “When they switch from the cheap paper to a quality brand, they’re very happy with us for suggesting it and explaining the benefits,” she says.
Even though the retail portion of Maco’s business is relatively small, the store plays an iconic role in establishing and maintaining a presence in the local business community. “Some of our biggest customers walk through that door,” says Sharon. One day a new customer came into the store, purchased a few items, and announced that his company would be relocating from Europe to the U.S., and he would like Maco to become its supplier. “They became one of our biggest accounts. Another day a man walked in, asked about a desk in the window, and then ordered 100 of them with 100 chairs! A major component of the growth initiative at Maco last year was a customer trade show held in September. The show served a three-fold purpose—it recognized the company’s 55th anniversary, it rewarded customer loyalty, and it provided a forum to host a new product showcase.
Planning began in the early spring when a save-the-date note was sent to customers. Bob Cetta, the United Stationers account manager for Maco, was instrumental in setting up the show and recruiting manufacturers to attend. Solid Attendance Most attendees were decisionmakers and really didn’t come just to accumulate product giveaways. “The manufacturers told me that usually when they do these shows, people are there for free products and aren’t really interested in learning more,” says Ricky. “They said they didn’t see that this time, and most vendors came back to me with solid leads.” Preparation for the trade show included a managed effort to improve the customer interface.
Starting with a list of Maco’s top 300 customers, an attempt was made to determine how much information Maco has on these customers, including who is in charge of purchasing, the person’s last name, and her e-mail address. “Oddly enough, we have customers who we’ve done business with for years, and we didn’t know their last names,” says Sharon. Last June, a flyer was included with every order. Customers were asked to fill out the form and fax it back for a chance to win a $15 Dunkin’ Donuts gift card. Out of 500 flyers that were sent out, about 100 responses were received. Twentyfive winners were called and told that their gift card would be sent out with their next order. “I can’t begin to tell you how excited they were that they had won a $15 gift card,” says Sharon. “It was as if they had won the lottery.” Identifying new customers and getting them to place orders has also played a part in Maco’s exceptional growth last year. New customers were identified through referrals from existing accounts or by canvassing businesses located in the same county where Maco is located.
Most business starts with a quote. “People are responsive to giving us their last invoice, which makes it easier for us to be competitive when we submit a bid,” says Ricky. As sometimes happens, Maco occasionally loses accounts to competitors who offer low prices, but Ricky says “they will not be gone forever.” Sure enough, more frequently than not, those customers come back. “Sometimes it’s good for an account to leave us because then they see what is really out there,” says Ricky. “Fortunately, we’re very good at what we do, we have a highly experienced sales staff, and we are truly committed to customer service and satisfaction—our competitors can’t hold a candle to us. “We’re so proud to see the results of our efforts despite one of the toughest years in the U.S. economy. We put in a lot of overtime this year identifying the changes that needed to be made, and implementing programs and strategies offered by United. Our business is stronger than ever, and we are excited about the future and looking forward to 2010.” O|L
