SAFETY NET IN SLOW ECONOMY, SHOP OWNERS' SONS AND DAUGHTERS SEE FAMILY VENTURE IN NEW LIGHT.Byline: Barbara Correa Staff Writer Bob Lowry, second-generation owner of Lowry & Son Auto Body in West Covina West Covina, city (1990 pop. 96,086), Los Angeles co., S Calif., in the San Gabriel valley; settled 1905, inc. 1923. Before World War II, West Covina was a small rural community where walnuts, wheat, and livestock were raised. , would rather see his 16-year-old son go to college than start working full-time at the family business. But in this economy, he's glad he can provide a safety net at a time when tuitions are skyrocketing and good jobs are hard to find. ``I would prefer he take the education route,'' Lowry said. ``But I told him, you always have this. We're here, we own everything. We're not in debt.'' When economic conditions are strong and job opportunities plentiful, sons and daughters of entrepreneurs typically spend about five years after college working outside the family firm before returning to take on their filial duty Noun 1. filial duty - duty of a child to its parents duty, obligation, responsibility - the social force that binds you to the courses of action demanded by that force; "we must instill a sense of duty in our children"; "every right implies a responsibility; every , said James Ellis People known as James Ellis include
But in times like these, going to work at the family auto shop, restaurant, printing company or dry-cleaning business can look pretty attractive. ``Because of the economy, (family owned businesses) are actually stronger. Kids who can't find a job revert back to the family business more than they normally would,'' Ellis said. Hyro Celik, owner of Mirage Cleaners in Northridge, said his son, Sal, has been working part-time at the dry-cleaning company since he was laid off from a telecom firm in Calabasas about a year ago. Celik said it's been nice to have Sal, who recently graduated from California State University, Northridge CSUN offers a variety of programs leading to bachelor's degrees in 61 fields and master's degrees in 42 fields. The university has over 150,000 alumni. It's also home to a summer musical theater/theater program known as TADW (TeenAge Drama Workshop) that leads teenagers through an , and a telecom and networking program at DeVry Institute, around to help out. But he also knows it isn't his son's first choice. ``It helps us. It doesn't help him,'' Celik said. Marta Vago, a family business consultant and adviser to the Family Business Center at CSUN CSUN California State University Northridge , the trend is cyclical and so closely tied to employment conditions that it probably won't have a long-term impact on succession patterns of family businesses. ``There are two patterns; either the children don't even bother getting outside experience or they go and do the outside work and they get laid off. Then the family business is beginning to look pretty good.'' Family ties Historically, about one-third of all family owned businesses survive into the second generation, said Joseph Astrachan as·tra·chan n. Variant of astrakhan. , editor of Family Business Review, a journal published by the Family Firm Institute. Even fewer pass on to a third generation. The failure rate usually has more to do with personal family conflicts than with problems in business. But in challenging economic times, sons and daughters tend to stick around since there are fewer opportunities elsewhere. Tom Wayman [1] Thomas Ethan Wayman (born 13 August 1945) is a Canadian poet and academic. Born in Hawkesbury, Ontario, Wayman has lived most of his life in British Columbia. , director of marketing at LaserFiche, a Long Beach document management firm founded by his mother, came to work at the company after giving up the idea of becoming an Internet entrepreneur An Internet Entrepreneur is a person that engages in business on the internet and helps to shape the future of business on the internet by being an innovator. One who is able to recognize opportunity and administer resources to take advantage of the opportunities. . ``I had this idea I was going to go start this (e-commerce) company when the Internet was getting popular. I realized I didn't know what I was doing, so I came back to L.A. and was given the opportunity to learn how businesses are run,'' said Wayman, who holds a degree in ``rocket science'' from Stanford. ``Book knowledge doesn't necessarily prepare you for the business environment,'' he said. ``The education I've gotten here is far beyond what you could get at a business school in terms of levels of responsibility.'' Wayman's return to the family business happened in 1997, several years before the demise of the dot-com era. But his experience offers a road map for other second-generation business heirs who may not be sure they want to join the family firm. Juan Pablo Juan Pablo is a common Spanish given name. It is the equivalent of "John Paul" in English or "Jean-Paul" in French. Some famous people with this name:
abbr. Master of Business Administration Noun 1. MBA - a master's degree in business Master in Business, Master in Business Administration at University of California, Los Angeles UCLA comprises the College of Letters and Science (the primary undergraduate college), seven professional schools, and five professional Health Science schools. Since 2001, UCLA has enrolled over 33,000 total students, and that number is steadily rising. , several years ago. In the last year and a half, Agilent pulled back on some of its Latin American operations, which cut Yamuni's visits to overseas offices, the most exciting part of his job. ``It's been a great experience,'' he said. ``But who knows when things will get better?'' This summer, Yamuni plans to move back to Guadalajara to launch a new franchise venture there with his brothers. ``For these folks, the dot-bomb is the best thing that could have happened to them,'' Vago said. ``They are given an opportunity (others) would kill for.'' Challenges to succession Regardless of the relative security of working at a family business, there are still plenty of reasons most children of entrepreneurs won't follow their parents' footsteps. For one thing, running a family business is a lot more work than a nine- to-five job. ``I work seven days a week,'' said Clarence Rittmann, owner of Rittmann's Tuxedos in Pomona. All of his daughters worked at the shop at some point. Their signatures are still visible on the sidewalk outside, where they were scratched in wet cement when the store opened in 1980. Now, the daughters are grown up and all have careers of their own, except for one still in high school. ``I wanted them to go to school, and these service businesses are time- consuming ...,'' Rittmann said. ``I don't think I've created some kind of dynasty.'' Kathleen Thurmond, president of Best Washington Uniform Supply, founded in Long Beach by her father, said her 14-year-old daughter has already decided the industrial uniform and laundry business is not for her. ``She has watched me work around the clock,'' said Thurmond, who has brought her daughter in to help answer the phones, do filing and fold towels. And while Thurmond is carrying on the business in part to honor her dad and the company he built, she doesn't expect her daughter to take it on. Some family owned ventures, particularly smaller ones burdened by rising regulatory and insurance costs, are actively steering their children toward outside jobs. Bob Lowry, the auto body shop owner, said the rising cost of materials, increasingly stringent environmental regulations and proliferation proliferation /pro·lif·er·a·tion/ (pro-lif?er-a´shun) the reproduction or multiplication of similar forms, especially of cells.prolif´erativeprolif´erous pro·lif·er·a·tion n. of required licenses makes it more difficult to encourage his son to stay in the business. ``It's harder and harder to make a dollar,'' said Lowry, who's been in business with his father for 26 years. ``We made all our money the first 15 years. Not that this was ever a multimillion-dollar business. But you could afford to live OK. ... Now you hear about people working in a warehouse making what you do, and they get benefits and retirement. That's why I hate to see my son take it over.'' Kuldip Kamboj, who owns Sitar Indian Cuisine The multiple families of Indian cuisine are characterized by their sophisticated and subtle use of many spices and herbs. Each family of this cuisine is characterized by a wide assortment of dishes and cooking techniques. in Pasadena with her husband, says she is encouraging her 17-year-old son to pursue a medical career instead of go to work at the restaurant. The Kambojs moved to Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, 18 years ago and owned AM/PM AM/PM Amplitude Modulation/Phase Modulation AM/PM Ante Meridian/Post Meridian and 7-Eleven franchises before opening the restaurant two years ago. But they don't expect their kids to follow them unless they want to. ``I don't want to pressure them,'' said Kamboj. ``But if they can't find a job, they can come back.'' Barbara Correa, (818) 713-3634 barbara.correa(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 3 photos, box Photo: (1 -- color) Clarence Rittmann opened Rittmann's Tuxedos in Pomona in 1972 and now has tuxedo shops in Upland and Redlands. Mark Campus/Staff Photographer (2 -- 3 -- color) Cathleen Thurmond, above, owns Best Washington Uniform Supply, but daughter Alex does not intend to become part of it. At left, Tom Wayman is following in the footsteps of his mother, Nien-Ling Wacher, at the family's LaserFiche software business. John McCoy/Staff Photographer Box: FAMILY AFFAIRS Family Affairs is a British soap opera. The flagship soap on five, it was the first programme to air on the channel on March 30, 1997, the channel's launch night. The serial was broadcast in half-hour episodes, screening each weeknight. |
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