All in the Family: The Butlers
Pamela Brill -- Gifts and Dec, 6/20/2011 6:39:21 AM
THE BUTLERS: Ed Butler, Betty Butler, Paula Butler Kay, Christy Butler Parham and Greg Butler.
Once you have established a thriving business, it's only natural to begin thinking about ensuring its longevity. And when that company involves family members, it's all the more reason to take the necessary steps to secure their future, both professionally and personally.
Such was the case for Ed Butler, chairman and owner of The Butler Group, an Atlanta-based sales company representing wholesale gift manufacturers and importers. After he and wife Betty started their company in 1988, he began introducing his three children to the idea of taking part in day-to-day operations. To highlight each of their strengths, Butler found unique roles for their individual talents.
A ROLE FOR EACH CHILD
Each of Ed and Betty Butler's three children had different talents to contribute to the business. Ed found a unique role for each that captitalizes on those strengths and benefits the business as a whole.
According to Butler, son Greg, who serves as vice president of marketing/ operations, "always had an artistic flair. He took every available art class in college, but found he really couldn't apply them to a vocation." Instead, Greg found his niche in the showroom side of the family business, and has since garnered numerous accolades for his creative expertise.
Butler's elder daughter, Christy, cultivated a door-to-door sales career with Mary Kay Cosmetics, and eventually became part of the top 3 percent of the company's sales force. "She has a cheerleader personality and is very supportive of other people," says Butler. When her oldest child started college, Christy approached her father about coming to work for him, and began selling to accounts in the north Georgia area that other salespeople were not calling on. "She took the remnants and developed a good territory for herself," he adds.
When younger daughter Paula decided to trade in her traveling sales career with a wholesale jewelry business for one that would bring her more stability, she also turned to her dad. "She had been on the road doing trunk shows for 26 weeks out of the year," notes Butler. At the time, the company was importing wicker furniture and had a mobile showroom that sold baskets to florists. Paula became the showroom's driver and eventually earned herself a sales territory.
"With all her road selling experience, she was more equipped to deal with sales and manufacturer reps in determining what would work in our line package," says Butler. She eventually earned the title of executive vice president of sales and product development for The Butler Group.
Building the Future
With each child's position securely in place, Butler realized it was time to begin laying the groundwork for the future. Four years ago, he sat down and interviewed his children separately to find out what they'd like to do at the company in the long term. "Amazingly, each kid agreed to the other's choices and strengths," he notes.
Butler then decided to hammer out a career path for each child and figure out what kind of help they would need to accomplish their goals. He hired a personal business coach for Paula to develop her leadership skills and also contacted the Cox Family Foundation, which assists families in business together.
The first change the Butlers implemented was to hold regular family council meetings-some- thing that Ed himself found somewhat difficult. "We had to share how much money we made with the kids, and for me growing up, that was a taboo subject," he confesses.
"But I realized it was important for everyone to understand how we make money and how to gauge if we were ever in financial trouble."
During their meetings, the Butlers also discussed the idea of expanding their business. "We thought about what it would be like if we had a company with a higher profit margin [because we were making such little profits with high overheads and paying out commissions]," recalls Ed. Those thoughts were soon to become reality.
Opportunity Knocks
The Butlers had been representing Maison Chic, a baby gift line. On a trip to visit the Butlers in July 2009, Maison Chic's factory owner approached them about taking over the line. Butler agreed on the provision that they become coowners, with responsibility for the line's sales side in the U.S.
In September 2009, the Butlers traveled to China and began working on a new line under the brand, which was introduced in January 2010. Butler then turned the Maison Chic reins over to Christy, who has since become vice president/sales manager for the line.
He admits he was disappointed that the line initially didn't achieve a high level of sales volume. But by the following year, under Christy's leadership and with the addition of sales director Randy Gottlieb, Maison Chic has experienced a 400-percent sales increase and counts more than 130 sales reps across the country.
Learning to Work Together
While Butler says his family generally gets along well, various personal and medical issues have arisen over the years that have prevented members from giving 100 percent. "When that happens, the others pitch in," he remarks. "One of the things we try to do is to tell each other what we're working on, so the kids know they are carrying their weight and not slacking off."
Butler recalls a recent challenge when Paula and Greg had to reach a compromise in order to develop a new line, while still covering the showroom rent. "Paula had to involve Greg in the same level of enthusiasm so he would help support the line," he says. "She grew up working alone, but now she has learned how to talk to her brother and sell him on a line to make it work."
"As a family, you have to be able to give more," notes Butler of his business. "That doesn't mean you don't expect the best; you have to be ready to get - and give - more."
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