Enjoying the Family in Business [Springs Magazine – Winter 2013]

A Profile of Mark DiVenere and Gemco Manufacturing
Springs Magazine – Winter 2013
by Gary McCoy

June 14 is Flag Day in the U.S. and on that date in 2012, the Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce waved their own flag to honor local businesses and individuals during the group’s 123rd annual awards ceremony. Among those gathered at the Aqua Turf Club in Plantsville, Conn. for the event was Mark DiVenere, representing the third generation of the DiVenere family to own Gemco Manufacturing Co., Inc. He was joined by his wife Annsue, his family and his employees.

It was on that day when Gemco received the 2012 “Distinguished Business of the Year Award.” It was a bittersweet day for DiVenere. He had the privilege of working with the first two generation of owners, DiVenere’s grandfather, Dominic DiVenere and father, Peter DiVenere, but both men had passed away years earlier. DiVenere thought about how proud his grandfather and father would have been of the illustrious award.

While they were not there to celebrate the company’s success, DiVenere was honored that his 93-year old grandmother, Mary DiVenere, could be there with him. “It was nice to be recognized and to have my grandmother sitting by my side toasting the company she helped start with my grandfather,” said DiVenere. DiVenere’s mother, Joyce, who was battling cancer at the time, was unable to attend. However, through the magic of technology, she viewed the entire event via Skype. Sadly, she passed away later that month.

History

Gemco was founded in 1943 in Plantsville, Conn. about ten miles from the company’s current location in Southington, by a group of five young entrepreneurs. One of the founders was Dominic DiVenere. The five business partners all worked full-time jobs for other local manufacturers and spent off hours at the new business trying to make a go of it. None of them drew a salary during the first two years. “They simply reinvested what little profit they realized back into the company to purchase additional equipment and materials,” explained DiVenere.

DiVenere’s grandfather was also a barber and part owner of a small restaurant. “As a child of the Depression, he had to take care of his mom and his stepbrother, so he worked for a living,” said DiVenere with respect. “That’s why they call these people ‘The Greatest Generation.’ They faced challenges that we can only think about.”

The company was originally known as the General Machine Company, as were so many local companies founded as World War II came to a close. The company name was changed to Gemco Manufacturing soon after its founding, an acronym for the former title. Two of the original founding partners left the business not long after it started because, as DiVenere pointed out, “they couldn’t continue to work the long hours or make the sacrifices necessary to continue to build the business.” By the mid ’70s, control of Gemco was in the hands of the DiVenere family with Dominic serving as president and Peter as vice president.

Product Shift

Gemco began as a company that supplied flat springs, contacts, switch leafs and connectors. “Many of these parts were used in a range of products, including cap guns, dart boards, tops, flashlights, toaster ovens, home thermostats, switches for marine, commercial, and residential, and children’s games,” said DiVenere. “Gemco always took pride in the fact that we didn’t produce what we termed ‘hardware,'” said DiVenere. “Many of our customers sought us out for sourcing what they described as the ‘challenging’ work. Don’t get me wrong, we had a few very easy jobs in the factory, but for the most part, the components we manufactured were not ordinary fourslide components.” He marvels at the high level of creativity that occurred in the early years of the business with the simple tools and limited processes they had to work with. “They had no CAD software, no CNC, no wire EDM. They machined dies and sheared punches. They exhibited a lot of craftsmanship and ingenuity.”

Until 1995, Gemco was primarily a fourslide house, with a range of machines that were capable of producing components from .005 to .060 thick. “It was at this time that Gemco expanded our capabilities to include power presses. This capability provided us with the opportunity to offer our customers alternatives to the fourslide production process.” The tooling investment to do this was greater, but DiVenere says the increased run rates achieved allowed Gemco to manufacture components more inexpensively.

DiVenere credits “clever, resourceful and dedicated individuals” that have worked for the company over the past 70 years for the company’s success. The company’s current employee population is 30, many of them having been with the company for more than fifteen or twenty years. Gemco operates 64 fourslide machines and 12 power presses. “Over time we have incorporated tapping, contact insertion and assembly into our power press and fourslide processes, many times eliminating the need for secondary operations,” he explained.

Gemco has customers in the U.S. as well as in Canada, Mexico, Central America, Europe and China. They serve a diversity of industries and their products can be found in automobiles, commercial airliners, missile systems, telecommunication equipment, radar systems, medical devices, home and commercial lighting systems and controls, as well as in heavy duty trucks and tractors.

Born into Springs

DiVenere says, like a majority of Springs’ second, third and fourth generation readers, he was born into the industry. “In 1978, at the young age of fifteen, I can remember being awakened at 5:30 a.m. on Saturday mornings by my father, telling me it was time to head to ‘the shop,'” DiVenere fondly remembers. “I would climb up into my father’s 1967 Chevy pickup truck, shut the door and move to the center of the bench seat. I did this knowing that I would need to make room for my Uncle Netti, who also worked at ‘the shop’ along with my grandfather and the guys.” DiVenere worked every Saturday morning during the year and for two summers before heading off to college in 1981. He continued to work at Gemco during semester breaks while attending school.

During this time he was able to move through every department in the shop, beginning in shipping and packaging. He later moved into secondary operations and eventually into production. He also spent time in the tooling room building tools, and “designed a few of my own.” DiVenere said both his grandfather and father knew it was important for him to have first hand familiarity with the various processes throughout the company. “If I had an interest in joining the company after college, I needed to be productive and I needed to earn a position.” Reflecting back, DiVenere said his grandfather was tough. “You’re not just coming in here because you’re my grandson,” said DiVenere’s grandfather. “You’ve got to earn your spot.”

Describing himself as a “mechanical kid who liked to get his hands dirty,” DiVenere attended Western New England College to study mechanical engineering. DiVenere officially joined Gemco full time in 1985. He was later promoted to vice president in 1996 after working in purchasing, estimating and as sales manager. “It was quite an opportunity for me. There aren’t a lot of people who got to spend every day for 15 years working with a man like my grandfather.” Dominic DiVenere passed away in 2000.

Foundation Shaker
Just a few years after taking over the business from Dominic, Peter got sick. “My dad, a ‘healthy’ young man of 61, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma,” said DiVenere. “This shook our company to its foundation.”

Peter died in 2005 at the age of 63 following a valiant battle with cancer.

When asked what his greatest business challenge has been, DiVenere moves the clock back to 2001 when he and his father decided to move forward with plans to construct and move their operations to their present, 40,000 sq. ft. facility. “We both realized that in order to continue to be a viable and progressive company and to compete in the global markets, we needed to make an investment in the future of Gemco,” he said of the challenge. “In February (2001), after a year of discussions with three area contractors and much soul searching, he and I decided it was time,” said DiVenere. “Ground was broken in early August and the site was prepped for the foundation to be poured on September 11, 2001.”

Then the events of 9/11 unfolded. “Need I say more?” said DiVenere. “The company my grandfather started during World War II would now be tested by the winds of war again,” DiVenere said.

Knowing that Gemco’s original success was the result of hard work and tireless effort by all involved, DiVenere and his father charged forward with construction of the new facility. “We were confident that some sense of normalcy, whatever form it would take following those cowardly attacks, would return to our country and the world.” It was just a few months after the construction started, in January 2002, that Peter was given the grim medical prognosis. The responsibilities of running the company now fell on DiVenere’s shoulders and many questions popped into his head about the road ahead. Ultimately he said the questions were answered. “Simply put, we went forward. We did what we had to do to survive and came out of it a stronger company.”

In looking back on this crisis in the business, he leaned upon the advice that his Uncle Netti had given him: “You make a decision. Right or wrong, you make one. If you pause and start second guessing yourself, you’re never going to attain success. Because you’ll always be looking over your shoulder and saying: ‘What if?'” DiVenere said he’s learned the importance of maintaining open and honest communications with his customers, suppliers and employees. “Although we are all guilty of being ‘creative’ at times, at the end of the day, my name is listed as president of the organization. As I tell my staff, it’s easy to make the call when you have good news. It’s more important to make the difficult call.”

Opportunities Realized

Of all the things that Gemco offers its customers, DiVenere points to “service and responsiveness” as being the cornerstones. He recognizes that there are many competitors who “want to knock that door down and try to steal the business and the last thing you want to do is open the door for somebody else.” That’s why Gemco works hard to service its customer base and make sure they are happy.

In 2009, as the financial crisis reached around the globe, Gemco remained focused on the future and acquired a local fourslide house. The acquisition presented a challenge for a small company like Gemco, but has helped open new doors for them. “About 80 percent of the business we acquired was in industries we were not in. So it opened avenues for us in new areas and allowed us to bring our competency and experience to bear so we could service our new customers better.” DiVenere says they continue to seek new opportunities through acquisitions and partnerships. He is also seeking new team members to assist his current management staff in pursuing new business.

In terms of a business philosophy, DiVenere says his is very simple: “To keep my company profitable, to continue to service my customers and most importantly, to take care of my employees. At the end of the day they are my most valuable asset.”

Paying it Forward

A big believer in “giving back,” DiVenere’s weekly schedule is a bevy of activities as a board member and volunteer in the spring industry and local community. He is a past president, current director and long time member of NESMA. DiVenere says the networking among NESMA members is important. “We all suffer through the same ordeals and that’s what’s great about the organization. We are all competitors, but socially we’re friends. And they’re a great resource,” he explained.

DiVenere is also board president for the Environmental Learning Centers of Connecticut, an organization that provides after school programs for kids in rural and urban areas to get out and enjoy the great outdoors and spend time studying various habitats. ELCCT (www.elcct.org) is also a land conservation organization. He recalls a funny story that occurred when a five-year old boy from an inner city town came to the organization’s camp, Indian Rock Nature Preserve, in Bristol for the first time. The boy said to DiVenere in an inquisitive voice: “What’s that?” He looked over and turned to DiVenere and said: “That’s one ugly horse.” DiVenere gently corrected the boy and said: “That’s not a horse, it’s a cow!” As one who grew up attending the local Boy’s Club, DiVenere is a board member for the combined entity now known as the Boys and Girls Club and Family Center of Bristol. “I lived there when I was a kid, walking to the club after school on most days. My dad worked nights as well and he would pick me up there at 8 or 9 every night.”

He’s excited to be a part of the capital campaign to construct a new building that will serve as the centerpiece of the organization’s future. Coincidentally, he says many board members he serves with are former club members themselves that he grew up with. As if that weren’t enough, DiVenere is also on the board of the Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce, where he heads the manufacturing committee.

Family Focus

Family is important to DiVenere and his wife, Annsue. They have been married for 25 years and Annsue is a special education teacher who specializes in working with autistic children. “She’ll be mad at me, but she was recently awarded Teacher of the Year in Plymouth (Conn.).” I am so proud of her. Their oldest son, Matt, is 25 and recently engaged to be married. He works as an editor for an e-commerce and marketing company in Waltham, Mass. Their daughter, Elizabeth, is a junior at Southern New Hampshire University studying English literature, while their youngest daughter, Alison, is a sophomore at Roger Williams University, studying architecture.

DiVenere has taken an interest in the outdoors, enjoying some local hiking and summer camping trips with friends in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. “I rafted the Colorado River and camped in the Grand Canyon in 2005 and will be doing so again in 2013 and 2014,” said DiVenere. A love of cars was passed down from his father, Peter. DiVenere and Annsue enjoy taking summer drives in his 1967 Mustang convertible or his late father’s 2004 Nissan 350Z.

Future Generation

Right now DiVenere does not see a fourth generation family member ready to take his place. “Alison talked about it, but she’s now got a passion for architecture,” he said. “You have to have a passion for your job; otherwise it’s just a job. And you can get those (jobs) anywhere.” DiVenere has fond memories of working with his dad. “I worked every day with him for over twenty years. He was my best friend. It’s something all sons and daughters should have the opportunity to do…to spend so much time with a parent.”

Unlike other fathers and sons who experienced tension in their relationship, DiVenere said that the two worked well together. “We both respected each other’s position,” he related. “Aside from a few conflicts here and there, for the most part we saw eye to eye. That was a great thing for me because it wasn’t just a job, it was fun.” DiVenere says his dad was “one of the guys” and liked to make jokes and kid around. “My dad would walk in, when he was sick, and say: ‘Good morning ladies, yeah and you too, Mark!’ Those little things you still remember.” He’s taken that fun work ethic into his job and tries to be one of the guys like his dad was. “My management style is such that I like to keep things light, as best I can,” DiVenere explains, “because the workplace is stressful enough. We all have our jobs to do and it is sometimes necessary to remind people that there is room for fun.” DiVenere is one of the first to arrive in the morning and typically the last to leave. That is the responsibility of being an owner. That being said, the loss of his parents at such a young age, has imparted him with the awareness that life is too short and that at the end of the day, you are never going to say you should have worked more.

Just like the award that Gemco received, DiVenere knows his grandfather and father would be proud to know that he’s just one of the guys, willing to do anything to move the company forward during its next 70 years in business.