BIGGER Impact Weekly: Joseph R. DeGeorge

Joseph R. DeGeorge:
Do the Right Thing

By: Benjamin W. DeGeorge

Joe DeGeorge has made a career out of ensuring everyone wins. The co-owner of Rochester based St. Pauly Textile Inc. believes that to be successful, everyone involved in a business transaction should be happy at the end of the day. This profile is about a man I love and respect. His tenacity to always reach higher and his remarkable success in a relatively unique company inspire me. Joe said; “My main theme is having a positive attitude.”

When interviewed, Joe was relaxing after a hard days work; wearing his customary flannel shirt and tan pants that can zip off to become shorts. He is most successful “in a roll up your sleeve, casual, be yourself type of atmosphere.” He said, “Just give me a down to earth type of person, and normally you can accomplish quite a lot.” He thrives in the “nitty gritty,” charged environment of the used clothing industry. Joe is constantly on his toes ready to handle issues ranging from getting zoning changes approved for a drop –box to a blown out tire on one of his many trucks. Many of the people reading this share something with Joe; waking up every morning and thinking, “Let’s go have some fun.”

The Family: Ben, Joe, Sue, Ted

Besides being a VIP, business man, and community member, Joe is my father. Therefore, I am able to add an extra dimension to his profile. One piece of advice from him that is indelible in my mind is his motto; “Do the right thing.” I cringed the hundreds of times I heard this throughout my childhood, as I secretly packed fireworks into my backpack to ready myself for boyhood mischief. The advice he gave still rings in my ears in all that I do as I try to ‘do the right thing.’

Henrietta, NY House

St. Pauly began in 1996 when Joe and his best friend since second grade, Paul Callerame, saw an opportunity in another company’s waste. Paul had experience in upper level management with a local charity in Rochester and observed perfectly fine clothing that was donated ending up in the garbage dump. Paul was sickened by how the organization was run and seeing such waste. Paul approached Joe, recently out of the insurance industry with the idea for a used clothing company. The two rented out a small warehouse in Henrietta, and out of necessity had to rely on Paul’s pickup truck to collect clothing. Their first bag came in on February of 1996 and is perched proudly on top of a shelf in their office. In those early days family members pitched in, papering neighborhoods with flyers and going great lengths for a single bag of clothing. It took six weeks to get the first load out.

Joe was born into a family in the 1950’s that was struggling to get by. His mother, a hard nosed, resilient woman with a 7^th grade education taught Joe to treat others with respect at all times. His father, a World War II veteran and director of operations of the City of Rochester’s Recreation Department was often gone, working hard to be able to raise three children and support his wife. “Very rarely do I have any timidity or fear when dealing with the public.” Joe said, “That’s something I picked up from my father.” Like most children in his situation Joe wanted more. “Physically, my father had a pretty tough life and I realized that wasn’t necessarily the right thing for me.” Despite his Italian Heritage, he abhors pasta because during his childhood his family had to rely on the inexpensive staple to survive.

The bright blue eyed youngster was seen constantly on the go in his early years, juggling activities such as basketball, baseball, wrestling, and a slew of jobs. As a teen, he worked in a sub shop and later in a pizza shop. He bought his first car, a Chrysler Convertible, the day he turned sixteen with hard earned cash from late nights and early mornings spent slugging away at the sub shop. He enjoyed himself in high school, opening up a meaningful relationship with a business teacher, Harmon Sweet, who taught Joe that he could make life what he wanted it to be. This set a tone for his future. He became a National DECA Officer, and said, “That’s where it started.” By managing and leading others he molded the abilities that would serve him well down the road.

Branchport, NY (Finger Lakes) house

Joe was the first in his family to ever attend college. He studied first at SUNY Cobleskill and then at RIT, where he earned a Degree in Business Administration. Joe rose to Vice President of Operations at Pizza Kitchen. Earning a steady paycheck, he was able to pay his way through college. This education opened up opportunities for Joe which his parents and grandparents had lacked.

Unfortunately, Joe was involved in a major car accident in his twenties that seriously injured his back and left him bedridden for months. Doctors originally said that he would not even be able to walk again. He said, “If I didn’t have a positive attitude, it probably would have destroyed me.” Joe slowly nursed himself back to health, but not without long lasting consequences. He has no feeling in one of his legs and thus walks with a visible limp.

On vacation in florida: Ben, Joe, Sue, Ted

He joined Combined Insurance Company, and there flourished under a company that created a business environment that valued the positive person above anything else. The Founder of Combined Insurance Company; W. Clement Stone, co-authored the famous book entitled Success through a Positive Mental Attitude. Stone and the situation at Combined Insurance had a lasting impact on Joe.

After eighteen years with the insurance company, Joe felt that he needed to control his own destiny. He felt then and now that if he was optimistic and persistent, success would come. This is seen in his business interests. St. Pauly goes out of its way for a customer, even if it means losing money in the short run, because they know it pays dividends later on. Joe feels that “as long as you do the right thing, everything else takes care of itself.” After scraping their way on up the ladder of success and taking one day at a time, the company surpassed the goals they set for themselves. “With my work ethic and attitude I knew I could make it work.” He said; “I just had to find the right formula and people”

Now, St. Pauly ships over 26 million garments yearly to developing countries for pennies on the pound. St. Pauly has over 120 drop boxes at churches, schools, and community sites throughout the upstate New York area. Over 300 non-profit organizations have benefited within the past year in working with the company. In the past ten years St. Pauly sent over $1,300,000 to such groups. Currently the company is expanding all over New York as well as entering markets in New Jersey. St. Pauly collects clothing from their drop boxes and transports them to their warehouse; forming these into bails (each about 1,000 pounds). Along with packages of shoes, toys, and household items, the bails are shipped to companies who directly sell to developing markets. It is estimated that 3.5 million people will be clothed this year in South America, Africa, and Asia because of their efforts. St. Pauly has sixteen employees, a fleet of nine trucks and a large warehouse in Farmington, New York. They typically ship five tractor trailer loads a week, each containing 40,000 pounds of clothing. The company is the second largest of its type in the country, soon to be first if they keep up with the yearly growth they are focused on achieving. It is worthy to note that their very fitting slogan is “making a world of difference.”

When asked what really makes Joe mad, he replied, “When people take advantage of other people.” In his business everyone wins; from the person who donates their winter sweater during spring cleaning, to the person that ends up wearing that sweater in Russia. He hates to see an industry where someone is unsatisfied with the outcome. To Joe, it is not worth doing business if you can not enrich the lives and create value for all. Those that donate do so knowing their clothing will go to good use and will not be shredded or thrown out. Besides the obvious beneficiaries in developing countries, Joe said, “We can share the money we get with non profit organizations here in New York.” An organization earns $40 for every one thousand pounds of clothing brought in. Boy Scout Troop 332 in Henrietta, NY makes over $300 a month that they use to pay for camping trips, gear, uniforms for new scouts, and merit badge books.

St. Pauly’s employees are mostly residents of Rochester who have in the past had unstable jobs and often feel slighted by employers who do not trust them or encourage personal growth. Joe acknowledged, “Our employees stay with us. We give them the opportunity to do the right thing.” Now this may not seem like a revolution in employee treatment, but it is unique with this kind of industry that is often plagued with high employee turnover. The employees are happy to go the extra mile to collect a few extra bags of clothing. They feel worthwhile because they see the growth in the company as their own. Joe feels that it is important to take care of those who put their best work out for you. “Leadership is showing others that they have the strength to do.” He said, “I’ve never expected anyone to do anything I don’t do.”

Ted, Joe, Sue

When working at St. Pauly in the summer I come across the true Joe DeGeorge; one who is in his “zone”. He is visibly pumped when at work, and can be seen hobbling (due to the car accident) around the warehouse joking with the workers, inspecting clothing, and creating a controlled chaos. Bags of clothing are flying all over the place, pneumatic pumps churn away, trucks beep as they back up, while employee laughter is heard above all. What may seem like disorder is actually work getting done very efficiently and correctly by people who know all the tasks required in operations. Those that receive St. Pauly product praise the company on the cleanliness and fantastic packaging job. “If you are going to do something, you should do it right.” He said, “I’ve always had the attitude that you lead from the front.”

Joe is happily married to Sue Daniels DeGeorge, a great mother, the nicest person you can find and a success in her own right. She is one of those mothers who love to make cookies for family and friends. She also enjoys teaching Sunday School and various other volunteer opportunities through her church. Sue faithfully delivers for Meals-On-Wheels. Her favorite times are spent in the woods on their property in the Finger Lakes, cleaning and maintaining a network of trails. Sue has been a source of joy and tender love for Joe and their children.

A candid Sue

Joe had a first marriage that yielded one son, also named Joe, 30 years old, who is a musician, Eagle Scout, and Army Reservist who is now following big Joe’s footsteps into St-Pauly. Sue and Joe raised two sons; Ben (me) almost 20 years old and Ted almost 17. Ted and I spent our childhood teaming up on Joe by jumping on him while he was napping and trying to pin and wrestle the guy, whose weight was more than both of ours combined. Of course we tried to perpetrate pink bellies while he tickled us to death. Joe remarked that, “I’m very proud of how my sons have grown and how they have handled themselves.” Joe thinks that St. Pauly can be a family affair, “One of my sons joined the business in January, and the other son will be joining in two years.” He said, “It would be nice to share what I have with them.”

Joe has been involved in Henrietta town government, a coach for Little League Baseball, a Board Member of the Youth Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Rush Henrietta Senior High School Alumni Hall of Fame. He has also been involved in his son’s Boy Scouting throughout the years. Joe completed a twelve day Philmont Scout Ranch backpacking trip in 2004. He doesn’t like to admit it, but I think his butt got kicked. His hobbies include spending time at his brand new Finger Lakes house, playing cards, hunting, riding around in his baby blue ‘56 Chevy, maintaining his fifty acres of land, keeping up with his kids, politics, and of course lots of television.

Joe and Ben in philmont

Recently Joe had a minor heart attack that scared him into reassessing his life and goals. He believes he has a lot left in him still, and now is even more focused on his goals. Also, he is whipping himself into shape (somewhat). He said, “I will never truly retire,” The fifty five year old feels that he benefits so much in helping people out that he never wants to stop doing what he loves. Joe plans to expand his company to encompass all the major New York areas and perhaps beyond. He would “like to see the volume double in the next ten years, and then we would be the largest supplier of used clothing in the country.” He said, “People call it work, but it’s more of a mission.” In addition to developing and spinning off several companies and spending his entire day with his best friend, Joe is able to shape his own career and lifestyle. He has “made a lot of friends in this kind of work” He said, “If I left tomorrow they would not go away.”

Joe relaxing

If you have an interest in meeting further with Joe I suggest asking him and his partner, Paul to a lunch date. They will take you to the greasiest diner around and always pay. This congeniality has not helped Joe’s girth very much, but it has helped his business relations.

I could not ask for a better father and role model in Joseph R. DeGeorge. We have grown closer recently as I have started to find myself and formulate the goals that will shape my future. Joe’s company will continue to touch many and grow. “If you can make someone feel important or help them accomplish their goal, that’s success.” He said, “Every person that we work with is special. People want to associate with those who have a positive attitude.” This from the same guy who played Santa clause for my Cub Scout pack and would scare me as a child by flipping his eye lids over.