FUTURE-FOCUSED According to the Small Business Administration , 47 percent of family business owners expecting to retire in the next five years don ’ t have a successor , and 30 percent of all family businesses never make it to second-generation ownership . That number gets smaller with each generation .
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So far , American Oak is on the other side of these statistics . Cothee and Jody have taken care to pass on the ins and outs of their operation and prepare their kids to take over by having them involved at an early age , an advantage Cothee stressed is another pro of a family business . “ Because I work with my family , I can teach them on the job what I have learned over the last 30 years ,” she said . “ I hope they have learned a lot and can run with it . And I think with all the boys in the business now and the passion they have for it , it will stay in the family .”
Cothee ’ s also currently putting together a formal succession plan , an essential item for a family business that ’ s looking to not just survive but thrive after the transition to the next generation .
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MEET THE FAMILY :
Three generations
of the Wolf family
work together at
American Oak .
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Pictured left to right : Mackenzie : daughter in law , secretary Camden : son , sales Jody : owner , husband , dad Lakelyn : granddaughter , boss Cothee : owner , wife , mom |
Cole : son , delivery and warehouse tech Carson : son , warehouse tech Kassidi : daughter in law , manager Cody : son , sales Martha : mother in law , sales ( not pictured ) |
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CentrAL Inc ! 53 |