Great pride in keeping the family business thriving for nearly 100 years

Watch the Woodmans, a third generation business family in the food industry operating Woodman's of Essex based in Massachusetts, USA, with employees in the 5th generation, share their view of what pride in the family business means and how it influences the next generation's sense of purpose. Pride in a family business encourages the rising generation to want to be a part of the family legacy.

<strong>Stephen Woodman</strong> Some of the challenges of being in a family business is can be vital just because you have a business does not mean it is going to continue you have to run it to be profitable to keep on going. You also have to plan to make sure that the stages are set up if you want it to continue that it can be passed down and not sold. The way that family business is grown and passed down is through parenting, the way our parents brought us up and taught us ethics and working together and just being able to be together as a family and sometimes you make business decisions and sometimes you make family decisions. <strong>Maureen Woodman</strong> I have learned to sit back a little bit still not good at it still working on it and try to listen try to gather the opinions from the other people and the reason is if everyone thought the same as you, you would not be able to put so many ideas into it and I think the history of our business is that we had so many people with so many ideas and so many different ways of doing things that that is what has continued to make us grow and the gift that has been given to us having all these people that we are responsible for is that these people care just as much as you do and the second that you realize how lucky you are to have them the trust that you have with these people is incredible. You could not get this trust, you could not buy this trust, you could not teach this trust, you could not train this trust, that is what has kept this business going. <strong>Stephen Woodman</strong> The pride that we all have in the family business is something that my grandfather started, yes there is pride it feels great you know we have people that come here they watch our kids grow up we have stories of people flying into Logan Airport and they hop a cab and they come out and say “I just had to come here I have got a four hour window and I had to get some fried clams, I do not live here anymore but I am back on business and this is the first place I always come back to,” and those stories just you know make us feel good. <strong>Kristi Swett</strong> It is great to see the line forming down the street and you know looking at it and being like wow these people have come from all over just to be a part of this heritage almost like you know we are in the 10,000 places to see before you die and people bring the book and they are like “we made it!” you know so it is exciting that you know even though it is a huge part of our lives it is a huge part of other people’s lives as well. To come here once a summer for their fried clams and they have been doing it since they were kids and now they bring their kids and you hear stories all the time about just as much it is as much a part of our family it is a part of other families too. <strong>Bonnie Scatterday</strong> They take great pride in what they do in the heritage in their parent’s and the life that they lived it is in their heart you know, I am going to cry it is in my heart it is just I do not know a feeling I can not explain, it is a great place. <strong>Maureen Woodman</strong> The Woodman family they love being with each other they have a clan, old fashion feeling, I think they get strength from each other they are supportive of each other, I get emotional they...they are good when things are bad and when things are good they are just happy.