A Daily Dose of the
American Dream
"One Minute Success Stories"
by Alan C. Elliott
May 22
Alex and Richard Manoogian
" Nothing we develop is the stuff dreams are made of, they just make lots of money. " : Richard Manoogian
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Alex Manoogian was born in Turkey and immigrated to America in 1920. He became a machinist and worked in a Detroit company until 1929, when he formed Masco Screw Products Company. The company was successful in supplying nuts and bolts to automobile makers, but Manoogian got a little concerned that his customer base was so small. In 1950 he decided to diversify, and developed a single-handled faucet. He tried to market it through major plumbing supplies, but they were not interested, so he decided to market it himself. The "Delta" faucet was advertised on the "Tonight Show," where it was the subject of several jokes by Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon. The attention only brought more interest in the faucet.
Richard, Alex's son, joined the company in 1968 and began a further diversification into other non-glamorous businesses such as auto parts and tools and oil equipment. The one venture that proved bad was the CB radio business. After building up $10 million a month in sales, the government raised the number of CB channels from 23 to 40, making thousands of radios in stock immediately obsolete. Still, Masco's diversification has given it a solid foundation of mundane products that keep it from the volatility of other markets.
CONSIDER THIS: While others put up with feast or famine, there are solid markets that quietly and consistently make their owners rich.
This story is adapted from A Daily Dose of the American Dream, by Alan Elliott, published by Rutledge Hill Press. The book contains 366 stories, one for each day of the year.
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Contents (c) Copyright Alan C. Elliott, 1988-2008