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City Center: Driving Revenue in Saratoga County

WRITTEN BY DAN LUNDQUIST  |  PHOTOS PROVIDED UNLESS NOTED

Today it is close to impossible for most people to imagine that Saratoga Springs has ever been anything other than a crown jewel. Not just in Upstate NY but regionally and even nationally.

Almost two hundred years of Health, History and Horses – romanticized and true – cap the mystique of the “city in the country,” but managing that glowing brand has required enormous effort on the part of a great many people over years. It has required vision and risk, investment and experimentation. And all of that has rested on a foundation of belief in, and dedication to the city of Saratoga Springs.

One of the most visible and important examples of that is the Saratoga Springs City Center which, along with its companion hotel, sits at the north end of Broadway.

TOUGH TIMES

Few today can imagine the distress that longtime Saratogians – many returning veterans of WW2 – felt when they assessed the state of the city in the mid-twentieth century. The few grand hotels that helped put Saratoga on the map in the nineteenth century were in shambles as was most of the city. “There had been no racing for three years due to the war, businesses had failed, and it seemed to my father and his generation that Saratoga was dying,” said Charles Wait – who succeeded his father as chairman of the Adirondack Trust bank and himself became a leader in the rebirth efforts. “Things had become so dire that NYRA was seriously considering closing its Saratoga operations in favor of Downstate tracks. It took the resolve of old racing families to keep our historic track open,” said Wait.

Plagued by deteriorating infrastructure, an eroding business base, crime and illicit gambling Saratoga Springs had become a town that many wanted to avoid, so much so that even some prominent families relocated north and east of the downtown area.

In 1965 the 72-year-old Convention Hall – on the south of Congress Park with a seating capacity of 5000 – burned to the ground. What could have been a nail in the coffin became a call to action.

Overlooking the Saratoga Springs City Center and pedestrian connector from the parking structure, 2020. Photo by Thomas Dimopoulos.

CALL TO ACTION

It took decades of resolve, planning, and arduous execution – in stages – to get the city on the trajectory that has earned pages of accolades ranging from Best Small City in NY to Best Main Street in the USA to inclusion in “Five hideaways that aren’t the Hamptons.” The list goes on from the serious to the comical: Healthiest Community in NYS and “most bars per person.”

A veritable Who’s Who of prominent local families – generations of local families – rose to address what they saw as a “swim or sink” challenge that would span urban renewal, historic preservation, revitalization of downtown, and benefits to the larger region. This would require great funding, state and federal support, and the buy-in of the citizenry. Wait colorfully recalls the many attempts to coalesce public support and secure funding from the proverbial cloakroom arm twisting to the participation of thousands in civic pride projects. “In many different ways, many different people supported the kind of groundswell that was necessary to achieve Saratoga Springs‘ rebirth,” he said. “What seemed to be a very risky venture has turned out to be the foundation for the prosperity we enjoy today.”

BEYOND THE SUMMER PLACE TO BE

Though a number of other important constituent supporting steps had been taken in the 1950s, many cite the community-based creation of Saratoga Springs Community Hotel, Inc. in 1961 as a high profile turning point. This effort created the Holiday Inn on South Broadway and was the beginning of – and a pioneering reason for – Saratoga’s return, albeit in an updated and sustainable way, to destination status.

Promising vital signs - community involvement, support of outside agencies, the creation of SPAC and the relocation of Skidmore to North Broadway – gave civic boosters reason for optimism but the situation was by no means secure. A Plan of Action was created with the goal of making Saratoga Springs the Year Round Place to Be. Essential to the success of that ambitious goal would be creating a reason for people to come to Saratoga all year long.

ENTER THE CITY CENTER

In July 1983 the SSCC Authority – a so-called public benefit corporation – was formed to oversee pre- and post-construction management of the center. As an “authority” it would have more freedom to operate. Utilizing insurance money from the old Convention Hall fire – $800,000 which had been accruing interest over two decades – and creating a new resource channel through a one percent increase in local sales tax, the planning and construction for this new facility began. When completed the City Center would add 37,000 square feet of space and seat as many as 2,500 people, thus filling what had been a 20-year handicap for the Spa City.

According to City Center director Ryan McMahon, the venue typically hosts over 160 events close to 300 days a year with NYS associations, trade shows, union meetings, and corporate business forming the “bread and butter” of Center activity. But it’s a community resource as well as varied cultural showcase.

After 28 successful years it had become increasingly clear that, in order to sustain that trajectory, an expansion of the City Center was necessary.

When asked why he helped secure $12M in state funding to support expanding the City Center, the late Senator Joe Bruno, a champion of the region, replied “Why the City Center? Because Saratoga Springs competes with the whole world as a destination. When you expand a facility like this you open your market up.”

In 2011 the expansion and “refresh” was completed, adding 12,000 square feet of space (58,000 square feet of space when the City Center is combined with the connected Saratoga Hilton). Along with the 2019 completion of a multi-level attached parking facility with over 600 spaces, both Discover Saratoga and City Center staff found that several groups that had outgrown the old facility were able to return. In addition, new groups had been attracted.

Since the early ‘80s City Center guests have created potential sales of $470M, which has generated more than $33M in sales tax revenue. The City Center has generated $321M in sales that are subject to city, county and state sales tax. “It’s not only an enviable economic engine,” says Center director Ryan McMahon, “but the very high satisfaction levels visitors report get shared when they return home, creating priceless word of mouth endorsements.”

Regarding the importance of the City Center, Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce President Todd Shimkus quoted a chamber publication, Saratoga Springs – Transformation by the Passion of a Community. “This publication tells the story of the city’s revitalization and includes the creation of the City Center,” he said. “The story begins: ‘Many consider the opening of the City Center in the summer of 1984 to be one of the most important achievements in the rebirth of Saratoga Springs. Without it, Saratoga would not have the substantial convention business that has strengthened the city’s economy.’”

Discover Saratoga’s president Darryl Leggieri agrees: “The City Center is such an important part of our local economy and has made all the difference in supporting Saratoga as a year-round destination; it brings thousands of visitors to town each year who stay in our hotels, eat in our restaurants, and shop in our boutiques. Having the Center surrounded by a safe, walkable, and vibrant downtown gives us a tremendous advantage when selling Saratoga. This strengthens the local economy for all, which continues to strengthen the Saratoga Brand. It’s a win-win.”

The years of Covid hit the Center’s bottom line hard. “In 2019 the SSCC’s earned revenue was just over $1.1 million. There has clearly been a drop with COVID so 2021 was only $430,000. 

In 2022 we are getting back on track. Even after a first quarter with almost no events revenue will be over $900,000” McMahon explained. But McMahon and his team were not idle when the Center was offline: “we were able to take advantage of our status as a state authority to complete the much-needed parking facility when most other projects were halted and it gave us an opportunity to increase our collaboration with Discover Saratoga, the Chamber, the Downtown Business Association, and others.” This all contributed to the speedy rebound that McMahon’s numbers reflect. “We showed a macro economic impact on the area of $40M in 2019. That dropped to $15M last year but we are well on the way to reaching new highs,” he said.

“Some very forward thinking people worked hard to create the SSCC in the 80’s which was one of the keys to Saratoga Springs current success.  It is a symbiotic relationship where the SSCC helps to support the downtown business community and the presence of a vibrant downtown makes the SSCC a more desirable venue. This allows us to punch out of our weight class,” McMahon says with pride.

SERENDIPITOUS BRAND MANAGEMENT

Echoing the interdependency of the local marquee elements – SPAC, downtown, the City Center, and Skidmore College – the view expressed by all is that Saratoga Springs sells itself.

The “city in the country” has a diverse portfolio of offerings, attracting diverse audiences generating hundreds of millions of dollars to both the city and region. So, if you have a moment of frustration trying to navigate Broadway, whether it’s summer’s race season or winter’s Chowderfest, we’ve become The Year-Round Place to Be!

Read more: City Center: Driving Revenue in Saratoga County

Upstate Gaming Titan Returns with Halfmoon Studio

WRITTEN BY TYLER A. MCNEIL  |  PHOTOS PROVIDED

Seasoned digital gaming entrepreneur Brian Corrigan remembers working unpaid shifts as long as 75 hours a week in his upstairs bedroom, worrying about compensating his two employees after blowing all his start-up funds in three months.

It didn’t fail. Saratoga Springs-based Madglory — credited for widening the Capital Region digital gaming cluster’s talent pool — was acquired in a multi-million-dollar deal by a Korean firm to provide back-end support for PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. 

But with his latest venture, Corrigan believes he’s starting off on a better foot this time.

“What we’re doing differently is that we have a very clearly developed five-year vision of where we want to be and the type of company we want to work for,” Corrigan said. “At some point, it’s not about survival. It’s about how you want to thrive.”

The 43-year-old entrepreneur in May co-founded Rocket Science Corporation with self-described “chief propulsionist” Tom Daniels, a former executive for BD Gaming in Austin, Texas. 

Now headquartered in the Halfmoon hamlet of Crescent, the duo plans to establish a second location in Daniels’ hometown, Cardiff, Wales, and possibly a third in Austin. Having a Cardiff site, they hope, will position Rocket Science to build a game development community from the area’s tech talent pool while closer to European markets.

Rocket Science five years forward hopes to fill 100 onsite, hybrid, and remote positions. Corrigan plans for at least half of the company’s workforce based in the Capital Region.

Currently leasing an inconspicuous Crescent-Vischer Ferry Road office, he aims to eventually shift local operations to a former firehouse in East Glenville. The site cost $350,000 overall. 

Some $1.4 million from Empire State Development is expected to help cover workforce development and equipment costs, as well as establish a business incubator for digital gaming start-ups in coordination with the Tech Valley Game Space. Adirondack Trust Co. is also financing some of the renovation expenses. 

Corrigan plans to lease out the southern-wing as restaurant space.

“Ultimately, it’s because I just want to have a nice coffee shop next to my office,” Corrigan said.

Rocket Science is one of several emerging firms with major industry ambitions, including Velan Studios, Rushdown Studios, Jahnel Group, and Wolfjaw Studios. The Capital Region’s so-called digital gaming cluster total boasted 16% growth last year, the Center for Economic Growth reported in March. 

Providing venture capital and expertise, Corrigan is still involved with a number of ex-Madglory associates-turned-entrepreneurs. Between his and Daniel’s connections, Corrigan maintained that the duo knows “somebody everywhere.”

“If we’re competing for anything, we’re probably competing for culture as a region,” Corrigan said. “It’s really to make this cluster work and that’s a team game.”

Corrigan attempted to take a break from the industry last March, spontaneously resigning as Vice President of the Americas for now-KRAFTON-owned PUBG. Choosing to exit the job as an international executive was anxiety-wrenching, the serial entrepreneur maintained.

“Sometimes I’d wake up in cold sweats like, ‘what the — what is — what are you doing?’” Corrigan said.

On hiatus for about a week, Corrigan pursued a project for California-based Super Evil Megacorp studio betwixt co-founding Rocket Science.  

Corrigan started working in the cluster 14 years ago as chief technology officer for Agora Games. The Clarkson University graduate previously provided back-end development support services for more than 13,000 slot machines with state lottery contractor now-Everi Holdings.

Rocket Science Corporation so-founder Brian Corrigan and Associate Producer Maddie Cipperly.

Read more: Upstate Gaming Titan Returns with Halfmoon Studio

Manufacturing in Saratoga County Remains Strong

Manufacturing in Saratoga County Remains Strong
  • LISSMAC

  • Cottrell Paper

  • LISSMAC

WRITTEN BY MEGIN POTTER | PHOTOS PROVIDED UNLESS NOTED

Mention manufacturing in Saratoga County and Global Foundries is often the first thing that pops into your head.  While Global Foundries’ computer chips have certainly renewed the area’s reputation as a production hub within the state, they are a company building on a foundation that existed long before their arrival. 

According to the National Association of Manufacturers, manufacturing is responsible for between 10 and 11 percent, or $2,390 billion, of the country’s annual gross domestic product (GDP). In New York, manufacturing employs 4.5% of the workforce and accounts for just four percent of the state’s total economic output. In 2019, chemical companies were responsible for the largest share of this total, followed by computer and electronics production.

In Saratoga County, those numbers are much higher than the state average. Manufacturing is the third largest employer (behind healthcare and education) and is estimated to make up 10% of jobs. In 2019, the Saratoga County Prosperity Index clocked manufacturing as responsible for 21% of the county’s GDP, a growth of five percent from its 2007 level. 

A LONG HISTORY

Major manufacturing and fabrication companies have long shaped the course of Saratoga’s history. The land, and more precisely, its interconnected waterways, made this area attractive to settlers. By harnessing the power of water, industry became economically viable. Water provided transportation and power to fuel the milling of grains, and in the time before freezers, harvesting ice was incredibly important. Before the Revolutionary War, logging and paper mills took advantage of these natural resources and were very successful. The factories brought an economic prosperity that allowed other smaller businesses to establish themselves as well.  

Today, paper and printing are the ninth largest manufacturing sector in the state. When stiff competition and unsustainable business practices forced other paper mills to shut their doors or move elsewhere, Cottrell Paper remained, as did the continued importance of the industry to this region. 

Like its manufacturing counterparts, Cottrell Paper relies on an abundant water supply. 

“Water is the key to making paper,” said Ben Cottrell. In 1926, his great-grandfather, and his two sons, Frank, and Jim, each contributed $500 towards the $1,500 used to purchase the Rock City Falls building where the Cottrell family is still making paper today. 

Cottrell Paper. Photo by Kacie Cotter-Sacala.

SUCCEEDING WHERE OTHERS COULDN'T

Cottrell Paper is a family-owned and operated business that makes the electrical insulating and specialty papers used in almost every household appliance, as well as motors and transformers. The process for making these papers is very different than the one used to make notebook or toilet paper. Insulating papers are produced at a rate of just 100 feet/minute (compared to the 10,000 feet/minute that a tissue manufacturer churns out). 

Nevertheless, when other area paper mills disappeared, Cottrell Paper was able to step-in and fill the void. 

This is due, in a large part, to their willingness to reinvest in their operation. 

“Many of the smaller companies disappeared because they did not put their resources back into their equipment. That’s the opposite of our philosophy and that’s how you get to produce paper for 96 years,” said Cottrell. 

Cottrell Paper invests between $500,000 and $1 million annually in capital improvement projects (that’s as much as 12.5% of their annual $8 million in revenue). 

NEVER STOP IMPROVING

When the pandemic slowed orders, Cottrell Paper used the downtime to create a unique new product. In 2021, they became the only company in the country to produce a 100% hemp paper. 

“People were looking for a more sustainable product so we started experimenting,” said Cottrell. 

In 20 years, one acre of hemp can produce as much as four to ten acres of trees without the use of herbicides and pesticides. However, because hemp holds in a lot of moisture, most other hemp products contain an average of 75% wood pulp. Creating papers that are 100% hemp was a challenge that took considerable time and trial-and-error but today, Cottrell Paper has succeeded where others weren’t able to and are making a sustainable hemp packaging product with good insulating properties. 

SUSTAINABLE BY DESIGN

Sustainability is embedded into the way Cottrell Paper does business. They use between 200 – 250,000 gallons of water per day from the Kayaderosseras Creek and take responsibility for maintaining this essential shared community resource very seriously. 

“What we take in, we send back out,” said Cottrell, about their usage (which results in water that’s more chemically pure being returned to the river than when it was drawn in). 

In a procedure that is regulated by the NYDEC, sand filters even the muddiest waters from the river, creating a pristine liquid at an optimum 7.0 PH for processing. After manufacturing, the remains of the cotton used to make Cottrell papers is completely scraped off, captured, and composted. The newly clarified water is then pumped out completely clear.  When conditions are favorable, Cottrell Paper’s two hydroelectric turbines yield up to 500 kilowatts of power from the current. 

“We’re not some big conglomerate corporation, we’re run by a family that cares,” said Cottrell. They care about the environment and the people working for them. With 43 full-time employees, as well as part-time personnel and consultants on their payroll, safety is a priority for the plant. By offering exceptional health benefits, 401K plans, accrued paid vacation days, and profit sharing, Cottrell Paper makes their employees feel like family.

SARATOGA STANDS OUT

In a recent report, the New York Reserve’s Empire State Manufacturing Survey indicated that new orders and shipments plunged during the first week of August. It was the second largest monthly decline on record and the biggest drop since April 2020. 

The outlook is not optimistic for the next six months, the report indicated, citing a weakening domestic demand, high inflation, and rising interest rates as constraints on the industry. 

Despite this bleak prediction for the state, the LISSMAC Corporation, whose US headquarters are located in Mechanicville, is experiencing record highs. 

A DECADE OF GROWTH

LISSMAC is a German-based company that started building metal finishing equipment and construction machinery in 1980. Vice President Ingo Heiland has been with them since October 2011, when they had just two employees working in the States. Today LISSMAC employs 22 at their 22,500 sq. ft. facility which earns an annual revenue of $12.5 million. Of that, they typically spend between $300 - $400,000 locally on components and consumables. 

THE FUTURE IS NOW

“In 2021we had a record year, and 2022 looks very, very promising,” said Heiland, whose confidence comes from a future that’s all about innovation.

“We produce machines that eliminate manpower and manual operations. The cost of labor has increased so much and its difficult to get people so there’s an increasing demand for our machines,” he said. 

The power of being at the forefront of this societal shift is evident by the challenges LISSMAC has overcome. In 2020, the pandemic made travel difficult for their service representatives. Supply chain issues made the cost of transferring their machines back and forth to Germany increasingly expensive.  The cost of shipping containers (when they were available) more than doubled from between five and six thousand dollars to as much as $15,000 each. Finding components also became challenging and costs rose to five times as much as they’d previously been.

ATMOSPHERE IS EVERYTHING

Although their products are quite high-tech, LISSMAC’s jobs are still approachable to enter into for the mechanically-inclined worker. LISSMAC prefers to do all their training in-house and offers attractive benefit packages that include 100% health insurance coverage, life and short-term disability coverage. They strive for a family atmosphere in the workplace and give employees 10 paid holidays each year. Service techs earn extra perks including airline miles and hotel points. 

Moving into the future also means being environmentally-conscious in the world’s changing climate. 

“I’m of European heritage,” said Heiland, “so I always like the environmentally and economically conscious version of things.” He recently purchased a fully-electric company car, strives to use a minimum amount of paper in the office and has installed LED lighting throughout their building. In the future, they hope to expand, at which time he’d like to install a solar photovoltaic roof. 


Saratoga County Manufacturing


Check out these other manufacturers in Saratoga County:

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Advanced Manufacturing Techniques

Wire EDM, turning, milling, and grinding of parts for the defense, education, energy, medical, and transportation industries. 

AgroChem USA

Chemicals for the dairy, brewery, and laundry industries.

Applied Materials

Semiconductor, solar, and automated display equipment. 

Arclay Natural Technologies

Extraction of minerals from clay.

AstroChemical

Adhesives, sealants, coatings, encapsulants, composites, saturants, and specialty chemicals.

Ball

Metal containers for beverage, personal care, and household products. 

BioSan

Disinfectants and sanitation solutions for agriculture, brewing, oil and gas, wastewater treatment and other industries. 

Bobrick

Washroom accessories and toilet partitions. 

Cascades Tissue Group

Packaging and tissue products.

CBM Fabrications

Metal and plastic parts and assemblies. 

Cottrell Paper Company

Electrical insulation and specialty papers.

Espey Inc.

Military and industrial power supplies and transformers. 

Evonik

Custom chemicals for various industrial and consumer markets. 

FilterSource

Air, gas, and liquid filtration supplies.

Fort Miller Group

Precast concrete, burial vaults, electrometric liners, and security gate systems.

Freedom Manufacturing

Liquid storage containers and fire shelter bags.

Free Form Fibers

High performance ceramic fibers and materials. 

Greenfield Manufacturing Incorporated

Chemicals for industrial water treatment, rubber additives, specialty coatings, and more. 

Guyson Corporation of USA

Surface finishing, parts-washing, and advanced robotic machines. 

Lissmac Corp

Metal finishing machines.

Meridian Manufacturing

Precision machined parts for use in various industries. 

Polyset

Polyurethane adhesives, foams, expansion joints and coatings. 

Quad Graphics

Design, marketing, printing, and packaging. 

Rasp Inc.

Control panels, pneumatic and component assemblies. 

SCA Tissue

Paper, pulp, packaging, and wood products.

Specialty Silicone Products, Inc.

More than 1,000 silicone compounds.

Turbine Services, Ltd.

Design, engineering, and manufacturing of gas turbine parts. 

WinTech

Aluminum and uPVC/PVC windows.

Zinter Handling

Cranes, heavy lifting, storage systems and clean room equipment.

Read more: Manufacturing in Saratoga County Remains Strong

Doing Business In New York? What You Need to Know…

Doing business in New York? What  You Need to Know…

WRITTEN BY KATIE TANSEY

Above and beyond federal law, New York State (NYS), perhaps rivaled only by the state of California, makes compliance with state law nearly a full-time job. Compliance requirements span from Safety and the Environment to Employment and Corporate Taxes, and everything in between.

While we are not here to debate the “value vs. burden” equation of state laws on employers, we are here to shed light on just 3 of the upcoming changes to New York State (excluding New York City) Employment specific regulations (in some cases laws) you may not yet be hip to.

Speaking of frequently changing regulation, this article will not attempt to cover the NY COVID-19 related guidance, regulations, laws or the complexities associated with them.

NEW MANDATORY ELECTRONIC WORKPLACE POSTINGS 

The New York State legislature passed a bill in April 2022 requiring employers to make mandatory workplace postings electronically available for their employees. Although the bill is yet to be signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, it is expected to be effective immediately upon execution.

NYS Labor Law Section 201 currently mandates that New York employers post certain legal notices provided by the commissioner of labor in a conspicuous place on each floor of the workplace. However, The electronic posting requirement will apply to all documents required to be posted at a worksite under state and federal law or regulation, not just under the labor law.

ALL NEW YORK EMPLOYERS MUST SOON:

1. Compile or make digital copies of these postings and upload them to their company intranet. If the company does not have an internal website, it should draft an e-mail with the postings attached for dissemination to employees.

2. Regardless of the method used to share these digital copies (intranet or e-mail), the employer must also provide employees with notice that the documents are available electronically.

3. Employers are also encouraged to update internal job descriptions, work instructions, handbooks, etc. to help ensure continued management of, and compliance with this new electronic posting and notification requirement in the years to follow as both required postings and their employee base change.

NYS EMPLOYERS MUST SOON ENROLL EMPLOYEES IN RETIREMENT PLANS

In October 2021, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law a requirement for private employers to automatically enroll all employees in the state-run retirement savings program.

Although it is unclear when the state-run program will open for enrollment, employers that do not already sponsor their own retirement plans will soon be required to automatically enroll employees in New York’s state-run savings plan.

Employer participation in the program is mandatory for both nonprofit and for-profit employers operating:

1. In the state of New York for more than 2-years

2. With 10 or more employees (full and/or part-time) in New York State

3. Without already offering those employees a qualified retirement plan

NYS MINIMUM WAGE CHANGES

A recent proposal in the NY Senate (bill S3062C) & Assembly (bill A7503B) will tie the NYS minimum wage to the combination of the consumer price index (CPI) and a measure of labor productivity.  The proposed change is thought to lift minimum wage for 2 million New York workers, to between $16.35 and $21.25 by 2026.

In support of this proposal, NYS has designated three different regions of the state: New York City, the suburban counties of Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester, and the remainder of upstate New York. Under current projections for inflation and labor productivity increases are expected as follows:

  • New York City’s minimum wage would rise from $15 to $21.25
  • Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester counties’ minimum wage would rise from $15.00 to $18.65
  • Upstate New York would rise from $13.20 to $16.35

All information provided above is believed to be current at the time this article was submitted for publication. However NYS Employment Regulation/Laws frequently change and before taking any action you are encouraged to seek timely, professional support and/or identify, and operate in accordance with, the NYS source documentation.

HR Resolved, Inc. (HRr) www.HRresolved.com - For the last nearly 10-years HRr has been helping lead business just like yours through complex change with its remarkable ability to tailor decades of past startup and Fortune 200 successes into happier, more aligned employees, performing where and how they are needed, driving profit into your business.

Read more: Doing Business In New York? What You Need to Know…

A Deep Dive into Concord Pools

WRITTEN BY TYLER MURRAY  |  PHOTOS COURTESY OF CONCORD POOLS

Jon Foshee has worked in the pool industry since he can remember. As a child, he spent his summer days working in his parent’s pool store in Rotterdam, NY. In his teenage years, he worked on the maintenance and installation side of the business to earn his summer cash. In 2008, as an adult, Jon took a position in sales with Latham Pool Products. Eventually, Jon worked his way through the ranks from Sales Manager to Vice President of US Sales for the Latham based company. In 2019, after about a dozen years of sales experience, Jon was given the opportunity of a lifetime. 

Mike Giovanone, who purchased Concord Pools in 1980 - which at the time was a small in-ground pool builder, installing about 30 to 40 pools a year - approached Jon Foshee about the possibility of buying Concord Pools and said he would remain on board as the company president and CEO. That was in February of 2019 and the deal, according to Foshee, took a year to complete. On February 28, 2020 the deal was done; Foshee took the biggest risk of his professional life, leaving his high-ranking position with Latham Pool Products, now a public company called the Latham Group (NASDAQ: SWIM) to become the official owner of Concord Pools. Of course, at the time, there was no telling what the future would hold for him or his company. Just a few weeks later, COVID-19 turned the world upside down and Foshee’s new business was mandated to shut-down.

While many businesses like bars, restaurants, hotels and public venues were suffocated by statewide mandates that required closures - remember this was before the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a $953 billion business loan program established through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act or CARES Act was in full effect - small business owners around the state of New York felt the sense of anxiety that was sweeping the world particularly hard. For Foshee, it meant that his Concord construction crews couldn’t visit homes of potential customers - no installations for the months of March or April, which are typically busy times for installers, as buyers want their pools up-and-running before the hot summer months.  While nobody could’ve predicted the events that unfolded in the early spring of 2020, Foshee and his team found relief in May, in a major way.

Q. What is your best piece of advice for building a successful business? 

A. Surround yourself with positivity.  You will never regret hiring a team, smarter and more talented than yourself. You will never have all the answers, and that’s ok. Establish your guiding principles and refer to them when you’re not sure which way to go. Inspect what you expect and be open to criticism. It will make you a stronger leader.

Q. What is your philosophy on life?

A. Balance is everything. Work hard and play hard. Do what you love, and success will follow. Keep in mind that success is measured in many ways. Avoid negativity and, most of all, be kind.

As it became clear that summer vacations weren’t practical in the early months of the pandemic, many homeowners invested in their own property, sparking a nation-wide trend of “staycations” - turning one’s backyard into a place to relax, cook, enjoy time and ultimately, swim. On a single day in May, when Concord Pools was back up-and-running, Concord received over 3,000 calls from curious homeowners. It was the largest single-day boom in the company’s history. “We didn’t run from the fire, we ran towards it,” Foshee told Saratoga Business Report, “I was the new owner of the company, and many employees just knew me as a sales guy, so I was really proud of the work we put in during that time.” Foshee and his team recognized the “staycation” trend that was sweeping the nation, and Concord Pools soon became more than just a pool company. This meant a complete overhaul of their catalog was in order. “Customers wanted grills, fire pits, patio furniture, lighting, saunas, and outdoor sound systems, we had to be the company that could do it all -  not work with contractors and third parties for a single backyard project” said Foshee. Concord Pools had to become more than just what their name suggested - a pool company. Instead, the turbulent times in 2020 forced Concord’s hand and allowed them to step-up to the plate in a major way - to become a one-stop-shop for turning homeowners’ ordinary backyards into the backyards of their dreams. “The backyard has been a port in the storm for many people during the past couple years, and we are excited about the future,” said Foshee.

As for what’s on the horizon with Concord, it means keeping their place as a “2022 Top 50” builder in the nation as voted on by Pool Spa News.  For Foshee, this means staying abreast of trends in home owning. For instance, as builders incorporate more aspects of “smart homes,” or homes that are conveniently setup where appliances and devices can be automated and controlled remotely, their backyards must also be interconnected. “With technology moving the way it is, we have to stay ahead of the game,” said Foshee. For Concord’s portfolio, this means offering tech savvy products like automated pool covers, backyard lights that can be controlled with phones, and spas that are synced to smartphone applications for easy temperature adjustments. Also, it means becoming more full-service. Foshee and his team are currently in the works for a “pool valet” project. That means Concord experts will visit homes proactively to get buyers’ pools and spas up-and-running for the summer - whether that means general maintenance, filter changes or just overall upkeep. This is especially valuable in an area like Saratoga Springs where many people have summer homes and want their pools up and running before they descend on the Spa for the summer months.

While supply chain disruptions and material costs affected the pricing and timeline of outdoor living installations for Concord in 2021, their outlook going forward is still a positive one. Importantly, Concord has expanded under Jon Foshee’s leadership. While Concord has always brought on seasonal hires for their peak season, Foshee’s team is now up to 50 full-time associates, up from about 35 when he first took over the company in 2020. In peak season this year, Concord employees were totaled at just over 100, up from 90 in 2021. 

For more information about Foshee, his team and the Concord brand, visit: www.concordpools.com.

Julie & Co Realty

Read more: A Deep Dive into Concord Pools