When Van T. (Sam) Young returned home from World War II, he wanted to get into a similar business as his brother, VB Young, who ran a radiator repair business in Columbus, Mississippi. VB helped Sam get started in the radiator repair business in 1946, in Sheffield, Alabama. But, as Sam’s business increased, his customers started asking to buy the products he was using. And so, the welding supply business was born.
Sam’s son, Bobby Young, grew up around the business and, after serving in the U.S. Navy, he eventually worked his way through the company and became CEO. During his tenure as CEO, Young Welding Supply has experienced tremendous growth, adding on four additional locations in Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Today, Young Welding has five locations and 37 full-time employees.
“Our family is a family of faith,” says Robby Young, Vice President of Young Welding Supply. “We believe in loving God and loving others. And living this way means you treat employees, customers, and vendors with love and respect. This is a business, and we have objectives to meet in order to sustain and grow, however, it also means we value relationships highly, both internal and external. And when you have that level of commitment to relationships from a team of people like we have, you are able to remain and flourish in business, even after 75 years.”
Young notes that the company has remained successful for three-quarters of a century by being able to listen and respond to customer needs.
“Change can be a difficult proposition when you have had success,” he notes. “But it’s something that we have done well. Being willing to learn about new applications of products and the commitment to educate our team in our product lines enables us to communicate new trends in the industry that enable our customers to be more efficient and profitable, which helps to sustain us.”
He continues, “As an independent distributor, we wouldn’t be around today if it weren’t for the other independent distributors in our surrounding area. I would like to thank each one for answering the phone when we needed help. I can’t think of a single independent around us that hasn’t significantly helped us at one time or another. From my family to yours, thank you!”
