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Maine's Family-Owned Businesses of the Year Announced June 7, 2005

June 8, 2005

Thos. Moser Cabinetmakers of Auburn and Jordan - Fernald Funeral Home of Ellsworth have been named the 2005 recipients of Gannett Family Business of the Year Awards at the sixth annual awards dinner held Tuesday, June 7, in Freeport.

Thos. Moser Cabinetmakers was named the winner in the large business category (50 or more employees), while Jordan - Fernald Funeral Home won in the small business category.

The annual awards ceremony is a program of the Institute for Family-Owned Business, a nonprofit organization based at the University of Southern Maine that was established in 1995 to support family-owned businesses. The Gannett Family Business of the Year Awards were established in 1999 to recognize family businesses that demonstrate creativity in ensuring their company's vitality, while maintaining ties with their communities and stakeholders.

Thos. Moser Cabinetmakers, with headquarters in Auburn and six showrooms located throughout the country, are designers and builders of fine furniture. Formerly a Bates college professor, Tom Moser left teaching in 1972 to start making one-of-a-kind furniture in an old Grange Hall in New Gloucester. His wife Mary managed the selling and finances, while their four sons trained as apprentices. In more than 30 years, the company has grown from a one-person operation to more than 60 cabinetmakers and 125 employees. The company serves residential, professional and academic customers world wide.

Jordan - Fernald Funeral Home was founded in 1860, and currently is in the fourth and fifth generations of ownership. Six family members are active in the business, led by President William C. Fernald, CFSP. The Fernalds operate four facilities in four different Hancock County towns.

The awards were announced by Maddy Corson, former chair of Guy Gannett Communications, and a member of USM's Institute for Family-Owned Business Advisory Board.

A total of 22 businesses throughout the state were nominated, and evaluated by a panel of judges.

George H. Berkowitz, founder and chairman of Legal Sea Foods, Inc., gave the keynote speech. The family-owned restaurant chain, which was founded in 1950 as a seafood market in Cambridge, Mass., now has 31 locations along the eastern seaboard.

Family-owned businesses represent approximately 90 percent of all businesses in Maine, yet less than 30 percent survive to the second generation and only 13 percent make it to the third generation. The Institute for Family-Owned Business sponsors a range of seminars and workshops to help companies address such issues as compensation, communication, leadership development and succession planning. For more information, call 780-5935, or visit www.usm.maine.edu/ifob/

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