HCOB: What advice would you offer students who might not be interested in starting a company from scratch, but might consider taking over an existing enterprise? Duncan : The first thing applies to any entrepreneur, wheth- er starting their own company or taking over an existing en- terprise in need of revitalization — it’s a maxim I call PMG, Play My Game. What it means is, if you believe in what you are doing, go with that belief. Don’t try to play other people’s games. If you believe you know something that others don’t, that your approach to success is better than the approaches that haven’t worked so far, you’ve got to play that card, play your game. That maxim goes hand-in-hand with the need to listen, listen, listen to other people, experts you’ve engaged to help. Their input can be critical to helping you form or confirm your own views. And it is only by listening — to your cus- tomers, to your vendors, to your partners — that you’ ll be able to identify opportunities out there you might not have considered.
Keyston Bros. is one of the largest and most respected national textiles and specialty fabrics jobbers in the industry
HCOB: Can you elaborate on that, because in today’s business environment, the tenets of the Auburn Creed might seem hard to grasp in terms of delivering bot- tom-line results in a hyper-competitive world. Duncan : It is pretty simple, really. We live in “a practical world,” our customers rely on us to anticipate their needs on a very practical level, which isn't always easy. They trust us to provide for these needs in the way of high-value, reliable products and services. As the Creed states: “I believe in honesty and truthfulness, without which I cannot win the respect and confidence of my fellow men.” That’s directly applicable to the business world in which we operate. HCOB: How else has the Auburn Creed guided how you operate Keyston Bros? Duncan : “I believe in education, which gives me the knowl- edge to work wisely and trains my mind and my hands to work skillfully.” — the second line in the Auburn Creed. Education is foremost in our strategy — our leadership team is highly educated, with experience pulled from all over the world. And that focus on education flows down through all levels of employees. We are constantly educating all our employees on our products, our services, market trends and the latest in technology and systems, which helps everyone do their job more efficiently. Another key component of the Auburn Creed we embody is “I believe in the human touch.” Ours is a relationship-based business — we have the best sales team in the industry. The combination of an honest and integrity-based business philosophy and a customer experience based on the human touch is at the core of our success.
Dee and his wife, Ann, also a Harbert College of Business graduate, felt that Keyston Bros. was an underperforming, yet extremely valuable asset with a lot of potential.
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