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Rick
Herbison – President
 Before
joining Canton Street, Rick Herbison spent 14 years with Mercedes Benz’
Atlanta Classic Cars. Rick believes in building, keeping, and growing
long term business-to-business and business-to-customer relationships
based on trust. Listening to Rick talk on the phone it is more
than obvious that he is good at building and maintaining those
relationships. The St. Joseph, MO native, who describes his
childhood as being like a Norman Rockwell painting, attended Missouri
Western State where he studied biology and elementary education. After
college, Rick moved to Estes Park, CO, where he was a program director
for YMCA of the Rockies, and learned to love backpacking, rock climbing,
skiing, and his future wife. Rick has been married 23 years and has two
children. He enjoys landscaping, gardening, golf, fishing, and is an
avid reader.
Julie Smith – Sales Manager
 Julie
Smith brings a solid HHG staffing history to Canton Street. Before
joining the company in May of 2006, she worked for another staffing firm
where she was the sole recruiter for the household goods industry. The
team concept of working with a group of experienced professionals was
instrumental in bringing Julie to the Canton Street team. Julie’s proven
system of organization, attention to detail, and years of success have
helped her to develop long-lasting relationships resulting in a strong
clientele of hiring officials from the largest and most influential
movers in the country. Candidates and clients alike prefer working with
Julie because of her knack for listening both to what is being said and
what is not being said. Because she takes the time to really get to know
her candidates and her hiring authorities, she has a true investment in
making sure that each match she makes will be a perfect fit, resulting
in a long term relationship between a new employee and their new
company. Being motivated by her reputation more than anything else,
Julie is discriminating in deciding which jobs to take on and which
candidates to present. Another benefit of working for Canton Street Inc.
is the opportunity to visit with clients in person as needed. Putting a
face with a name has helped to strengthen relationships, and the many
tours of moving companies she’s visited have helped her to get an even
better grasp on the industry. Julie grew up in Illinois just south of
Chicago in a town called Lansing. She attended The University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studying environmental chemistry. After
working as a chemist for one year, Julie got back into the sales field,
which she had enjoyed while in college. Before getting into recruiting
she sold insurance products to both companies and individuals. Julie
enjoys writing, cooking, photography and traveling. Newlyweds Julie and
Dennis spent the last year building their new home in the far south
Chicago suburbs.
Kurt Wilson - Chairman
 Kurt
considers himself to be a very blessed man by the kinds of people he is
able to keep company with.
Kurt is partners’s with Bart Chandler where they operate two Zaxby’s
Restaurants in Florence and Guntersville, Alabama. Both of their stores
are in the top 10% of the Zaxby’s system in Sales, and in the top 5% in
Net Profits out of over 325 stores. They are opening up a third store in
Boaz, Alabama in 2007, and are about to sign an agreement for a fourth
store in North Alabama. They operate their operations under two
different Management Companies called Wilson-Chandler Management, LLC
and Chandler-Wilson Management, LLC. Kurt credits their success to a
strong personal and business relationship that Bart and Kurt formed
while working at Gold Kist together. Kurt says that you will not find a
more consistent and common sense partner that Bart Chandler, and that
you could not ask for more in a partner than what Bart Chandler
delivers. Additionally Kurt says that his management team in Florence,
Melissa Cooley-GM and Cheryl White-AM are outstanding after recording
over a 16% Comp Sales Increase in 2006 and this is a store that is over
4 years old.
Kurt is partners with Eddie Canaday, Josh Canaday and Bart Chandler in a
real estate company called Chandler-Wilson, LLC. Their Real Estate
company owns the real estate that operate Kurt and Bart’s Zaxby’s.
Additionally their company has developed a high end Strip Center in
Florence. Currently Chanlder-Wilson, LLC has become involved with the
Bon Secour Development. Bon Secour is one of the largest high end
community developments to ever hit the Gulf Coast of Alabama. Kurt says
that if you are lucky you get to meet people like Eddie and Josh Canaday
let alone be part of a working team with them. Kurt says that Eddie is
one of those true “out of the box” thinkers that is always creating
opportunity for others.
Kurt’s real passion is Canton Street, Inc. Kurt believes that Canton
Street, Inc., will become a true one source solution provider for the
Relocation Industry. The fun part for Kurt is getting to work with the
people @ Canton Street.
Kurt says that Larry Muratore is an absolute amazing find for the
company. We could have interviewed business brokers around the country
and I know we would not have found anyone as good as Larry Muratore, and
here a miracle occurred and we have Larry right here in our back yard in
Atlanta, GA. Larry is the President of the Marketing and Acquisitions
Division of Canton Street. Larry enjoys beating up Kurt on the golf
course. As Kurt says Larry is one of those guys who is just plain good
at everything he does, and unbelievably we have him running our Buying
and Selling of businesses division.
Additionally Kurt pursued Rick Herbison for months to get him to leave a
very lucrative career in the Mercedes Benz’ business. Kurt’s patience
paid off because as Kurt puts it, “You won’t find a better man than Rick
Herbison”. He is an experienced businessman who puts people at ease. He
is extremely self-disciplined and sets an example for all of us to live
up to in terms of the amount of business he develops. In 2007 Kurt is
excited about Rick’s role in Canton Street as he presides over the
Recruiting Division of Canton Street as its President. Rick will take
the Recruiting Division to unprecedented heights in this industry. You
won’t find a nicer guy than Rick Herbison
Kurt believes in miracles and that is what he calls it when “the best
recruiter” in the Moving and Storage Industry was all of sudden on the
street from her former employer. I could not believe it when Julie
Brewer Smith was available. I of course knew Julie as a competitor, and
I was always coming up on the losing end whenever we went head to head.
(forgive the “headhunter” pun). It was a miracle to be able to bring
Julie to Canton Street. Kurt says that Julie is the consummate
professional who works 80 hours a week. Not only is Julie the sharpest
knife in the drawer, but she also outworks everyone else. Julie is
creative, talented and beautiful and both her customers and the
candidates she works with are incredibly loyal to her. Along with Rick
Herbison, she will be taking over the day to day management functions of
the Recruiting Division. Julie will become the Sales Manager for Canton
Streets Recruiting Division, and Kurt knows that with Julie running the
Sales apparatus @ Canton Street that business is going to be good for us
and for the Clients we serve and the Candidates we place.
Kurt has also learned that sometimes it is about putting the right
people into the right places. For Kurt that is what it is all about with
Jim Burns. As Canton Street was making its plans to diversify it
services a serious search began for someone to run the “Business
Services” Division of Canton Street. Kurt had been reviewing resumes and
interviewing for months when one night he says it hit him. Here we are
going outside of the company looking for the right individual to run our
Business Services Division and somehow I came across Jim Burns resume
from years ago, and there it was right in front of us. What better guy
to run our Business Services that Jim Burns? He knows the moving and
storage business from his Recruiting in it over the last five years, but
more importantly what Jim did for over 15 years was Consult and Manage
at a very high level for Fortune 500 companies. Business Solutions and
Services is exactly what Jim did for other industries before he became
involved in the Moving and Storage Industry, and now Kurt believes Jim
is going to do it with his team of Consultants and Project Managers for
the Moving and Storage Industry.
A little more about Kurt’s bio.
-In 1980 five days after graduating High School Kurt found himself @
Basic Training in Ft. Jackson, SC. “Kurt says it was perhaps the most
pivotal part of my life” It began the process of turning me from an
underachiever to an overachiever.
-He graduated in 1984 with a Political Science Degree from Jacksonville
State
-He graduated in 1982 with an Associates Science Degree from Snead State
Jr. College
-What he will tell you that he is very proud of is that he went to three
colleges in 8 semesters and graduated, and that he paid his entire way
through college.
-Kurt was SGA President @ Snead State from 1981 to 1982
-In 1982 Kurt was Soldier of the Year in the 123rd ARCOM
-In 1982 Kurt was Soldier of the Year in the IV AMVR Region
-In 1982 Kurt was 1st Runner-Up Soldier of the Year in the 1st Army as a
Reservist.
-In 1982 Kurt served on Senator Howell Heflin’s staff as an intern in
Washington, D.C.
-Biggest Disappointment came in Summer of 1983 when Kurt was @ Advanced
ROTC camp before his Senior year of College and he was Honorably
Discharged after it was determined that Kurt had asthma. As Kurt says
all I thought I would do was be an Infantry Officer. All of a sudden
going into my Senior College what I had thought would be my career was
gone. I almost did not go to college my Senior year and was going to go
work in the Houston Oil Fields. My sister Katrina told me she needed my
help in her going to college that Fall @ Jacksonville State. She got my
help in her going there, and in the process got me to enroll. Once she
got me enrolled my Senior year, she left. It was an ingenious plan on
her part to keep me in school. It worked and 2 semesters later I
graduated thanks to her.
-From 1986 to 1990 Kurt worked in Atlanta as a Salesman for two
different distributors in the Water and Sewer industry. Kurt was usually
the number two salesperson out of seven; however, as Kurt puts it “he
was young and enjoying too much of the good life that Atlanta had to
offer at that point.” On June 22nd, 1990 Kurt was fired from Davis Meter
and Supply even though he was the number 2 producing salesperson. If you
ask Kurt why he was fired he will tell you three things:
1. I deserved it!
2. I was a “pain in the ass” for my employer
3. I was not giving my best effort by a long shot
As Kurt recalls he would not the next 8 months on his worst enemy. It
was the Summer of 1990 and we had just entered a Recession. At 28 years
of age after making $50 to $70k per year for the previous 5 years I went
to work driving for Domino’s Pizza and driving a long distance newspaper
distribution route on the weekends. At the same time I was submitting
resumes everywhere. It took 8 months but finally on February 1st, 1991
Gold Kist hired Kurt as a Production Supervisor for $24,000 a year. I
will never forget this experience, and I always think about it whenever
I am talking to a Candidate who is out of work. I can relate.
However, something else extremely important happened to Kurt during this
time. Kurt “Fell in Love” with the Love of his Life the then Ms. Stacey
Norman. As Kurt says you learn a lot about people when the chips are
down. Stacey and I had not been dating long when I got fired in June of
1990. It would have been an easy time to say for her to say look, “I
know this is a hard time for you, and when you get back on your feet we
can put this relationship back on track”. But Stacey did just the
opposite. Instead she was there encouraging me the entire time so much
so that we got engaged while I was out of work in September. However, I
remember we were starting to get worried by Janaury 1991, and we
literally prayed and asked for God’s guidance. Talk about answers to
prayer, literally the day after our prayer together, Gold Kist called
and offered me a job. Stacey and I got married on June 22, 1991
literally one year after I had gotten fired.
-Kurt got out of the Gold Kist Training Program also in June of 1991 and
his accomplishments at the $1.5 Billion company are impressive.
-June 1991 Kurt goes to work as a Production Supervisor over a
department called “KFC cutup” in the Carrollton, GA plant.. He has
responsibility for only 8 people
-In less than 8 months Kurt has increased his responsibility over 153
people that he directly manages, and everything on the “backside of the
Carrollton Production Plant” and established production efficiency
records that still stand today. Kurt caught the eye of the then General
Manager of Distribution for Atlanta.
-In the Spring of 1992 Kurt was moved out of Plant Production and over
to the Sales side of the business. Kurt went to work as a Salesman for
the Distribution Facility for Gold Kist that served Atlanta. The
gentleman who had brought me over to do Sales for him got the
opportunity to move back to his home town of Nashville as the General
Manager of Distribution for Gold Kist there. Gold Kist had been
impressed with what Kurt had done in the plant in such a short time so
they took a chance. One of the things that would benefit me in a way I
could have never imagined was my time in the plant gave me a huge
advantage over everybody I would ever compete with in Sales from that
moment on.
-In the Summer of 1992 Gold Kist promoted the 30 year old Kurt to
General Manager of Distribution Services for the West Georgia Division.
It was quite a risk by Gold Kist on the relatively inexperienced Kurt.
It was not a move Gold Kist would regret. Kurt took over the West GA.
Distribution, and in his first year the Distribution Center moved from
#8 out of 10 in the company to #2 in Profit, and Sales.
In Kurt’s 2nd year as GM for the West GA. Distribution the center became
the #1 in the company in Profit, and # 2 in Sales. In his 3rd year as
General Manager it became #1 in Profit and Sales.
-Kurt was named Manager of the year in 1994. When asked by Gold Kist how
the above had been accomplished Kurt said we overhauled the business
model dramatically. When pressed for specifics Kurt admitted that we did
make some strategic changes to the business, but what we really did was
to get everyone in the distribution from the Truck Drivers,
warehouseman, shipping dock employee’s, customer service reps,
salespeople and operations people to believe that it was their
distribution and that it had their signature on it every day. Everyone
became accountable to themselves, to each other and to the customers and
I got the credit for the amazing job they did!
-In 1995 a special position called “Special Products Sales Manager” was
created for Kurt and he was moved to the North GA Division in Ellijay.
Kurt was promoted Ellijay to begin a New Sales and Production Big Bird
Line. Kurt moved to Ellijay in July of 1995 and the new Lines were
starting production in February 1996. As Kurt puts it when I started
there in July 1995 there was going to be 5.5 Millions Pound of Meat that
was going to be produced in Feb 1996 and I had to go sell it. Amazingly
Kurt had the entire Program sold and in place by January of 1996.
Production started up in Feb and the Big Bird lines in Ellijay were an
amazing success for the Division. Gold Kist was so impressed that Kurt’s
next big opportunity came immediately.
-In March 1996 Kurt was promoted to Division Sales Manager over the
Trussville Division in Central Alabama. This division had been the worst
performing division in the company for 20 years, and Kurt was sent there
to fix the sales program. As Kurt puts it was the only job I had @ Gold
Kist where I failed to get done what I had planned to do. In fact it
felt like an utter failure. Kurt will tell you that he failed to provide
the leadership needed to turn the division around. In April of 1997 just
one year later the Trussville Division was consolidated into the
Russellville Division and the Russellville Management Team took over.
-In April of 1997, Kurt fortunately was promoted to Further Processing
Regional Manager in the NorthEast over 8 states although he will tell
you he did not think he deserved the promotion. Kurt was determined to
make up for the failure as he called it @ Trussville. Within 1 year Kurt
had now taken over Responsibility over every state East of the
Mississippi, or 23 states! More amazingly Kurt had brought on more new
accounts and new business than all of his seven counterparts combined.
Additionally each of the years Kurt was there 1997, 1998, and 1999 Kurt
produced more Contribution or net profit to the company than all of his
seven peers combined. This did not go unnoticed as in 1999 Kurt was
promoted again.
-In the Summer of 1999 Kurt was promoted to National Sales Manager for
National Accounts. During Kurt’s tenure Gold Kist began doing business
or dramatically grew with several major players including Wendy’s, Panda
Express, BW-3, Steak n’Shake, Popeye’s, just to name a few. Kurt said
that in many ways this job was very different because it was much more
consultative than selling and managing. Much of what we did here was to
understand where trends were going, what worked and what did not work
and doing a lot of performa’s. It was the experience that finally
convinced Kurt the entrepreneurial spirit was calling. There was a small
regional player called Zaxby’s that I had been exposed to by one of the
salesman. From my understanding of the chicken business Zaxby’s
intrigued me, and I saw them as someone who might be an extremely viable
player for the next 20 to 30 years. I talked to dozens of people about
making this incredibly life changing decision and most advised against
it that were in the food business. However, it was Andrew Cherng, CEO
and Founder of Panda Express (almost a billion dollar company) who
convinced me to go for it. I will always be grateful to Andrew for his
wisdom and advice. In June of 2001 Kurt resigned from Gold Kist and
became a Zaxby’s franchisee.
-Kurt’s proudest accomplishments are as he calls it the Grace of God to
be the Dad of Sparling Wilson (13), Leighton Wilson (10), Mattie Wilson
(5) and Sarah Normandy Wilson (2), and of course the husband of Stacey
Michelle Norman Wilson.
-Kurt will tell you that he is highly demanding but that he believes in
People, and he tries to get people to believe in themselves.
Consequently he says If I can be a small part of getting people to
believe in themselves and expect the best from themselves then I know I
am successful. Consequently that is why Kurt says he is lucky by the
company he keeps, and that is why I am excited about Canton Street.
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