Q&A
Catching Up with 2013 914INC Small Business Award Winners
Small businesses—those with 50 or fewer employees—are the lifeblood of the economy here in Westchester (and indeed, in the nation). That’s why we honor them each year, as part of our 914 INC Small Business Awards. The current story is in the works, so submit your favorite Westchester small businesses today right here.
Last year we picked a dynamic group of exemplary Westchester businesses—which you can see here—so we caught up with a few of our favorites to chat about running a small business here in the county. This, our second conversation in the series, is with Shrub Oak-based Hudson Milk; read last week’s Q&A with American Christmas here and look for another Q&A next week.
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HUDSON MILK, Shrub Oak
Tom Rubino, COO
What has business been like for Hudson Milk over the past year?
Rubino: Business has been great! We are continuing to grow, we’ve added new delivery routes, hired new employees, and put new trucks on the road. Our customers have always said that we are one of Westchester’s best-kept secrets, but the word is starting to spread.
Has being chosen as one of 914INC’s Small Business Awards winners had any impact?
Rubino: Being one of the Small Business Award winners was an absolute honor and thrill for us, we definitely heard the congratulations from our customers and have acquired some new business from the exposure.
What are the key challenges facing small businesses like yours here in Westchester?
Rubino: Some challenge for us are marketing and social media, hiring and staffing. One unique challenge for us doing business in Westchester: when we deliver we are on the road in commercial vehicles, which of course we can’t take on those pesky parkways! Westchester was designed to get around using the parkways, so it takes us a bit longer to get around using the commercial routes.
Do you feel that Westchester is a supportive community for small businesses?
Rubino: We are proud to be part of a thriving and diverse group of small businesses in Northern Westchester. We feel that we are a testament to Westchester being supportive of small mom-and-pop businesses. We plan on taking advantage of some of the county initiatives and incentives in the coming year.
What are some of your favorite Westchester small businesses?
Rubino: Some of our favorites in no particular order are, The Peekskill Coffee House, Dance For Joy, Augie’s Prime Cut, and Cork NY. Our absolute favorite nonprofit organization is Community Capital. They are a fantastic microlender who offer their clients many services, training, and professional development. Kim Jacobs and Holly Perlowitz stand behind their investments and really care about the people and small businesses that they serve.
Know or run an exemplary small business (or nonprofit) in Westchester? Submit here for our 2014 Small Business Awards story, to be featured in the Q3 2014 issue of 914INC: [https://westchestermagazine.com/914-INC/914INC-Excellence-in-Small-Business-Awards/].
