Air Force vet flies as manufacturer [The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, Calif.]
From those days on, he knew someday he wanted to work in the aviation industry, a dream that has come true in spades.
Kozloski is president of Precision Molded Products, a
His interest in aerospace is a little more complicated than weekend visits to
"My mother worked at the
Kozloski, 48, served in the
His last military posting was at
That happened in 2000 when he bought Precision Molded Products, which was at the time essentially smaller than a mom-and-pop operation. The company has been expanding ever since, especially in the last five years. It also has a few more product lines, in the defense and medical fields.
The pattern of growth was Kozloski's plan from the start.
Q: Why did you decide to run your own business?
A: I was working for a small company, mainly doing sales, and the individual I was working for treated the business as just something to do, not something to grow. If I wanted to grow, I knew I would have to look for my own business.
Q: Do you think it was a good move?
A: Absolutely. The biggest thing is that it was a challenge. But had I not gone in this direction, I could never have experienced the growth I wanted to do.
Q: What's the key to the growth of the business?
A: The key is getting our manufacturing standards qualified by the likes of
Q: What's the best day like for your business?
A: It's the day when we just have a good, clean product, when we don't have any customer issues or equipment issues. You just can't beat those days.
Q: Is it all worth it?
A: There are days I absolutely say, yes, it's worth it, but there are days when I could be working for someone else and making more money. But in the last two years, we're seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. We're diverse enough that, if one market drops, we can maintain, and the growth we are seeing makes it worthwhile.
Q: Is it difficult being a manufacturer in
A: As far as the (environmental) and certification issues goes, it's not bad. We run a relatively clean operation, and we don't have many problems. A difficult area is the cost of having an employee in
Q: How do you find good workers and keep them?
A: Maintaining workers is not too much trouble. Bringing in new people sometimes is. There are people who have been on unemployment who have not worked in two years, so getting them up to speed is difficult sometimes. We bring in some out-of-work construction workers, but this is a unique business. You don't really find a lot of people with experience.
Q: What advice would you give a person just starting a business like yours?
A. First, find a passion, something you really enjoy doing. You're going to be in for a long run. Whether it's software, or music, or anything, follow your passion.
Second, build a really concise business plan. And, third, decide how much money you're going to need to get going. Then, times that amount by 10.
Company: Precision Molded Products
Title: President
Location:
Employees: About 15
Revenue: Not disclosed
Education: Bachelor's degree in computer science,
___
(c)2011 The Press-Enterprise (Riverside, Calif.)
Visit The Press-Enterprise (Riverside, Calif.) at www.PE.com
Distributed by MCT Information Services
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News