The business of family business.
| Article Featured in the Santee Magazine, Spring 2017
We’re catching up with Raceway Electric’s Eddie Dombo as he passes the family business down to his son Mike. “… has it really been more than 20 years?” says Eddie, as his mustache curves up with a smirk.
“We moved to San Diego from New York in 1989. Long Island’s weather leaves a lot to be desired. Santee just felt like the right place to raise my family. In 1993 I set up my business; it took a lot of hard work but I knew it would be worth it. At the time, my wife and I were raising a house full of three teenagers, so the garage became my office. One of the first things I did was print out my business model and tape it to the garage wall right above my desk. The paper said “Honesty and hard work will lead you to success.” It was that simple but true, and I’ve lived by those words to this day. There’s not much more to it, just lots of long hours and hard work.”
Fast forward 24 years and you can still see that piece of paper hanging on Eddie’s office wall, along with other solid inspirational quotes. Eddie has been a lifelong electrician and he has no shortage of great stories from his days working in New York, and later, San Diego…
I was working for a large commercial electric corporation in New York and we had a job at the World Trade Center building while it was being constructed. I remember taking the freight car to the 100th floor and then walking up to the 110th floor–there were no elevators because there were no actual floors or walls yet! It was an uneasy feeling working at that height!”
“Working for myself here in San Diego has been a lot different than New York–I haven’t had any jobs on the 110th floor–but it’s been incredible to build a business from scratch. I wouldn’t change my experiences for anything and now I am so honored to pass the torch and see my son in charge of the family business.”
Eddie continues as he refers to his son’s new role, “I am pretty proud of him. Mike is now the CEO/President of the company. He’s a hard worker and has really proved himself over the years. I see a lot of myself in him. Four years ago, Mike saw an opportunity to grow the business by diversifying and expanding our Solar division. He’s really grown the business and it’s been wonderful to see him carry on what I started so many years ago,” says Eddie.
Mike interjects; “The question was always ‘Where is your Dad? I was expecting to see your Dad!’ I got that a lot when I first started working for the company. I had to prove myself, not only to my Dad but to his long-time, loyal customers.” Mike chuckles, “I think I have done alright.”
You can see a strong resemblance in Mike and Eddie’s demeanor. As they sit, they are mostly serious when they talk about the family business. But, like any father and son, they have no problem cracking jokes at each others expense and letting a little loose.
When asked about assuming responsibility for the business, Mike answers, “The transition was official this month and it feels good. I have big shoes to fill, and I am thankful to have my Dad beside me.”
Mike knows he not only has to fill those shoes, but continue to grow the business. “I am up for the challenge, and ready to put in the hard work,” says Mike. Afterall, Mike is no stranger to the business–he’s been helping his Dad for over 15 years. Together, Mike and Eddie run the small business in Santee. They boast two fully loaded trucks and a van servicing all of San Diego County. You can clearly see that they have an entrepreneurial spirit and hard work mentality.
Mike boasts, “My work truck is like a rolling electric supply house. We offer all electrical services, so I travel prepared to handle any situation. I want to do everything I can for my customers, so I try to have everything I’ll need for any job on-hand. It saves them money and it saves me time. Most of our customers are repeat clients–some dating back over 15 years! My goal is to take this torch and run with it… provide customers with the service they have come to expect in both electrical and solar. I have my Dad to thank for the solid foundation and it’s up to me to keep moving forward. I think that is pretty cool.”
If you want to know more about Raceway Electric, like their Facebook page or visit www.racewayelectric.net. They can also be reached at 619-596-1918.
