Welhener recovers from early setbacks

by Kris Ann Hegle

SBJ Contributing Writer

In 1994, Rick Jackson and seven other people purchased Welhener Awning Co. A few weeks after the acquisition, the company's general manager started his own company. Most of the sales and production staff left for the new company, according to Jackson.

Welhener was left with three employees. Two of the employees had less than six months of experience. During the business' first year, three of the eight owners sold their shares. Over the next two years, the remaining owners sold their shares to Jackson, who became the company's sole shareholder and chief executive officer.

At first glance, Jackson doesn't seem the sort of fellow who would run a manufacturing company. He's a CPA