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Family-owned company, industry pioneer and, now, a recognized top Texas family business. Metallic Products proudly added a new descriptor to the list in early November.
The Houston-based company received the Heritage Award during Baylor University’s 2019 Texas Family Business of the Year Awards.
Now in its 30th year, the Texas Family Business of the Year Awards is put forth by Baylor’s Institute for Family Business. The annual event recognizes companies that remain committed to business continuity while also serving the people they employ, the communities they call home and their industry as a whole.
The Heritage Award is given to a “successful family business that has overcome statistical odds to achieve the rare status of maintaining continuous existence through at least three generations of family ownership.”
Metallic Products was established in 1962, originally as a trim shop. Although the company’s initial approach, building ventilation products by hand, seems simple by modern standards, it changed the game for building manufacturers once tasked with constructing their own accessories.
As time progressed, the company grew. While obstacles such as new competition and oil recessions meant Metallic Products faced some hard years, it pulled through with help from cost-efficient practices, a focus on productivity and quality products and customer service.
Metallic Products remains a successful family-owned business to this day.
Company President Travis Wendt, who accepted the Heritage Award along with his father, Owner and Board Chairman Daryl Wendt, described the recognition as a deep honor.
“As someone who literally grew up in this business, it’s been gratifying to see Metallic Products change with the times while remembering our humble beginnings,” he said. “It’s been a wonderful ride so far, and we are truly grateful to Baylor.”
Daryl Wendt agreed, noting that part of running a successful family business is ensuring the company is doing right by those who work with — and live around — the business.
“We’ve worked hard to make sure we aren’t just putting out a good product, but that we’re having a positive impact, too,” he said. “To be ranked among so many fantastic companies who are doing so many wonderful things, it’s just an incredible honor.”
For more information about the Texas Family Business of the Year Award, visit baylor.edu/business/txfamily. Photos courtesy of Eric Guel.
