FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. — There’s been a change of management at commercial laundry equipment distributor Southern Automatic Machinery Co. (SAMCO), the company reports.
Longtime employees Adrienne Gibbs and Melissa Roberts have assumed management of SAMCO’s day-to-day operations with a future plan of total ownership, according to a company press release.
Roberts tells American Coin-Op that she and Gibbs have entered into a process to acquire the company from President/CEO John Sugg as he enters retirement. It could take two or three years to complete, she says.
Gibbs has been with SAMCO since July 2000. She started by answering phones and performing general office functions before progressing into learning all aspects of the company and stepping into various roles as needed.
With experience in both distribution and laundry ownership, she is now responsible for running the entire office, from ordering equipment, scheduling installations, taking service calls, billing, team member management and more. Gibbs also spends time in the field, meeting with customers and helping them improve their business.
Roberts has worked for SAMCO since 1998, and her story is similar to Gibbs’. She started by answering phones and performing general office duties. From there, she progressed into accounts payable, receivables, parts, and installation of apartment card systems when those hit the market.
After learning those roles, and armed with an ability to engage customers, she went into sales in 2005 and has been developing customer relationships ever since.
SAMCO offers Speed Queen, Huebsch, Continental Girbau and Whirlpool Commercial Laundry products to customers throughout Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina.
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