[2006 Leadership Profiles] Joe Lupini

"It’s not always about the bottom line; it’s about doing the right thing." – Connie Lesko, administrative assistant, Loyal Termite & Pest Control, Richmond, Va.

"He is the godfather of pest control in Virginia – people gravitate toward him." – Kevin Kordek, president, A-Active Termite and Pest Control, Virginia Beach, Va.

"He has helped a lot of people get started in the business. It’s a nice feeling to know everyone respects your dad." – Nick Lupini, vice president, Loyal Termite & Pest Control, Richmond, Va.

"He is a direct competitor, but has been a close friend for more than 20 years." – David Boose, president, PestMaster Services, Richmond, Va.

"In the morning it’s like the breakfast club around here. Joe has breakfast every morning with our technicians. They drink their coffee and catch up with one another. They know he really cares about them." – Gena Lupini, vice president of commercial accounts, Loyal Termite & Pest Control

Well, there you have it. There couldn’t be a more comprehensive list of qualities that make a great leader – unless, of course, we listed all the comments from family, friends, employees, peers, and competitors about Joe Lupini, owner and president of Loyal Termite & Pest Control, Richmond, Va.

FINDING HIMSELF

Like many PCOs, Joe Lupini never aspired to a career in the pest control industry. He graduated from Hampton High School in Hampton, Va., in 1954, intending to attend Randolph Macon College in nearby Ashland, Va. However, his college aspirations were put on hold when he and two buddies decided to join the Marines, with a plan to go through basic training then see the world together. It didn’t work out quite that way and the three friends were split up shortly after being sent off to boot camp. "My dad wasn’t too happy about me joining the Marines and my mother was really upset because the Korean War was still going on," Lupini recalls with a laugh. Stationed in Hawaii, he rose to the rank of staff sergeant, but decided not to re-enlist. "Although it was a good experience, it wasn’t something I wanted to do my entire life. I wasn’t going to be a career man."

After his three-year stint in the Marines, Lupini went back to his high school and talked with his mentor – baseball coach Mike Anastasia. Anastasia asked what Joe wanted to do with his future and he honestly did not know. "We must have been talking for three or four hours when coach suggested I consider becoming an umpire," says Lupini, who has a deep knowledge and lifelong affection for baseball. "He had some connections with the Al Summers Umpire School in Daytona Beach, Fla., and could help me get in. I decide to give it a try."

While it may appear like fun and games to an outsider, umpiring is a grueling, highly competitive profession. Out of 60 people in his class, only 20 secured minor league umpiring jobs following graduation, including Lupini. But that’s when the work – the long bus rides, the weeks away from home, the low pay – really begins. "I enjoyed my years in the minor leagues, but it’s a tough life," he recalls. "It takes years to get to the majors. You have to pay your dues. I got as high as Double-A ball, but I wasn’t willing to put in the additional time to get to the majors."

Nonetheless, like his years in the Marines, he enjoyed the experience, taking away a number of important life lessons, including how to manage people. "You have to maintain control of the game and that requires certain people skills. I had the pleasure of throwing Pete Rose out of a ballgame while umpiring in the Alabama/Florida league," Lupini recalls with a laugh. "I called him out on strikes and he started arguing, threw down his hat and started doing a Mexican hat dance around it."

On another occasion, Lupini was behind the plate calling balls and strikes with famed fastball pitcher Bo Belinsky on the mound. The man catching that day was Cal Ripken, Sr., father of Hall-of-Fame third baseman Cal Ripken. "Belinsky never knew where he was throwing the ball, but he had great velocity. He could pitch a no-hitter and still lose the game on walks," Lupini says. "Ripken called for a fastball outside, but I was over his shoulder on the inside and the ball caught me in the mask, knocking me out. When I came to, Cal said, ‘I didn’t do it on purpose. I called for an outside pitch and he threw it inside.’ I said, ‘I know. It’s no big deal. It’s part of the game.’

"It’s the people I met in the minors who were the best part of the job," he adds. "The money and the travel weren’t so good, but I met a lot of good people." Although giving up his dream to be a major league umpire was difficult, Lupini knew it was time to move on.

After pounding the pavement in search of his next career move, Lupini accepted a job selling Yellow Pages advertising in Richmond, Va. That’s when his life took another unexpected turn, when he met his wife of 43 years, Peggy, after being introduced by mutual friends. They hit it off from the very beginning. "We met in October and got married in February 1963," Joe remembers. Never one to brood over major life decisions, he says, "The way I look at it is, not too much sense to waste a lot of time making a decision. Let’s just get it done."

Soon after they were married, Joe and Peggy were expecting their first child – son Nick – who is now part of the family business. It was then that they decided Joe should look for a job that didn’t require as much time on the road. So, in 1964 Lupini mentioned to one of his Yellow Pages accounts – Bert Dodson, Sr. then owner of Dodson Bros. Pest Control in Lynchburg, Va. – that he would be looking for a job in the Richmond area. As luck would have it, Dodson Bros. had an opening in its Richmond branch office.

Following a brief interview, Dodson immediately offered him a job as a salesman. "I told him I didn’t know anything about pest control and he said they would teach me everything I needed to know to succeed in the business, so I accepted."

Lupini was with Dodson Bros. for 10 years and says it was one of the greatest experiences of his life. "I owe a debt of gratitude to Bert Dodson, Sr. and Dodson Bros, Pest Control," he says. "He was a great man." He also was a man who could identify talent, and Joe Lupini had talent, even though he may not have been aware of it. "In September of 1964 Bert called me on a Saturday to say he was coming through Richmond on Sunday and he asked if he could stop to visit after church. I said ‘sure.’ When I met him at the door he handed me a handful of keys and said, ‘You’re now manager of the Richmond office.’ I said, ‘I can’t manage the Richmond office. I’ve never managed anyone in my life. I have a hard enough time managing myself.’ And he said, ‘Yes you can. You’ll be fine.’ Apparently, he saw some qualities in me that I didn’t see in myself. He gave me a great opportunity and I’ll always be indebted to him for that."

Lupini’s reputation quickly grew throughout Virginia and the surrounding area as a man who could get things done. And it wasn’t long before others noticed his leadership abilities. While still at Dodson Bros., Ralph Hughes, another PCO in the area, approached him about working for Paramount Pest Control. "Leaving Dodson was really a tough decision for me," Lupini recalls. "Ralph Hughes offered me so much money I couldn’t turn it down. When I went to Mr. Dodson and explained the situation, he thought I was kidding. I gave him a month’s notice and didn’t hear anything. Two weeks before I was scheduled to leave, Ed Pinigis, who ran day-to-day operations for Mr. Dodson at the time, asked me how things were going. I said I was leaving the company in a few weeks. He said, ‘I thought you were kidding us!’"

Dodson quickly made Lupini a generous counter offer, but by then it was too late. "I said, ‘I appreciate what you’re willing to do for me, Mr. Dodson, but I’ve made a commitment to someone and I’m going to have to fulfill that commitment.’ Mr. Dodson said, ‘I hate to lose you, but I respect what you’re saying.’ We parted on good terms and we stayed friends for the rest of his life. There were never any hard feelings."

A NEW CHAPTER

Proving that it’s never too late to make a career move, in 1994 an opportunity came up to purchase Loyall Rid-O-Pest, another Richmond-area pest control company, and Lupini decided to buy it. He was 61 years old at the time, but was confident he could be successful. "A good friend of mine, Al Loyall, owned the business," Lupini recalls. "Al and I had been friendly competitors for many years and Loyall was very happy operating a small, family-owned business with an excellent reputation in the market."

Lupini left Paramount and went to work for Loyall in August 1994. He couldn’t purchase the business due to a non-compete agreement that was in place with Paramount, but when that expired in 1996, he signed the papers to purchase the company and changed the name to Loyal Termite & Pest Control Co.

At the time of the purchase, there were five employees. The company now employs 30 and generates $2.9 million in annual revenues, up from $500,000 when Lupini purchased the business. While some would have been apprehensive about becoming an entrepreneur so late in life, Lupini never questioned the decision. "I felt like I could do it. My kids were all grown, so I wasn’t putting them at risk. As your kids leave home your life changes. You still have a great family, but they’re not as dependent on you, so you can take on more risk."

A FAMILY AFFAIR

Lupini’s son, Nick, is vice president of the company and says there really aren’t any problems working with family because they respect one another. "I think it’s easier for us than (for) most folks working in a family business," says Nick. "We have more than a half dozen family members involved in the business, but everyone is a family member as far as we’re concerned. We only need so much so we spread the wealth among all the employees."

In addition, Nick says he obviously learned a great deal from his father. "He took Loyal from a small company to what we are today – that’s remarkable. He came from nothing and made it. He wants others to succeed too." Nick adds that his father also taught him that you have to work for everything and nothing comes easy. "He taught me from a very young age that if you want anything in life, you’re going to have to work for it."

Daughter Kim agrees and has worked with her father since she was 16 years old. "He has really been a mentor to me," she says. "He’s taught me everything I know about pest control and he’s always willing to give a word of advice without trying to be an authoritative parent."

As far as working with family, Kim says work is work and family is family. "We treat each other as employees at the office. Nick has his department and duties and I have my responsibilities and we never interfere with one another."

When it comes to Joe, "what you see is what you get," says daughter-in-law Gena Lupini, vice president of commercial accounts. "He’s honest and caring. He’s always there for you when you need him."

Longtime employee J. Lee Gilbert agrees, adding he can’t imagine a better place to work. "My job is to make sure Joe has plenty of money so he can play golf and smoke cigars," Gilbert says with a laugh. "He just let’s us do what we need to do to make the customer happy."

In 1982, Gilbert suffered a brain hemorrhage and says Joe supported him the entire time he was off work. "I was blind for 11 months and Joe was with me every step of the way. I’m fine now, but I wasn’t then. He got me through the ordeal and was like an older brother to me."

In Lupini’s words, "I really consider everyone who works for the business part of the family."

It’s why Joe Lupini personifies what the Crown Leadership Awards are all about.

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"Do You Know Who I Am?"

Joe Lupini had a long and mutually respectful friendship with one of the icons of the pest control industry, Bert Dodson, Sr., founder of Dodson Bros. Pest Control, Lynchburg, Va.

A longtime employee of Dodson Bros., Lupini ran the company’s Richmond office for a number of years in the late 1960s and early 1970s. An example of the respect and mutual admiration the two men had for one another is chronicled in the book, "Bert: A Memoir of Bertram Dodson, Sr.," and involves the current owner and president of Dodson Bros. Pest Control, Bertram Dodson, Jr. Here’s how the story goes, as quoted from the book:

"During summer break, Bertram came to work for Joe in Richmond. He was assigned annual termite inspections. Like most college kids in the early seventies, the young heir wore his hair stylishly long. Joe told Bertram he would have to get his locks shorn if he continued to work there. Company policy required that employees be clean-cut to service the customers, many of whom were older and less tolerant of the ‘hippie’ look.

"Bertram defiantly replied, ‘Do you know who I am? My dad owns this company! I’ll just call Dad.’

"Joe countered, ‘Do you know who I am? I’m your manager. Get your hair cut by tomorrow morning or you’re fired!’ He pointed to the telephone and said, ‘Go ahead and call your dad!’

"The angry young man picked up the receiver and dialed the home office. His father’s message was brief and to the point. ‘Bertram, you work for Joe, now do what he says! All employees abide by company policy!’

"Later, Mr. Dodson checked in with Lupini and thanked him for standing his ground. No favors for the boss’s son!" When the two men – separated by 20 years, but joined by the memory of Bert Dodson, Sr. – get together today, they laugh about that initial encounter and the important life lesson learned.