When Dick Kelley, Sr. was young he had aspirations-not unlike most boys his age-of becoming a professional athlete. However, that's about the only ordinary trait one can find in Kelley. Although he claims he never grew big enough or honed the skills necessary to succeed in the majors, he did develop a unique drive to win. With this drive he has not only become president of a successful sheet plant, Dusobox, Orlando, Florida, he has also developed a tireless determination that could rival even the best of athletes.

Kelley's story is one of hard work and triumph. While it sounds more like the makings of a television mini-series than the genesis of a boxmaker, it is true that his company has grown eight-fold since its inception, in great part due to Kelley's endless energy and unwavering work ethic.

However, growing up in Lowell, Massachusetts, Kelley did not become acquainted with the corrugated industry until a few years after college. Receiving a bachelor of science degree in Textile Chemistry, he had hopes of one day receiving his masters degree in Business Administration, leaving behind visions of glory in the sports arena years before. Kelley did go to business school for a short while, but was soon drafted into the army where he served nearly two years.

Shortly after leaving the service, rather than return to school, Kelley entered the printing business, working for a job shop that specialized in business forms and job printing. This led him to Jack Dusseault, a corrugated industry veteran and one of Kelley's customers.

It has been said that no one ever enters the corrugated industry of their own free will; everyone backs into it, each with their own reason. Perhaps romantics would say love is what led Kelley to be a leader in the packaging industry as he eventually married Dusseault's daughter. In doing so, he married the corrugated industry as well.

With his first taste of the box industry in 1960, Kelley left the printing world behind and joined Dusobox, a company Dusseault had founded from his garage about eight years prior. Incorporated in 1953, the company was originally based in Lowell. Sharing a desk with his father-in-law, Kelley recalled the seven-person outfit and his early days in the corrugated industry when material handling meant handling material by hand.

"It was quite a learning experience," Kelley reminisced. "I learned everything through on-the-job training. I vividly remember that everybody, including Jack, would do everything. When we got a trailer load of sheets in, everybody went out and unloaded those sheets right off the tail end of the truck. There wasn't automated material handling like there is today."

At the time, the company sold to the smaller buyers looking for stock boxes or job lots, otherwise known as mill overruns. Dusobox would purchase them in trailer load quantities, but sell them in whatever quantities were needed by the customer.

A few years later in 1955, a second plant was opened in Tampa, Florida. "I think that operation originally came about because Jack liked visiting Florida. He actually retired from the Massachusetts operation in 1965 and moved down there full time," Kelley noted.

In the late 1960s the plant was moved from Tampa to Orlando and eventually became the company's main profit center. In 1973 Kelley became president of the Florida operation, packed up his five children and headed South. Just teenagers at the time, Kelley noted that the relocation of the family, who had always resided in New England, was perhaps the toughest change when inheriting the company.

"I was fortunate that my oldest son, John, said, 'Let's go Dad.' It made the decision to leave a lot easier," Kelley explained.

Concern for family has always been a priority with Kelley. Although modest when discussing his business achievements, Kelley "pops a few buttons" as he puts it, over his five children and 14 (soon to be 15) grandchildren.

"I have always been the most proud of my family," Kelley said. "I have been very fortunate. I have two boys who work with me and are excellent in their knowledge and attention to the business, and I have three girls who are a joy."

Kelley believes his sons each bring slightly different expertise to the growth of the operation. John is treasurer and general manager, and Richard is vice president and sales manager. Both worked at the Lowell operation away from their father for some time, but are now based in Orlando. However, Kelley made sure each son tested the waters to see if, in fact, the corrugated industry was where they wanted to be. For instance, John had dreams of becoming a dairy farmer. Following this path right out of college, he soon found that corrugated was the career for him.

Kelley receives support from his wife, Exie, as well. As the daughter of Dusseault, growing up in the packaging industry she understands occasional late hours.

Working late is perhaps an indication of Kelley's drive to succeed. For although his family is the most important to him, his business is a close second. "I never found that family and business were an either/or," Kelley relayed. "It's always been an emphasis on family, but the business is part of it, and we spend a good deal of time working at it."

Kelley's plans for the plant reflect his own nature: cautious, yet innovative. Its niche has evolved to the point that it now serves a completely different clientele. Embracing the graphics revolution, Dusobox's repertoire now focuses on multi-color graphics, point-of-purchase displays, specialty design and innovative diecut boxes that require sophisticated gluing technologies. It is a capital-intensive business with CAD/CAM and Mac-driven graphics, completely different from the business Kelley joined 37 years ago.

"I never dreamed that this could be our focus. But being able to change is the name of the game," he surmised.

Steve Young, executive vice president of the Association of Independent Corrugated Converters (AICC), has worked with Kelley for more than a decade and said that his ability to manage change is precisely one of the characteristics he admires most about Kelley.

"He has grown his company, but it has been a very controlled growth," Young said. "Dusobox has done some fantastic things in terms of graphics and transforming the company from a brown box business into a graphic-oriented business. That's not easy to do without it getting out of control."

In his own life, Kelley's goals are simply to be happy, which is intrinsically related to the growth of his business. Over four decades of operation, the plant has grown from a $1-million business with less than 10 employees to an $8-million plant with 50 employees housed in a 70,000-sq.-ft. facility.

Kelley attributes much of the drive for change and growth to his sons. However, a great deal of the company's success also lies in lessons Kelley has learned along the way and the leadership he displays in light of this wisdom.

"One of the great lessons I learned from my father-in-law was how to keep going after you make a mistake. He would make decisions in the snap of a finger and I would be amazed at how he could do that," Kelley recalled. "He had the ability to quickly evaluate if he made a wrong decision, then he could reverse it."

Kelley laughed as he recalled putting this philosophy into action some years ago when a mistake of some proportion was made at the plant. After receiving an order from the government for packaging that was to hold parts of an M-60 machine gun, Kelley wrote up an order. "However, due to my poor writing ability, I wrote up what appeared to be W-60, and all of the boxes were printed that way! I learned that you correct your errors as fast as you can and move forward."

The business has mirrored Kelley's optimistic approach. Even during the downturns in the market, Dusobox always prospered, in fact, it often did better. During the rough times, more buyers often wanted small lot stock boxes, which is precisely what the company offered. In a sense, it was an inflation proof business. For this reason, Kelley sees his tenure in the industry as relatively smooth sailing. When asked about the rough times, he can't really recall any. Asked again about the challenges he has faced, he moves into the challenges of a generic nature that affect most small businesses-nothing specific to his company or his reign as president. Perhaps the company's smooth ride is due to the fact that Dusobox offered stock boxes in times of need. However, more likely it is the way Kelley perceives his life and the industry. His attitude is such that he doesn't see rough times as rough. He takes his business seriously, but also with humor. Like any good manager he values his employees, practices quality management and continuously meets customers' needs.

Tom Skinner, president of Phoenix Packaging and Kelley's long-time colleague and friend, said part of what makes Kelley a successful manager is his ability to stay level-headed. "I've never seen him get upset. He is always cool, calm and collected," Skinner noted. "When he talks, you know he put some thought into what he's saying."

However, one thing Kelley hasn't put any thought into is retirement. At age 66 he still enjoys the changing nature of the industry and meeting new people. "Many of the people you meet in the industry are fascinating," he said. "I like to see their new products and be in on the ground floor in developing the packaging for the product. Not everyone makes a home run, but it is interesting to see them up to bat."

Kelley prides himself on being a hands-on person and is at the plant everyday, all day. But his dedication to the industry extends beyond his business to the corrugated market as a whole-he was recently named president of the AICC. As in his life and business, he has again emerged as a leader. His involvement began with his local Florida chapter and eventually progressed to the national level. Kelley values the forum that AICC provides to learn from his contemporaries.

"The association offers training, education and information resources that individual companies couldn't obtain on their own," Kelley explained. "We bring our peers together and learn from each other. One of the biggest advantages of the meetings is the one-on-one conversations over a drink. Someone is always experiencing the very same thing you are trying to solve. The relationships are what make this association so strong."

Kelley plans to build on this strength during his presidency by further working with the association's associate members, which are suppliers to the industry. He hopes to impart the concept that converters and their vendors are working toward a common goal, and should therefore function as partners as opposed to adversaries. Kelley is also further encouraging an educational program that will allow seminars to be held directly at member companies, giving plants the personal, tailored attention they need. The enthusiasm for these causes is apparent in Kelley's voice as he barely pauses before moving on to his next goal for the group.

Young, too, is excited at the prospect of working with a well-rounded leader. "People in the industry perceive him with only the highest regard and respect," he observed. "He is very active in his community and his church, and very dedicated locally as a fundraiser. We are indeed fortunate to have him as a leader this year."

The energy never ceases. Somehow Kelley juggles family and business, but still manages to play tennis, stay in shape and, as Young noted, take part in church and community projects. Only recently did Kelley begin to pursue his other passion, traveling, taking his first three-week vacation ever. No one believed he would actually spend that much time away from the plant. But he did, and after venturing to Ireland and Italy, he came back ready for more.

After all is said and done, would he do it all over again? Absolutely.

And upon reflection, perhaps what he has achieved is not entirely different from his aspirations of becoming a famous athlete as a young boy. His words best explain the connection: "I always had an intense desire to be a winner. And if you're not a winner, then you keep working towards it. In this way, you win more than you lose," Kelley observed.

Perhaps the pros should be a little nervous. If Kelley ever does decide to try out for the team, some player is out of a job.