Winner's Circle
Cathy Glasgow, owner and president of Butler County Ford, sits in the driver's seat of a business that serves hundreds of customers monthly, from service to sales.
Born and raised in Butler Township, she has embraced Butler as a place not just for her prosperity, but for that of her employees and customers.
“I've got more than 40 employees who depend on making a living here. I'm here every day, working hard, and that's what I expect from them,” Glasgow said.
“It's a good business. It's very competitive. It's absolutely fascinating.”
Although she envisioned a career in sociology, Glasgow worked her way from the sales floor to the owner's office of Butler County Ford by overcoming personal obstacles and attacking business challenges, most recently the shift in industry attention to hybrid vehicles and online sales.
“The business really has changed. So much of it is on the Internet now,” Glasgow said.
“You just try to figure it out as best you can. I try to keep an even keel.”
Glasgow, one of three daughters born to the late Anthony Johns, strives to exude the same qualities she demands of her staff.
“Ambitious, honest, ethical... I was brought up that way,” she said.
Glasgow graduated from Butler High School in 1967, then attended Marymount College in Boca Raton, Fla., earning an associate degree in liberal arts in 1969.
“I had grandparents who lived there. They said to me, do you think you want to go to school in Florida? Uh, yes!” Glasgow said.
She then went to Duquesne University, graduating in 1971 with a degree in sociology.
“Trying to find a job with a degree in sociology, at that time was very difficult,” Glasgow said.
After an unsuccessful bid to find employment at VA Butler Healthcare, Glasgow went to work for the Green Stamp store in Pointe Shopping Center, a place where supermarket customers could redeem stamps earned through purchases to buy other goods.
A few months later, at the urging of her maternal grandmother, Glasgow's father brought her into the family business, the dealership at 400 S. Main St.
“(My father) had no intention of me ever running this business,” Glasgow said.
Her grandfather, Walter Cramer, was a Penn State University graduate and a farmer. He started working on the side at the Ford dealership in the 1920s.
“Some time in the '20s, the (dealership) manager went bankrupt or quit and my grandfather took over as manager,” Glasgow said.
Cramer got financing from the institution that would become PNC Bank and incorporated the current dealership in 1926.
In the early 1950s, Cramer brought in Glasgow's father, Anthony Johns, a 17-year veteran of the Pennsylvania State Police.
Two decades later, in 1972, Glasgow first stepped onto the sales floor.“I'd go to sales meetings and I'd be the only woman there,” she said.“From sales, I picked up other things to do, everything from warranties to accounts payable.”During an era where car sales was largely a men's world, Glasgow said her biggest challenges were overcoming a natural shyness and learning every detail she could about the vehicles she was selling.“When I started here, I was by far the youngest. Most of the (sales) guys were older, but they were OK with me being here,” she said.“My dad always expected more of me than anybody else (at the dealership). But then, he expected that of all his girls.”In the late 1990s, Ford introduced its Blue Oval program. Though her father was hesitant to participate, he gave in.Ford Blue Oval Certified dealers must meet a stringent set of customer satisfaction criteria, including sales, service, concern resolution and technology requirements.Glasgow was charged with last-minute implementation of the plan with a very short window for completion.“In the beginning, it meant a lot of money for the dealership,” she said.“I took the (Blue Oval) book home over the weekend and was practically in tears over everything we had to do. I had three months to get it done, and I got it done.”As cancer stole her father's health, Glasgow took over as general manager at the dealership in 2003.A number of prospective general managers had come and gone throughout the years, but, for various reasons, had fallen out of favor with Johns.“I was the last woman standing,” Glasgow said.Almost nine years later, business is booming, with the dealership's service department alone filling 600 repair orders monthly.All that work results in a stack of papers strewn across Glasgow's desk and office, an organized chaos of model cars, industry jargon-filled forms, and manufacturer and community service awards.“I'm particular about paperwork. In the dealership world, everything is paperwork and everything has to be accurate,” Glasgow said.Though she and her husband, Dennis, an electrician, now live in Penn Township, Glasgow is passionate about serving the city she called home for 23 years, as well as the surrounding county.She has served as Butler Downtown's president and is a member of the Rotary Club of Butler.Glasgow also is a past foundation chairman of the Visiting Nurses Association, as well as a past board member serving the Girl Scouts and the now former Butler chapter of the American Cancer SocietyShe said all the pieces are in place to revitalize Butler, creating a “vibrant downtown,” the most important piece being the people.“We have so many active boards in this town; people that really are committed to Butler,” Glasgow said.She said downtown businesses going out of their way to work together will be a big part of the resurgence.“I want to see Main Street the way it was when I was a kid,” Glasgow said.“We already have some really super events in this town, and we have a lot of wonderful venues in Butler County.”She cited the Maridon Museum, the Succop Conservancy, the Butler County Symphony, Jennings Environmental Center and the Penn Theater as jewels in Butler's crown.“I think I am lucky to live here,” Glasgow said.
<B>GLASGOW FILE</B><B>Name:</B> Catherine J. Glasgow<B>Address:</B> Penn Township<B>Position:</B> Owner/president, Butler County Ford<B>Family:</B> Husband, Dennis, and two sisters<B>Education:</B> Butler High School, 1967; Marymount College (Boca Raton, Fla.), liberal arts, 1969; Duquesne University, sociology, 1971<B>Community service:</B> Former president, Butler Downtown; member, Rotary Club of Butler; former foundation chairman, Visiting Nurses Association; former board member, Girl Scouts and the former Butler Chapter, American Cancer Society‘I've got more than 40 employees who depend on making a living here. I'm here every day, working hard, and that's what I expect from them.'<B>ON THE JOB</B><B>Name:</B> Butler County Ford<B>Address:</B> 400 S. Main St., Butler<B>Top Official:</B> Catherine J. Glasgow, president<B>Services:</B> Automotive sales and service<B>People served:</B> More than 600 service orders filled every month, hundreds of vehicles sold annually<B>Employees:</B> 40 plus<B>Contact:</B> 724-287-2766 or http://butler countyford.dealerconnection.com/<B>BUSINESS INSIGHT</B>Cathy Glasgow, owner and president of Butler County Ford, has spent 40 years in the auto dealership business, weathering economic downturns, employee turnover and relentless competition. She shares some of the keys to her success:• “You have to like people, the employees and the customers.”• “You have to be flexible with your employees.”Glasgow said she had one employee who would come to work when her children got on the school bus and returned home before school ended, rather than a set shift.“I want people to see this as a place where they can spend their whole career.”• “Teamwork. Everybody working together (is important). I have several different businesses here: sales, body shop, accounting. We depend on one another, realizing that there is a big picture.”• “Respect for each other and for the customers. We have to be good listeners here.” Glasgow said what a person wants and needs may differ. For example, will that new Ford Mustang fit the four child safety seats you need?Also, if a person complains of a “clunking” noise, service professionals must be able to understand where the noise may be coming from or when it occurs by talking to the customer, so they can pinpoint exactly what repair, if any, is needed.“Don't ever sell them something they don't need.”• “Let people do their jobs.”Glasgow said it is possible to overmanage, and a leader must know when to step back and entrust others to do their tasks without interference.
