Today we’d like to introduce you to Alison Gutterman.
Alison, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’ve had a passion for business, marketing, and leadership from a very young age as I watched my grandfather and then my father grow Jelmar. To me, leading Jelmar is much more than leading a business. It’s also an opportunity to honor the legacy of my family.
But that wasn’t always my thought process. I began my career at Jelmar in 1993 in an unusual way – I was without a desk or a job title and put to the test by my father. I thought the company was a stepping stone for my next opportunity. But I worked my way through various jobs, including Customer Service Representative, Vice President of Sales and COO, and rose above the stereotypes of being the boss’ daughter and a young female in business.
I received a BS degree in Speech Communication from Syracuse University and an MBA from Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University. In 2007, my father, Arthur, passed the reigns of the family business down to me.
Ever since, I’ve worked towards adapting the business to align with the continually evolving customer needs and desires—including reformulating products to be environmentally friendly, creating a social media presence, developing new products—all while sticking to our roots. It’s put us in a sweet spot of maintaining our loyal fan base and building awareness with new audiences.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Running a business comes with a range of inherent challenges, but being the first woman president of a third-generation, family-owned business is a whole new ball game.
First, proving to my father I could take on the reigns was a challenge of its own that didn’t quite end even when I did take over.
Earning respect from others, specifically men older than me who I managed, was another hurdle. They were more experienced than I and often dismissed my new ideas about marketing and sales, and some assumed I didn’t have the drive to put in the long hours and hard work they did.
In both situations, I had to learn to build my confidence and better defend my thoughts and ideas, despite the naysayers and my own self-critical thoughts.
A huge help here has been my unbelievable group of women friends, many of whom have started their own businesses. While they didn’t help me in my early years, they have been instrumental in my growth in the last six years. I look to them for advice and consultation on both business and personal issues, and a good belly laughs when the stress level gets overwhelming. We live in different parts of the US, but I know that if I ever needed anything, they would hop on a plane to offer me support just as I would for them. They have been invaluable to me as supporters, cheerleaders, and advocates.
I am also a part of several women’s and business organizations (C200, WPO, WIPP, WBENC, NAWBO, ENACTUS) that not only empower, support and lift me up but also allow me to help empower the female entrepreneurs of tomorrow.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Jelmar is a Chicago-area based, family-owned cleaning products manufacturer of the well-known CLR® and Tarn-X® products. The company started over 50 years ago. All these years later, we’ve expanded to nearly 100,000 retail outlets nationwide. Our products cover everything from the kitchen to the bathroom, and even the outdoor patio and the garage. We strive to offer simple, yet powerful and effective solutions for our consumers.
What surprises people is not only that we are family-owned, but also a small company. We have a staff of only 15 people. It allows us to have flexibility but also is what makes us unique. We are rooted in family values, and our small size really allows us to foster a familial company culture where everyone looks forward to coming to work every day.
Our focus on family doesn’t stop at our front door. We consider the needs of our consumers and put thought into the products they bring home to their families too. We are dedicated to manufacturing environmentally safe products and have reformulated many of our products to meet EPA standards. We’ve been working with the EPA since 2005 and have been named an EPA Safer Choice Partner of the Year in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
What were you like growing up?
I think I was a born to be in sales and marketing. I remember as a little girl “performing” the commercials I memorized on TV. Prell’s “I was FLAT till I went FLUFFY” shampoo commercial was an all-time favorite of mine. Also, in seventh grade, I was tasked with an assignment to make up a product and an entire marketing campaign to support it – TV, radio, and outdoor advertising – the works. I absolutely loved it. What was my product?… toothpaste in a pump with floss attached to the container. I called it “Floss & Gloss.” Certainly, a missed patent and trademarked opportunity!
Contact Info:
- Address: 5550 W. Touhy Ave., Skokie, IL 60077
- Website: https://clrbrands.com/
- Phone: 800-323-5497
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CLRCleaners
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/CLRCleaners
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/user/jelmar08
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