In the early days of growing his company, Sam Smith Jr. was a one-man show, with a pickup truck and a welding machine. He frequently worked seven days per week, and he kept so busy that he didn’t have time to think about going to a gym.
But then, it’s not like he had to plan his workouts. The rigors of his job required him to scale giant water towers with a blowtorch and a set of tools to make repairs to the massive tanks.
“I was climbing 150 feet or more without stopping, so that kept me in shape,” Smith says. “There was no working out after that.”
Thirteen years later, Smith Tank & Steel has grown considerably from the days when its home base was the back of Smith’s pickup truck. The company ranks No. 65 on Business Report’s Top 100 list of private companies, reporting $46.6 million in revenue in 2009 and 145 employees.
Smith no longer needs to scale water towers, but staying in shape is every bit as important to him now as it was then.
“My employees are all tank builders, and they’re used to working, working, working very hard. … It’s like football practice for 10 hours a day,” he says. “So if I push and ask for more, more, more, then the least I can do is keep myself in shape.”
To keep himself in shape, Smith works out five days per week in his home gym, frequently with one of his employees, Business Development Manager Brandon Bell, who finished second overall in this year’s Fittest Execs competition and won the men’s 39-and-under division. Smith’s routine consists of lifting free weights. He also runs four days per week, averaging four miles per run.
Growing up in St. Amant, Smith was always athletic. He learned karate and later played high school football and ran track. After high school, he began working in the fabrication yard of a large storage tank company, so he was always outdoors and always working hard.
Smith worked for that company until 1996, when, on a whim, he struck out on his own. He began calling on engineering firms he knew from the industry and was hired to repair water towers. For several years, his company grew slowly but steadily.
Since 2004, Smith Tank & Steel’s growth has been exponential. Revenues have increased from $2 million, including a 3.1% growth from 2007 to 2008 and 0.8% growth from 2008 to 2009. Last year, the company acquired a new property that serves as home base for its fabrication yard, and its customer base spans the country.
While the company is doing well, there’s plenty of competition and, consequently, plenty of stress. Working out keeps Smith focused and sharp, and it gives him the stamina he needs to put in long hours. More important, however, he believes it enables him to command respect among his employees.
“I’m respected by the guys who really do the work,” he says.
