About Hussey Seating Company
A Long Furrow Plowed
The heritage of Hussey Seating dates back to the founding of the Company by William Hussey in 1835. William was a farmer and a community leader, and a strong Quaker. William’s forebears came from England in the 1640’s and had settled into New Hampshire and Maine in the early days of our country, and soon became strong practicing Quakers.
William’s son Timothy became a leading Quaker in New England, and even led mission trips abroad to build schools in Jamaica and Palestine.
The Quaker values of honesty, action, service, passion, and integrity were built into the culture of the Company at an early age. Though today the Company’s family leaders are no longer Quakers, these traits of commitment to the community, of action, and most importantly of honesty and integrity have guided business decisions for over 175 years.
The Company also has been a living example of the value of innovation over its history. From its beginning as the manufacturer of a better plow design, to new approaches at manufacturing ladders and fire escapes, through to today’s innovations in spectator seating that have led it to a premiere position in its market, the Company has lived and breathed innovation.
Innovation is often driven by necessity, and the Company has used this value in its ability to survive and thrive for such a long period of time. There have been numerous crises in the Company’s history, from a disastrous fire that burned down the plow factory, to the dark days of the Depression, to steel shortages and financial crises of more recent times. But the Company’s leadership has embodied the value of perseverance and, combined with innovative action, found ways through to eventual success. From these difficult times have come invaluable lessons in running a successful enterprise, ones that are best learned through experience.
The Company also has a longstanding commitment to customer satisfaction. Timothy Hussey set a fine example in the 19th Century with a money-back guarantee:
"If I don't hold easily, draw lightly, and turn a flat furrow after 5 days, return to me, TB Hussey, North Berwick Maine."
And there was Timothy’s Golden Rule: "When Thee agrees to furnish a man with a dollar's worth of goods, just try thy very best to deliver him a dollar and one cents worth. Thee do that and I am sure thee will prosper".
Today, Hussey Seating is known in its marketplace as the Company with the highest quality products, with innovative designs that are there as solutions for customer needs, and with an undying commitment to its customers. It has always stood behind its products and its performance, even if it was painful.
Family values of course are an important part of the heritage of the Company. There have been six generations of continuous Hussey family leadership, and the 7th generation is beginning to show up for summer employment and hopefully more. The Company is listed as one of the 50 oldest family businesses in America, and has been featured as Maine’s Family Business of the Year. The family values of caring and compassion are seen in the everyday culture of the workplace. And of course one of the major benefits of a family business is the long-term perspective towards the future. The family ownership view themselves as stewards of the legacy, and can make important decisions for the long run.
This heritage and history has been boiled down into three primary core values that the Company lives by on a daily basis:
- We are a family business in it for the long run;
- We operate with honesty and integrity;
- We care about the people we work with.
May these values and this legacy carry on!
