"Try to to be a good person and try to do good things and good things will happen to you", words of advice from Ben Sperry, owner of Joe's Pizza Mount Vernon , Joe’s Pizza Centralia and Dee Bee's.

Ben's story began when he started working for the Joe's location in his hometown as a delivery driver and dishwasher. He was born into a family that valued a strong work ethic. Ben shared how many hours and how much hard work it has taken for him to go from a delivery driver and dishwasher to now owning three different businesses. His strategy each day is to try and figure out what is going to go wrong today and find a way to get ahead of it, being proactive is key.

Ben explained to the group how a franchise operates. Having no formal education in business, Ben has learned everything he knows from the family business he grew up in and what he learned as he worked up the ranks in Joe's. In fact, when he opened his first location at the age of 22, he went to the bank with his business plan written on a waitress order pad. He pointed out that our group of young entrepreneurs are at a great advantage through their CEO participation. Being able to write a business plan and meet with a banker on Banker Day is very valuable.

Ben explained that he is much more than just the owner when it comes to his employees. He does his best to take care of his employees and in return they take care of him. Sometimes that means he might act as a therapist or bank or mediator, regardless he values the relationships he has built with his work family. We appreciate Ben sharing his story and also his continued support of our program as a Board Member.