The Road Less Traveled E126
Matt Roberts joined the Tycoons and opened up about the rollercoaster of his career and the lessons he’s learned along the way. You can hear the passion in Matt’s story for what he does and the community he supports. Sherrill Manufacturing is positioned as the only true American flatware maker still in business and sells only 100% made in USA products. Matt and his partner, Greg, re-built the flatware industry in their small town and took risks to set Liberty Tabletop above their competitors by reinventing the company as an online retailer and specializing in non-traditional patterns.
Tune in to hear the remarkable story of how Matt defied the odds by following the road less traveled and how that has made all the difference. Check out all their products at www.libertytabletop.com.
Liberty Tabletop is a flatware brand of Sherrill Manufacturing. Sherrill Manufacturing is the only manufacturer of flatware left in the United States. In 2005, Matt Roberts and Greg Owens purchased all of the domestic manufacturing assets of Oneida Limited, which, at that time, was the largest flatware manufacturer in the world.
Matt and Greg transformed Sherrill Manufacturing from a contract manufacturer to a brand selling direct to customers through their website at www.libertytabletop.com. Liberty Tabletop sells only 100 percent made in USA products. In fact, all of the stainless steel used in the manufacturing process is melted, tested and transformed in the USA.
Sherrill Manufacturing also designs and makes all tooling internally, utilizing processes to reproduce designs perfectly every time. Designs such as Calavera, Celtic, Woodstock and Honeybee are exclusive to Sherrill. You will not find these designs anywhere else in the world. Sherrill Manufacturing is committed to high quality with the final customer in mind. Our “factory to table” business model proves this out.
Matthew Roberts is born and raised in Central New York. Matt graduated from Oneida High School and went on the earn multiple degrees in Electrical Engineering from Clarkson University and Syracuse University. After a number of years working for General Electric, Matt was hired by Oneida Limited in the engineering department, working his way up the ladder until he was named VP of Manufacturing and Engineering, running all of Oneida’s manufacturing facilities in the US and Mexico.
After China joined the WTO, domestic manufacturing eroded quickly and Oneida closed all of their factories. Matt was charged with closing the US factory and moving the production to China. He, working with Greg Owens, who ran the Mexican facility, purchased the factory in 2005.
Matt still lives in Oneida, about a mile from where he was raised. Matt and his wife of 35 years, Alice, have three grown children, Andrew, Eric and Mallory. They are also lucky enough to have two grandchildren from Andrew and Kayla, Cooper and Charleigh. Last, but not least, is Duke the dog who loves to spend time at the factory.
Connect with Matt on LinkedIn and follow Liberty Tabletop on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About the Show
Tycoons of Small Biz spotlights the true backbone of the American economy, the true tycoons of business in America… the owners, founders and CEO’s of small businesses. Join hosts, Austin L Peterson, Landon Mance and the featured tycoons LIVE every Tuesday at 1 pm, right here on Business RadioX and your favorite podcast platform.
About Your Hosts
Austin Peterson is a Comprehensive Financial Planner and co-founder of Backbone Planning Partners in Scottsdale, AZ. Austin is a registered rep and investment advisor representative with Lincoln Financial Advisors. Prior to joining Lincoln Financial Advisors, Austin worked in a variety of roles in the financial services industry.
He began his career in financial services in the year 2000 as a personal financial advisor with Independent Capital Management in Santa Ana, CA. Austin then joined Pacific Life Insurance Company as an internal wholesaler for their variable annuity and mutual fund products. After Pacific Life, Austin formed his own financial planning company in Southern California that he built and ran for 6 years and eventually sold when he moved his family to Salt Lake City to pursue his MBA.
After he completed his MBA, Austin joined Crump Life Insurance where he filled a couple of different sales roles and eventually a management role throughout the five years he was with Crump. Most recently before joining Lincoln Financial Advisors in February 2015, Austin spent 2 years as a life insurance field wholesaler with Symetra Life Insurance Company. Austin is a Certified Financial Planner Professional and Chartered Life Underwriter. In 2021, Austin became a Certified Business Exit Consultant® (CBEC®) to help entrepreneurs plan to exit their businesses.
Austin and his wife of 23 years, Robin, have two children, AJ (21) and Ella (18) and they reside in Gilbert, Arizona. He is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton with a Bachelor of Arts in French and of Brigham Young University’s Marriott School of Management with a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in sales and entrepreneurship.
Connect with Austin on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Landon Mance is a Financial Planner and co-founder of Backbone Planning Partners out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He rebranded his practice in 2020 to focus on serving small business owners after operating as Mance Wealth Management since 2015 when Landon broke off from a major bank and started his own “shop.”
Landon comes from a family of successful entrepreneurs and has a passion and excitement for serving the business community. This passion is what brought about the growth of Backbone Planning Partners to help business owners and their families. At Backbone Planning, we believe small business owners’ personal and business goals are intertwined, so we work with our clients to design a financial plan to support all aspects of their lives.
In 2019, Landon obtained the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) designation through the Exit Planning Institute. With this certification, Backbone Planning Partners assists business owners through an ownership transition while focusing on a positive outcome for their employees and meeting the business owner’s goals. Landon is also a member of the Business Intelligence Institute (BII) which is a collaborative group that shares tools, resources and personnel, and offers advanced level training and technical support to specifically serve business owners. In 2021, Landon became a Certified Business Exit Consultant® (CBEC®) to help entrepreneurs plan to exit their businesses by counseling owners about exit options, estimating the value of the business, preparing the business for exit and tax considerations.
Landon enjoys spending time with his beautiful wife, stepson, and new baby twins. He grew up in sunny San Diego and loves visiting his family, playing a round of golf with friends, and many other outdoor activities. Landon tries to make a difference in the lives of children in Las Vegas as a part of the leadership team for a local non-profit. He regularly visits the children that we work with to remind himself of why it’s so important to, “be the change that you wish to see in the world.”
Landon received his B.S. from California State University Long Beach in business marketing and gets the rest of his education through the school of hard knocks via his business owner clients.
Connect with Landon on LinkedIn.
