Business in the blood

Bill Grafton has all of his employees’ photos hanging on his office wall. His team spends time together outside of work, and they have regular Sunday dinners. Bill’s business has five members, and three of them are his children.

Grafton Wealth Management in Winter Park is a financial advising firm, but it’s also a small family business — the group most affected by the economy. Their firm is doing well; Bill has brought on two of his children within the past four years, and hopes to bring on his other son in the next year.

He’s been in business for 39 years and has been in Central Florida since 1996. The firm is surviving in an economy, and a social climate, that is ideal for a family business.

Central Florida fit for business

Across the United States, small businesses are failing; the weak are hit harder than the strong — and most family businesses have less than 100 employees. But in Central Florida, small businesses are consistently growing. Entrepreneur Magazine recently rated Orlando the best place to be an entrepreneur. Forbes called it one of the best places for minority entrepreneurs and the No. 10 next big boomtown in the U.S.

“Family business is alive and well in Central Florida,” said Jerry Ross, executive director of the National Entrepreneur Center, an Orlando-based organization that provides support and resources to small businesses.

More options, less family business

In an age where parents tell their children that they can go wherever their dreams and hard work take them, joining a generations-old family business isn’t always their top choice. More options, new technology and new jobs have taken their toll on the long-standing family business, even in Central Florida, Ross said. In the past, the decision to work in the family business was made for the children. Now, people have many more options.

For the Grafton family, being a part of Dad’s business wasn’t pushed on the children. Will Grafton’s interest in finance came in high school and became his choice in college after watching what his father did. Daughters Carrie Musalimadugu and Sarah Grafton DeVoe made their decision later on. They said part of their family’s success in working together has been that they weren’t forced into the business, but chose it on their own. And they all love what they do now.

“When you’re passionate and happy at work, you do the best work for your clients,” DeVoe said.

Personal decisions

There’s also the very unique dynamic that comes with working with family. When “Uncle Ted” needs to get fired, or another person isn’t pulling their weight, a personal stress is put on the business. Having good advisers and a strategic decision-making plan that they stick to is important to family business success, Ross said.

The Grafton family said they practice clear communication, hold each other accountable and don’t take work home with them — Sunday spaghetti dinners are always safe.

And for their family, laughter seems to be a key component to happily working together. The sisters tease their brother, and they aren’t afraid to poke fun at their dad about his lack of email skills. They have a light atmosphere in the office, and said knowing each other, like a family does, makes them a great team.

“It’s a lot of fun to work with your family,” Will said.

Valuing a legacy

One reason family businesses do exist is the value that later generations put on the work done before them. Kimberly Lawton Koon, who is president of Lawton Printing, an Orlando business with more than 100 years and five generations of family workers, said being in the printing business didn’t come up until her father needed to sell Lawton Printing to retire. Koon couldn’t bear to see her great, great grandfather’s business put in someone else’s hands.

Musalimadugu couldn’t picture all of her father’s hard work going to waste either, and she imagines her children following in the family business footsteps, too.

“The sacrifice he made is a really big deal,” she said. “It’s something that you don’t just say goodbye to.”

Up and coming?

Small businesses aren’t just sentimental, though. In Orange County, they make up 99.6 percent of businesses, and provide 74.7 percent of the county’s jobs, according to data collected by the Edward Lowe Foundation.

“I think it’s going to be a growing trend,” Ross said. “These are the seeds of tomorrow’s big family businesses.”