THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, June 10, 1996 TAG: 9606080179
SECTION: BUSINESS WEEKLY PAGE: 11 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY BROWN H. CARPENTER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: 47 lines
James R. Wetherbee, a Portsmouth hometown boy, learned about heating and cooling buildings on the job not long after he got out of high school.
He worked for Parker Bros. Oil Co., driving trucks at first; later learning to fix furnaces and maintain air-conditioners.
He also picked up some business acumen. In 1985, after eight years as an employee, he bought the company, now known as Parker Services, Inc.
He endured some hard times during the late '80s but got back on track.
``We we were concerned over the economy,'' he said. ``But we managed to make it through that.''
Wetherbee's company now has 12 employees - double the six on the payroll in the 1980s - and was named the city's top small business this year by Portsmouth Division of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce.
Parker Services is no longer just a company to call when the furnace or AC goes on the blink, although repair work is still a part of its services.
The growth is in maintaining air quality, Wetherbee says.
``We handle air filtration and air exchange, purge air and reduce carbon monoxide and fumes in buildings,'' Wetherbee said.
``Four or five years ago, energy became a bigger concern. We got tighter buildings. Not enough fresh air was coming in.''
Armed with his filters, ductwork and dehumidifyers, Wetherbee found his customer base increasing. He handles residential homes and small commercial buildings.
And, as he points out, the air problems had to be solved without sacrificing the energy that the buildings were designed to conserve. Ann E. Wetherbee, Jim Wetherbee's wife, is the office manager for Parker Services. He is president of the corporation that owns it.
Wetherbee, 38, says he still goes out on jobs, but mostly to size the equipment needed to fix a problem. Then he sends his workers out to place the machinery.
``I occasionally make a service call,'' he says. ``I've still got a tool bag, and I know the parts.'' MEMO: [Related stories on pages 10 and 11.] ILLUSTRATION: GARY C. KNAPP
James R. Wetherbee and Ann E. Wetherbee
KEYWORDS: SMALL BUSINESS by CNB