Odom Corporation: brothers best difficulties to keep family business.

• Author: Gerhart, Clifford
• Position: John, Bill and Jim Odom - The New 49ers - Company Profile

The story of the Odom Corp. is more of a family saga than a corporate history. Founded as Anchorage Cold Storage by legendary Alaska entrepreneur Milton Odom, the firm has survived epic catastrophes such as the Good Friday earthquake and a three-and-a-half year strike. With Milt's death in 1988, the company again was seriously imperiled by a multimillion dollar estate tax obligation and minority shareholders who wanted the Odoms to sell.

But through all this, the company has not only survived, but prospered. Three of Milt's sons, John, Bill and Jim, are now at the helm, but the course they have charted is somewhat different from their father's.

John is chairman and president of the Odom Corp. His vision and energy have steered the company through its recent legal and financial challenges. Brother Bill keeps the distribution engines churning as vice chairman and executive vice president of Alaska operations. Jim is vice president in charge of the difficult task of running Odom's Food Services Division.

Liquor, beer, wine and soft drinks make up about three-quarters of corporate revenue, with meat, produce and other food products making up the rest. With the exception of a small soft drink franchise stationed in Lewiston, Ida., and a liquor brokerage operation in Wash. and Ore., virtually all of the company's sales are generated in Alaska.

Liquid Assets

According to John, the Coca-Cola business has been the company's mainstay. However, he is quick to add, "We have made some modifications in the way we distribute liquor and added new management to that division. This has attracted new product lines and developed into a very important part of our business. I can say the same thing about our beer division. We have made significant strides there, too. We intend to allocate additional capital to expand our position in that industry."

Jim Odom is equally enthusiastic about the food service operations. "We are aggressively looking at new growth opportunities, which includes not only adding product lines and targeting new customers, but making acquisitions," he says.

Unlike its beverages, Odom Corp.'s food products are not generally found in local supermarkets. "We sell primarily to institutional accounts such as restaurants, hospitals, camps and military institutions," Jim explains.

Built on Competition

Bill Odom has a pretty clear idea why the company is doing well: "My father installed his work ethic into us. All three brothers spent a good part...