GUELPH – How does it feel to be in business for 75 years?
Proud, accomplished, successful, and perhaps frazzled and exhausted when two of those 75 were during the pandemic.
But more than anything, it is gratitude he’s feeling, said Jim Estill, the owner and CEO of Danby Appliances that’s celebrating its 75th anniversary this year.
Danby, with locations in Guelph, Guelph/Eramosa and other parts of North America, held an open house barbecue in Guelph for its employees, customers, dignitaries, and community groups on July 5.
“It’s about gratitude,” Estill said in an interview a day before the barbecue. “Any problems we have are first world problems. Canadians should be grateful for what we have.”
That’s not to suggest Canadians don’t have problems or need help. They do, and helping local agencies is part of the “ethos” at Danby, Estill said.
At the July 5 event, Estill announced company donations to agencies selected by employees. They include the Guelph Humane Society, the Guelph Food Bank, Lakeside Hope House, the Canadian Cancer Society, Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis and the Canadian Mental Health Association of Waterloo-Wellington.
Indeed, at celebrations on July 5 at all the North American Danby sites, the company presented over $75,000 to charities selected by employees.
“As we reflect on the last 75 years, we feel nothing but immense gratitude for our customers, partners and employees who have made us the success we are today. We want to take this opportunity to celebrate where we are, but most importantly we want to Do the Right Thing and give back to the communities that have helped us grow,” Estill stated in a July 5 press release.
Danby Appliances started as a family-owned small electrical appliances manufacturer in Montreal in 1947.
It has grown significantly over the years, opening offices all over North America with its head office located in Guelph since 1981.
Estill joined the company in 2015 and bought it in 2017.
“The company was well-established. It was a good functioning company. All I did was polish it a little,” he said.
During the pandemic, however, Estill steered the ship through lockdowns while at the same time trying to do the right thing – his personal mantra – for the public good.
When ventilators were initially in short supply in spring of 2020, Estill joined with a group of businesses who pivoted to making parts for ventilators and then assemble them. Together they made 10,000 ventilators.
When the early vaccines arrived and needed medical freezers, Danby began exploring how to do that. Fridges and freezers are the company’s bread and butter after all, and it already produced a line of medical-grade refrigerators.
“It didn’t go far at all,” Estill said. “It turned out there wasn’t a demand.”
The surprising turn for Estill was when the demand for freezers, bar fridges and wine coolers suddenly increased.
With people living and working from home and restaurants closed, the home cook needed a place to store all that home cooking.
“I was worried I’d have to lay off employees, but it turns out the pandemic was good for fridges and freezers and bar fridge sales,” he said.
Like everyone, Danby also had to figure out how ‘work from home’ could work.
Estill said he prefers to see people in person but that video, Zoom and Teams meetings will likely continue, even as the pandemic begins to subside.
“I had to adapt, like everyone, living in a virtual world. The world has learned we don’t need to travel as much. Video calls have increased efficiency but it’s not the same,” he said.
“And it’s shocking to meet people now (after only meeting virtually) and realize how tall they actually are.”
Estill has made a name for himself as a philanthropist and that passion has not gone away.
He was instrumental in bringing Syrian refugees to Guelph and continues to try and bring refugees from Afghanistan and now the Ukraine to the community as well.
“I didn’t intend to be the refugee poster child,” he joked. “There just wasn’t a process in place for this kind of work. Now there is and I continue to do it, sadly, because it’s needed.”
Estill became a member of the Order of Canada in 2019 in recognition.
Looking to the future, Estill said he can’t predict the post-pandemic world. He doesn’t know how the company will have to adapt, or what the humanitarian needs will be.
“I’m nervous about everything,” he said.
“I can’t see where the world is going.”
