The Family Business: Old World Meats

DULUTH, Minn. - When you walk into Old World Meats you can't ignore the history on the walls or in the employees."Less than a half percent of businesses have a three generation business," said owner, Paul Wrazidlo, whose business has five. His family history goes back nearly 90 years when his grandfather was a butcher."He came over from Germany in 1928 before the war and started working in Chicago as a butcher," he said.Twenty-three years later, Frank's Meats was born in Duluth which would later become Wrazidlo's Old World Meats in 1994."Getting into it, there was no way I was going to fail because I knew what I wanted to be. There's no question this is what I'm going to do and nobody could stop me," said Wrazidlo.He built his business with his family by his side every step of the way."Companies that I've dealt with, they say, 'Paul, we know you, you buy your equipment from us and we really like you, but we think your daughter is going to take your business up to the next level, no offense,'" he laughed.Nicole Wrazidlo has been working with her dad since she was six."I started off standing on milk crates to see over the till. I was great at math when I was in elementary school. So, I'd type in the numbers and everyone would get so nervous. They'd double check and add in their minds, but it added up," she said.Nicole is the first to go to college in her family and is studying marketing at UMD.But she was born with small business in her blood."There's so many lifelong skills that I've learned growing up around my parents with all their knowledge of business and whatnot. And I think my sister and I were born with that drive and desire," she said.Nicole has taken the lead on her dad's newest creation, the beef stick."My parents always joked that you could tell from a young age I could sell ice to an eskimo and knew that I wanted to be in business someday," she said.Down the road, Paul hopes to keep Old World Meats within the family."In 10 years I'd like to be in a position where I could hand it over and be able to retire, but I have a feeling that I'll be around it," he said."I honestly don't think my dad will ever retire. He'll be in here when he's in a wheelchair and barely able to talk," said Nicole.Either way, the roots of the business came straight from the Wrazidlo's and will be there for generations to come.