R. J. Marchand & Company; Hurricane Katrina Recovery

The Washington Post has run two articles on Small Businesses trying to recover from Hurricane Katrina and looters in the New Orleans Area. Here are two stories WP ran on Frank Sibley, a long time family friend and owner of R. J. Marchand's Contractor Specialties Inc. The company was started by my father in 1958 as R. J. Marchand & Company. We are praying for the recovery of people and businesses in the New Orleans and Gulf Coast areas. It's going to be a long haul to get back to home and work for all these people.

A bit of history, before Hurricane Katrina...
In 1958, R. J. Marchand & Company started business at 315 Magazine Street in downtown New Orleans, across from the Board of Trade Annex, serving the Construction Industry. At that time, the organization consisted of three office personnel, two salesmen, one truck, and 10,000 square feet of warehouse space with less than 100 items in inventory.
A building was purchased in 1960 and the company moved to its new location at 3515 Division Street in Metairie. Rivers J. Marchand retired in 1993 selling the company to his Vice Presidents, Frank Sibley and Leo Liccardi. The new owners divided the company into two separate companies, thus forming R.J. Marchand Contractor Specialties and Marchand Interior Specialties.
R.J. Marchand Contractor Specialties employs twenty-two people, operates a fleet of five trucks, maintains over 20,000 square feet of office and warehouse space with over 20,000 items in inventory. Their Sales Organization is highly skilled and factory trained, offering fast and efficient service to their customers.

Here's their story of recovery after Hurricane Katrina as outlined in articles by the Washington Post.....

Anxious to Get Back to Work
By Dana Hedgpeth 9/12/05

METAIRIE, La. -- Craig Boes walked into a hardware store, approached the owner and confessed. A few days before, he had come through a broken window and swiped a crowbar.
To view the entire article, go to Anxious To Get Back To Work

Selling The Tools At Hand
By Dana Hedgpeth 9/28/05

METAIRIE, La. -- Greg Sibley rummaged through a cardboard box in the hardware store he runs with his father 10 miles outside of downtown New Orleans, looking for 2,000 metal screws.
To view the entire article, go to Selling The Tools At Hand

Marchand Website