Marc Grimes Reflects on 25 Years at Lippert Components – RVBusiness – Breaking RV Industry News
Those who monitor LinkedIn may have noticed the recent milestone reached by Lippert Components Inc. (LCI) Senior Vice President of Operations and Customer Support Services Marc Grimes: His 25th anniversary with the Elkhart, Ind.-based component supplier and as an executive within the RV industry.
Curious about his perspective, RVBusiness spoke with Grimes, who was a leadership trainee in January of 2000 when he first joined Lippert, now a 70-year-old, publicly held, 13,000-employee firm with more than 100 locations in the U.S. and overseas in the RV, marine and other markets.
In his current position, Grimes oversees some manufacturing locations around the country, works with LCI’s dealer relations, OEM support, pricing, product development and “a little bit of everything.”
And that, from all indications, will remain the status quo for the foreseeable future for Grimes, a father of four who works at the company’s Elkhart headquarters and lives in nearby Nappanee with his family including spouse and fellow Lippert team member Michilah Grimes,
It’s worth noting that Michilah, who’s been with LCI herself for nearly 10 years and currently serves as LCI’s social impact strategist and corporate partnerships, is well known to a lot of industry people because of the central role she’s played in hosting LCI’s numerous charitable events including the annual Boys & Girls Club auction.
Suffice to say that Marc Grimes has seen a lot of changes over the years at Lippert – far more than he was able to summarize in a quick telephone interview.
“Wow. I mean, obviously one of the key takeaways over the years is the fact that we have built relationships with a lot of our manufacturing partners,” Grimes responded. “We’ve cultivated a variety of different product lines. And as we’ve developed those relationships and grown the product lines, it’s just exponentially expanded our influence on the community and just everything that we do.
“It’s been an amazing ride,” he added. “There are always going to be challenges, but there are also incredible opportunities and the people that I’ve met, and the partnerships I’ve formed have been invaluable. I genuinely believe that the strength of our team is rooted in these connections, and it’s rewarding to see how our collective efforts have not only strengthened our company but also enhanced our community.”
That’s saying something after 25 years, isn’t it? “I think so,” Grimes confided. “I’ve raised a family here, and built a career I am proud of, have a wonderful wife, and we’re heavily involved in our communities, the schools and the nonprofits.”
And one of his chief takeaways at this point regarding LCI as a company looking down the road is to continue his long-term working relationship with LCI President & CEO Jason Lippert. “Yes,” noted Grimes, “he’s one of the reasons that I stay at Lippert and why I’ve stayed there as long as I have. His vision and leadership have been instrumental in guiding the company through various challenges. Working alongside him has not only shaped my career, but has reinforced my commitment to the company’s mission.”
“Yes,” Grimes continued, “I think that’s one thing about the RV industry is that it’s a family and that’s one of the things that makes it great. I’ve learned so much from my experiences and from the people around me. It’s not just achieving milestones; it’s about the journey and relationships that have been built along the way. I love seeing the success that everyone’s had and want to do everything I can to support it in the future. And that’s what gets me up every day.”
That’s even more the case in a charitable-minded company like LCI, maintained Grimes. “Business as a force for good is one of the things that, really, over the last decade we’ve tried to perpetuate in the industry — just what can we do to make our communities, our people and our relationships better. And it just travels down the line, people pay it forward. So that’s the exciting part.”
As for his 25th anniversary, Grimes said he’s been gratified by the response of his fellow workers. “After they posted something on LinkedIn, I was overwhelmed by the number of thank-you messages from team members, both current and former. It meant a lot to me, the relationships that I’ve built, that people I haven’t talked to in 10, 15 years reached out and said thank you for being a part of my journey at Lippert.”
