Executive Team
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Steve Shaffer
Chief Executive Officer After college and a brief stint in the US Air Force, Steve entered the family business in 1964 as an inside sales assistant to longtime employee and mentor, Bernie Flynn. Within a couple of years he was assigned the outside territories of West Virginia, Kentucky and Southern Ohio for music and game sales. Soon after, Shaffer Distributing Company parted with the Seeburg Corporation and united with Rowe International, at which time Steve became the Corporate Sales VP of full line vending. In just three years, Shaffer Distributing Company became the largest distributor of full line vending equipment in the United States, receiving many awards for its achievement.
In 1974 Steve became a Vice President and branch manager of the Columbus, Ohio corporate office assuming the responsibilities of hiring a new management team and sales force of which some are still here today. In 1981, Steve's father Ed, owner and CEO of the Company passed away suddenly and the responsibility of running the company was left solely to Steve and the new management team recently put in place. In 1988, Steve felt a need for the Company to enter into the music and game operating business in a effort to better understand all facets of the industry. In doing so, a new Company was founded called Shaffer Services Inc., and today is recognized as one of the finest operating companies in the United States. Steve is on the board of the Ohio Wholesalers Association and has served on various industry boards throughout his forty-four years in the industry. |
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Bill Kraft
President
Bill Kraft joined Shaffer Distributing Company on February 1, 1975. Prior to being named Vice President of Sales and Marketing in 1981, Bill sold a full line of food and beverage equipment as well as amusement and music products. In April 1999, Bill became President of the Shaffer Distributing Company. He is currently responsible for market share expansion of all Shaffer products and services.
Bill has served on the board of directors of the Amusement and Music Operators Association and the Ohio Automatic Merchandising Association. He is also on the board of directors of the Central Ohio Chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the Upper Arlington Rotary and First Community Church.
Bill is a graduate of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio with a Bachelor’s Degree in General Business and a Master Degree in Business Administration.
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Paul Westbrock
Executive Vice President
Paul Westbrock is Executive Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer for Shaffer Distributing Company and its affiliate Shaffer Services, Inc. Paul also serves on the Board of Directors for both Shaffer Companies. He joined Shaffer Distributing in 1980 as Controller and was elected to his current position in 1981. He is responsible for all financial and administrative functions as well as liaison with corporate legal counsel. During his tenure, the Shaffer Companies have successfully undertaken six acquisitions.
Previously, Paul was Controller for a national restaurant chain. He holds Bachelor's Degrees in both Accounting and Business Administration. |
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Scott Shaffer
VP Sales & Marketing Scott Shaffer is Vice President of Marketing and Sales and has been with the company full time since 1993. He is responsible for overseeing all sales efforts of the organization and coordinating the salespeople and their duties. He has been actively involved in sales throughout the Midwest and has focused particular attention to exploring new opportunities in our industry.
As a fourth generation member of the family, Scott has grown up in the business and been involved with almost all aspects of the business at some point in his career. He graduated from Miami University in 1993 with a Bachelor's Degree in Public Relations and Marketing.
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Chuck Ropke
VP Operations After receiving a Technical Education in Electronics, Chuck started his career as a service technician with Ace Vending Company in Columbus, Ohio, whose parent company was the AAV Companies headquartered in Solon, Ohio. In 1989, Ace Vending's amusement and cigarette routes were purchased by the Shaffer family, the last of three local amusement route acquisitions which later became Shaffer Services, Inc., an affiliate of the Shaffer Distributing Company.
During his tenure at Shaffer Services, Chuck supervised in-house repair and equipment refurbishment, as well as managing the parts department. In November of 1997, Chuck joined the distribution side of the business as Service Manager and later Director of Corporate Services to manage the expansion of the service departments due to the subsequent acquisition of J&J Distributing in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 1999, Chuck took on the additional responsibilities for managing parts sales and was promoted to VP Corporate Services in 2001.
Today, Chuck manages day-to-day operations including service, parts, logistics and facilities management for the company's five offices located throughout the Midwest. |
