Happy 20th Anniversary to Steve Snower!

The Truth About Steve Snower

We have a secret to share with you, but you have to promise not to tell anyone. Do you promise? OK. Here it is: Steve Snower is celebrating his 20^th anniversary with Parts Town! He doesn’t like us to shout about it, so let’s keep the news between us. There may or may not be cake later.

Steve joined the ranks of Parts Town 20 years ago when there were only five employees, The Original 5. For that reason, we call him The Sixth Man or just… Steve. Now, Parts Town boasts over 5,000 team members around the world! How did he do that?

If you know Steve, you know that he is a champion of deep partnerships with manufacturers and employees. He’s all about growth and innovation. Using his MBA from Kellogg/Northwestern University, he planned, taught and inspired those around him to think big.

One of the first things Steve did was to establish our company culture with our Core Values: Integrity, Passion, Courage and Innovation. Safety and Community would be added later. It was important to Steve that Parts Town conduct business the right way, treating all aspects of the business with respect and care. Those Core Values are still the foundation of the business 20 years later, guiding the actions of every Townsperson in all of our distribution centers and offices.

In 2004, the industry mostly relied on catalogs for finding and buying foodservice equipment parts. That made for the perfect opportunity for Parts Town to lead the charge into the digital world. In 2007, the industry’s first ecommerce website, partstown.com became a reality. Through years of feedback from customers and partners, innovative tools were added to make customers’ jobs easier, including Smart Manuals, interactive diagrams, Serial Number Lookup, PartSPIN^® and Parts In Town, to name a few. 2007 also heralded the start of master distribution partnerships. We have over 240 of those strong partnerships today.

Being the face of Parts Town isn’t always easy. Appearing in many internal and external company videos, Steve has been working on his acting chops for several years. The Marketing Team has had a lot of fun making Steve say crazy things amongst the important facts to entertain the Townspeople. Most recently, Steve dressed as Marty McFly for our Back to the Future return to office video series. There was talk of an Oscar nomination, but we think Steve should keep his day job for now.

Although Steve could beat all of us in a soccer game with his hands behind his back, his greatest love is his family. He and his wife Jocelyn have four children and have fostered several children too. Tapping into his love of sports, he and Jocelyn started a not-for-profit organization with a mission to help children with special needs participate in athletic activities. In Steve’s spare time, he has also completed Ironman distance triathlons and several marathons. So, maybe don’t challenge him to a race.

Under Steve’s leadership, Parts Town has made the Inc. 5000 List for Fast Growing Companies 15 years in a row and a Top Workplace by the Chicago Tribune for four years. That’s quite an achievement.

Please help us congratulate Steve on his Parts Town anniversary. He likes singing telegrams and very large trophies. On behalf of the entire Town, near and far, this anonymous writer thanks Steve for all of his accomplishments that have inspired and encouraged us all. Let’s see what you can do with another 20 years! No, no, we insist.