Finding the right tool
Uni-Screw product opening doors for fastener firm
Fred Tannenbaum
Staff writer

Renee Johnson Breazeale has learned that specializing is the nuts and bolts of success.

After seeing manufacturers clamor for hard-to-get, stainless-steel screws and other hardware, Breazeale left her sales job at Southeastern Bolt & Screw in 1988 and launched Victory Bolt & Specialty to sell those products.

Rivals soon emerged, prompting Breazeale to seek innovative ideas so her business would stand out from those competitors.


New venture: Renee Johnson Breazeale expanded her business after a solid start with Victory Bolt & Specialty.
 

photo Sean Busher
"I looked for new opportunities and ways I could differentiate ourselves from other distributors," Breazeale says. "When I found Uni-Screw, I thought that was the way to do it."

Uni-Screw fasteners have a three-layer hexagonal head. The driver, attached to a handle or drill, snaps snugly onto the screw and won't slip out. For companies that use screws by the thousands, such as boat builders or contractors, that saves substantial time and money.

In 2004, Victory Bolt bought a license to sell Uni-Screw products, and they quickly became popular with the Monroe company's customers. Breazeale saw the chance to provide a product that was unique and could help manufacturers boost production and cut costs.

And she quickly built on that initiative, buying the worldwide licensing rights to the Uni-Screw product in May 2005 -- essentially buying the brand. Breazeale declines to disclose how much she paid, but she financed the deal by using her equity in Victory Bolt, along with real estate-based financing and a bank loan.

She then crafted a plan to develop a network of suppliers that could sell the products directly to users or smaller distributors. As part of her purchase of the worldwide licensing rights, Breazeale made several trips to Taiwan, where Uni-Screw products are manufactured, to improve them.

To woo customers, her 35-employee company has conducted demonstrations at manufacturing sites throughout the state, including Thomas Built Buses in Thomasville, and boat makers Sea Ray and MasterCraft in eastern North Carolina. Plans also are afoot to sell Uni-Screw at hardware stores and eventually at big-box home-improvement retailers.

"My goal is to take over 5% of the fastener industry," Breazeale says, acknowledging Uni-Screw has only a fraction of that targeted amount. "If we achieve that, we'll be huge."

Longtime Victory Bolt client Matthews-based McGee Corp., which manufactures service-station canopies and fascia-board and wall coverings for office buildings, is among Breazeale's customers that are shifting to Uni-Screw products.

Breazeale "does a lot of behind-the-scenes work that makes my job easier," says Tommy Elks, McGee purchasing manager.

QUICKINFO

Uni-Screw/Victory Bolt & Specialty

Business: Manufacturers, licenses and distributes industrial fasteners

Founded: 1988 (Victory Bolt) and 2005 (Uni-Screw)

HQ: 5109 Highway 74 West, Monroe, 28110

Principal: Renee Johnson Breazeale

Employees: 35