Chamber names Outstanding Small Business: Triangle's integrity recognized

Mercer Business, Mar 01, 2004 by Lamberg, Erica

Joseph P. Teti, Jr. starts his days at Triangle in Lawrenceville, often the same way - by walking around the office trying to get a glimpse of company operations. "I do my usual loop around to see what's going on," he said. "You have to show yourself if you want to know what's going on," Teti considers himself a fair and approachable boss. "We have a relaxed culture here but there are top standards our employees have to adhere to," Teti said. "I tell people that they are at work more than they are at home, so they have to be comfortable. I try to make Triangle a comfortable place to be."

As chief executive officer of Triangle, Teti heads up five company operated locations and oversees business operations of 11 franchise Triangle locations. Triangle provides printing, digital imaging, and a myriad of other business services. Day-to-day, Teti often makes policy decisions for the company. "I oversee marketing strategy, make monetary decisions, identify areas for new franchises, and identify new goods and services that we should add," he said. "I also supervise a management team."

When Teti was officially notified that his company was selected as the Greater Mercer County Chamber of Commerce's Outstanding Small Business of the Year, he said the honor was a complete surprise. "I didn't even know I was nominated," Teti said. "Through the years, I've regularly attended the Chamber's award event and didn't really think that we would be honored. It's certainly a great honor to be celebrated among my peers." He also stated that to be singled-out as the Outstanding Small Business of the Year is an honor that is personally rewarding. "To be singled-out is an affirmation that other business recognize our hard work and commitment in our community and that we are trying to be a role model to others," Teti added.

Triangle was nominated to be the Outstanding Small Business by Jeff Perlman of Borden Perlman, an insurance firm in Lawrenceville. "Joe has been a great mentor to me and when I think of him, the adjectives I would use are dedication, integrity and focus," said Perlman. "He has a great ability to mix his family and work life and take care of both of them equally well. Triangle is a locally-owned company dedicated to our local community."

This year, Triangle is marking its 65th anniversary. "The key to our success has been our ability to adapt to the changing times and the changing needs of our loyal customers," Teti said. Triangle was founded in 1939, in Trenton by Teti's late father, Joseph L. Teti as the successor company to J. Hamar and Co. Teti Sr. was an employee of Josiah Harmar, and Harmar founded his company in 1922. The J. Harmar and Co./Triangle specialized in making reproductions of the era, namely: blueprints and photostats. The firm also supplied engineers and architects with paper, pencils, and supplies for their drawings. From 1939 to 1969, Triangle was located in Trenton.

Over the years, the company grew modestly. In 1952, Teti Sr.'s daughter Kathleen entered the business to assist her father. She continued in a full-time capacity until her marriage in 1959 and the subsequent birth of her three daughters. Kathleen Teti Mule continued as a part-time employee handling the financial end of the business. Upon the death of her father in 1981, she assumed the role of secretary and treasurer, a position she still holds. Mule's daughter, Carolyn Mule Roth has also worked for the family business since 1987, now in the capacity of corporate account executive. Teti entered the family business upon graduation from Rider University in 1965.

At that time, his focus was the supply and merchandise component of the business. "I remember my father mentoring me from the beginning," said Teti. When describing his relationship with his own children in the family business, Teti describes his son, John Paul as his "right hand man" - his formal title is: assistant to the president, Daughter Gianine, the 2002 Miss Rhode Island, has just recently entered the business as a customer service representative. Teti's son Len has chosen a different path - a '99 graduate of Princeton University, he is now a second year law student at the University of Virginia.

In 1969, Teti convinced his father to expand the engineering and art supply business by opening a large retail store on Route 1 in Lawrence Township. Triangle Art Center was born has grown and has prospered ever since. In 1972, the opportunity came to enter the downtown Princeton Market. There existed in Princeton, since 1961 , a small copy shop that offered Xerox copies and blueprint - Princeton Photo Process. The opportunity came for Triangle to acquire this business. It became increasingly difficult to operate the downtown Princeton location because of antiquated facilities, lack of parking, and a customer base that was shifting to suburbia. Triangle sought a location in the greater Princeton vicinity to handle the expected growth. In 1980, Triangle was able to move the store from the downtown Princeton location to the Route 1 Corridor.