23
NOVEMBER 2014
ACT
INTERVIEW
Harry Fry
, whose
business celebrates
20 years in the crane
and lifting finance sector
in 2015, talks to
D.Ann Shiffler
about
how to survive in a
cyclical business.
I
n 1995,Harry Fry formally left the
corporateworldof finance and
struckout onhis own. Twenty years
later he is a leader in the realmof crane
and lifting equipment financing, known
for his industry knowledge and acumen
for financing and leasing equipment.
“I left the corporateworldbecause
wewere getting transferred every
couple of years or less, and I promised
my daughters once they got intohigh
school nomoremoving,” he said. “We
startedout onour own in January 1995
as an agent forMBCC/Debis (Daimler-
Benz Inter-Services).Wewere formally
incorporated inApril 1995.”
Prior to startingHarryFry&
Associates heworked as generalmanager
of executive operations forMercedes-
BenzCredit Corporation (MBCC) in
Norwalk, CT. Prior to that hemanaged
operations forMBCC, handling car
and truck financing for theNew
York/NewEngland territory.He
held several other positions for
MBCC inother regions and
states.
Striking out onhis ownhas
been a labor of love, and
over the past twodecades,
he haswitnessed a changing
market in the lifting industry
that includedbanner years
and really bad years.We
>24
A focus
on the
long term
caught upwithFry to talk about the
current state of the crane industry and
the strategyhe employed for growinghis
company.
WHENWERE THE BANNER YEARS FOR
CRANE SALES?
Our best yearswere 1995 through 1998
becausewewere the first tooffer up to
10-plus year financing.We recognized
cranes are a long-term asset andoffering
at least a term equal to about one-third
toone-fourthof their expecteduseful life
made sense.
ANDWHAT ABOUT THE DOWN YEARS?
The 2008 economic collapsewas the
hardest time I have everwitnessed.
Typically in an economic or catastrophic
event, six toninemonths later business
shows some signs of life. Evenway
backwhen the 1979-80 economic
collapse happened, therewereways to
move forward. In every prior economic
situation, at the very least, businesses
could get loans. Theymayhave been
expensive butmoneywas available.
Between 2008 and 2012moneywas
extremely tight, inmy opinion, due to
regulations andbanks uncertainof the
effect of regulations on their capital
requirement. To this day credit is not
easier, butmost companies’ financial
results have improved.
Basically, customers knowwhere to find us,
andwe do not disappear from themarket when
things are bad and reappear when
things are good.
HARRY FRY
Harry Fry & Associates
Harry Fry said the reason for his
company’s success in financing cranes
is focusing on long-term financing and
long-term relationships.
