Most family shops don't get a clean handoff. Somebody gets sick, the calendar moves faster than the plan, and one person has to decide whether to step in or let the doors close. That's the story Christy Subia lived at Bedard Machine, and it's why I wanted her on the show.
Bedard is a 95% aerospace shop in Brea, California with 23 people and 17 machines. And four years ago it was almost none of what it is now. Christy came in from outside the industry while her dad's Alzheimer's was quietly pulling him away from the business he started in 1979. Her mom was ready to shut it down. Christy decided to find out if she could run it instead.
What she's done since is the part every owner should hear. She nearly doubled revenue, not by chasing new customers, but by chasing bottlenecks. She cut a 12-week office lead time down to four, moved people into the roles they were actually built for, and turned a careful guy in shipping into the shop's first full-time inspector. She says it plainly: solve one bottleneck and it just moves to the next department, so you keep chasing it.
We also get into the human side, which is harder than any tolerance. Working shoulder to shoulder with her mom. Earning her place as a woman on the floor. A notice of escape three weeks into the job that grounded planes, reminding her that she loves solving problems. And the advice she'd give anyone staring down a family transition: trust your gut, stay vulnerable, and lean on the experts who want to help you.
This is the kind of conversation that reminds me why this industry is full of the finest people you'll meet. Christy's only four years in, and she's already sharper than folks who've been at it for decades. Grab a notepad for this one.
