One advantage of owning a business: deciding benefits for employees. Larry DiSabatino, head of DiSabatino Construction Co. in Wilmington, jokes that for the few years he employed his father, Anthony DiSabatino enjoyed one of the best time-off plans available: one hour of vacation a day, one day of vacation a week, one week of vacation a month and one month of vacation a year.
It sounds like he’d earned it.
“I was thrilled to have him here,” Larry DiSabatino says. “He was a pillar of the construction community. He was very knowledgeable, a real mentor to me and many others.”
Larry’s father and uncles employed him and one of his brothers for a few years after he finished college. The elder DiSabatinos were grandsons of the locally famous Ernesto, who founded DiSabatino Construction, now known as EDiS, in 1907. By 1946, so many DiSabatino men had followed in the company that “we couldn’t add another ‘& Sons’ to ‘& Sons,’” Larry says. So his father and uncles started DiSabatino & Raniere Construction Co. As the founders neared retirement age, transition issues emerged. Larry, the only member of his generation to stay in construction, started his own company in 1981. Both companies operated concurrently until Larry’s uncle retired. Even one of the Raniere cousins worked for him for a time.
Larry, 57, has managed more than $500 million in building projects since he started working. His DiSabatino Construction Co. has built public buildings, bridges and homes for major corporations, the state and private owners. That has enabled the company to grow to include DiSabatino Maintenance Corp., DiSabatino Homes and several development entities.
All together, the company employs more than 300 people, including Larry’s three sons. Michael, 31, is the business and human resources manager. Jeffrey, 29, works on the construction side. Kevin, 27, works in real estate and business development.
“Fortunately for us, we’re a diversified company,” Larry says. “They have diverse interests, so it matches up well. We work well together, and we’re a very close family. Literally, we see each other every day.”
They are currently trying to define the legal form of a succession plan in a way that keeps family interests and business concerns separate. “The family issues are the most important ones,” Larry says. “We can’t let business interfere with family, so we maintain an open dialog.”
“I told my sons, this is my dream. I’ve enjoyed this business and working for my dad. They need to follow their own dreams, not do this out of some obligation to me. But I think they see it as an opportunity to continue a family legacy. For me, it’s a privilege to work with another generation. They really are good people.”
It looks like DiSabatino Construction might soon resemble the giant EDiS. Larry has three cousins there, each with two sons in the business—a total of nine DiSabatinos. After five generations, there are so many family members in the construction industry that last fall they had to throw a big dinner to get to know each other a bit better.
“It was a really fun evening,” Larry says. “We’re still friendly competitors, but we remain cousins first of all.”
