CRAIG PICKELL, CEO and president of Lincoln-based abrasive manufacturer and supplier Bullard Abrasives Inc., was named the 2023 Rhode Island Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Rhode Island district. Pickell was recognized along with 12 other small businesses and advocates at the annual Rhode Island Salute to Small Business Awards Luncheon on May 3 at Quidnessett Country Club in North Kingstown. Pickell has been among the top executives at Bullard since 2001.
What does being named the SBA’s Small Business Person of the Year mean to you? I’m still mentally processing the reality of receiving this incredible award. The mentors throughout my career set the gold standard for complimenting and praising others while remaining humble about their own accomplishments. With this example to follow, I find time every day to interact with our team and pay tribute to the contributions they make to our success. I have often wondered how these small gestures resonate within each of them; and if it is similar to how I felt after learning of this award, it feels awesome.
What initially attracted you to having manufacturing as a career choice? I always had an interest in how things work and how they are made. I found a position posting at my college career center seeking an assistant to the president for a sandpaper company in Virginia, went for the interview and plant tour, and from that moment on, I was hooked. Years later, I attempted to buy that company.
In what ways did you offer support to the small-business community at large in the past year? And what kind of an impact did that support have? I proudly serve on the board and several working groups of the Rhode Island Manufacturers Association, and through this connection have access to the voices of members and nonmembers in need of assistance. [The association] and the services offered helped keep manufacturing in Rhode Island operational during the [COVID-19] pandemic.
What, if any, new initiatives are on the horizon at Bullard Abrasives in the coming weeks and months? In addition to the customary segments of focus for any company, Bullard is working on how to align ourselves to be efficient in the ever-changing world of energy supply. The stakes are high for large consumers of electricity and natural gas, so we have a big stake in what is done locally and nationally to keep energy costs competitive and supply matched to demand.
