NFIB

Gene Faulkner Stays Busy in Dothan
09/16/2002

"I've been in every kind of business you can name over the years," says Gene Faulkner, owner of Faulkner Construction in Dothan, Alabama. "I was in banking, I've had some real estate doings, I had a sand pit and sold sand and clay, you name it. Even in high school I did everything a boy would do -- delivering papers, mowing yards with the old reel mowers that didn't have motors -- I've just always enjoyed business."

Faulkner enjoys business so much he's often juggled two or three careers at once. Before starting Faulkner Construction, he was a banker, but not for just one bank. "At one point I was chairman and president of two banks at the same time, plus I was doing construction," explains Faulkner. "I would spend Monday, Wednesday and Friday at one bank, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday morning at the other, and Saturday and Sunday afternoon with my construction people."

Oh, and the banks were in different towns. Bank Number One was in Andalusia, Ala., (72 miles away) and Bank Number Two was in Prattville, 15 miles north of Montgomery. "It was a lot of fun -- I'm serious," says Faulkner, for whom the key to happiness seems to be staying as busy as humanly possible. All that commuting ended in 1993, and since then Faulkner has focused his efforts primarily on Faulkner Construction, a general contractor that handles the full spectrum of commercial construction. Clients include shopping centers, industrial plants, public buildings, schools and courthouses.

Faulkner's location has proved advantageous in reaching those clients. "We're 18 miles from the Georgia line and 14 miles to the Florida line," says Faulkner. "It makes it easy for us operate in all three states."

In addition to his myriad business ventures, Faulkner has always found time for NFIB. "NFIB has always excited me because of the impact all those members can have on government and politicians," he says.

For Faulkner, NFIB is about getting exposure for important small-business viewpoints, not the least of which is his own. "I've got an opinion on everything," he admits. "There's no place where I straddle the fence. And of course, the media likes that. That's the reason I'm not a politician. You can't tell the truth all the time and be a politician."

Quick Facts:
Name: Gene Faulkner
Business: Faulkner Construction Co.
Location: Dothan, Ala.
Founded: 1968
Number of employees: 30-35

What led you to start Faulkner Construction?
I could never be in just one business at a time.

When (and why) did you join NFIB?
I don't even remember how many years ago I joined NFIB or joined the Leadership Council. And I've been PAC chairman for NFIB's state PAC in Alabama as long as they've had a PAC.

Although we don't have as much money in the Alabama SAFE Trust that a lot of the PACs have, it's been exciting to watch all of the politicians try to connect is much more valuable than money to them.

Which legislative issues top your list currently?
We're always fighting anything that hurts business, of course -- unreasonable business taxes, business licenses, etc. And there's never a time when there's not tort reform. Alabama's been the most liberal, in terms of punitive damages, of any state. We have improved on it immensely, but we still have too many frivolous lawsuits that have to be defended, have to be responded to. Even if you win, you still have to spend a lot of money. So when small businesses make decisions, instead of saying, what does the market say we do in this situation, and what does the competition say we do, we have to ask, what's going to be our liability?

What do you list best about being a small business owner?
People have asked me this same sort of thing before, and I always tell them I never had a job I didn't like. I liked some better than others, but I've liked them all. I enjoy doing business. And I enjoy being a small business owner because you're so much closer to your customers than a big business could ever be.