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 The
McCall Heritage
Times Have Changed, But NOT the Commitment to Quality and Prices
Excerpted from an article written for D.T. McCall & Sons Inc.'s Centennial Celebration in 1996
1996 was D.T. McCall & Sons 100th anniversary D.T. McCall & Sons. The family business began in 1896 in Flat Rock, Tennessee (just inside the eastern border of Wilson County) selling groceries, horse collars, and wood stoves. D.T. McCall had early established himself as a premier salesman, having begun his own small business using his "peddling wagon" to go house-to-house, buying and selling produce and other goods throughout Smith County. He accepted sales jobs with grain and feed companies until the late 1930s, when he bought a corner lot on the town square in Carthage and began selling electrical appliances.
In the late 1950s, his son Albert McCall entered Cookeville's Tennessee Tech. He then joined the National Guard and attended Iowa State University, where he met his wife, Virginia Doran. He also attended the University of Missouri and earned his Bachelor of Science and master's Degrees in Biochemistry/Agriculture.
During the Korean War Albert's Officers Reserve was called and he spent two years overseas, returning as a disabled veteran. He and his wife spent the summer of 1955 traveling Europe, and there made the decision to go home to Tennessee and buy into his father's appliance/plumbing business.
Albert looked for opportunities at every turn. He bought and sold 1,000 new milk coolers to local dairy farmers, found 500 commercial-size electric ranges (surplus from the Korean war) and sold them to schools in Middle Tennessee. Soon furniture and a wide range of household appliances, including televisions, were added to the inventory. He even found a warehouse full of furniture in Houston (from a cancelled order of kitchen appliances, living room suites, and dehumidifiers) originally destined for condos in Saudi Arabia. Again he passed on the savings of "buying bulk" to the people of Middle Tennessee.
"We built our business doing things different from anyone else," Albert says proudly. "We sometimes offer merchandise to the public at way below normal dealer costs," states Albert. "And I have received unprecedented customer loyalty in return." He never advertises "x-amount percent off" anything. "What amount are other stores talking about when they offer a certain percent off?" Albert asks rhetorically. "What are they using as their base price? I'll sell you a product and tell you what the price is, period. We offer good products at good prices. And of course, you get free delivery, set-ups, and appliance hook-ups. Any hoses or cords needed to operate the product are free, too, because without them, how could you use the item?"
For 20 years, Albert McCall was a staple of "The Ralph Emery Show," airing in the early weekday morning hours on WSMV-TV Channel 4. Between 5 and 6 a.m., the show captured 80% of the viewing audience and Albert made quite an impression on Emery's show. D.T. McCall & Sons is still part of Channel 4's "The Morning Show" (hosted by Sharon Puckett), but Albert now lets other partners — John, Tom and Cris McCall — represent the company.
Albert's not ready to retire any time soon. "In the long run, we're building this company for my four grandchildren and the rest of the family," Albert says wistfully. "But my son, Albert, the company lawyer, is 'heir apparent' to the business." Albert McCall II is not only a Vanderbilt educated lawyer, but also has an engineering degree with a minor in Russian and speaks the language fluently, plus pitch-hits as an appliance repairman when needed.
Good "old-fashioned customer service, gleaned from his grandparents and parents have kept over a century's worth of customers coming back, not to mention quality appliances and furniture at reasonable prices!
"If I have achieved any success, it has to be laid squarely on the steps of my mother and father who taught me the difference between right and wrong," Albert says in closing. "And to my wonderful wife who has been a shelter in the storms; to my partners John, Dave, Cris, Tom, and Albert II who put up with me; and to 150 of the most loyal and dedicated employees in the entire free world."
Go to full 100th Anniversary Article
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