In 1993, after years of serving as a Finance Business Manager for major boat dealerships, Tom founded Excel Credit specialty financing. He saw a need for a service that could provide highly competitive, direct to the consumer, recreational loan service. As well as providing a valuable service to dealers who could not afford the high cost of operation of an in house finance department. Excel Credit has been an active member of the National Marine Bankers Association since 1994 and Family Motor Coach Association since 2004.
Tom's financial background stretches back to his beginning in the Life Insurance business in 1972. Tom made his conversion to the auto lending industry in 1978 when he joined a large auto chain in the Midwest as a Business Manager.
"Ideas are a dime a dozen... but the man who puts them into practice is priceless!!!" - Joe Gandolfo
***We Finance Fun*** Have Some!!!
Where it began...
I got my start in the life insurance business in 1972 at the age of twenty. I was told by my then supervisor, Fletcher Bridges, and now my life long friend, "as long as you have your health, you have everything you need to succeed". I am sure at that time I thought he was just reciting one of many bits and pieces of motivating lines that I heard all during this time. Well some of what I learned at the very young and impressionable age stuck with me through out all these years and has been the foundation of my beliefs.
A lot of people that went through the same type of training I did, may have dismissed all this as just a lot of motivational junk. The difference for me was that I was young, naive and didn't know any better not to believe it. So I have tried to live my life by those lines ever since.
In the beginning, I did not know where I was going in life. All I knew was that I did not want to work in a warehouse throwing 80 lb bags of rock salt all day long. In the beginning, the thought of going back to that type of work is what was motivating to me!
I find myself reciting a lot of the great quotes that I learned, back to others still to this day. Some of my favorite's quotes are listed below:
If the mind of man can conceive and believe it... he can achieve it!!!
There are three types of people:
Ones that make things happen
Ones that watch things happen
Ones that wonder what happened???
Not all of my life has been filled with ups, I have had my downs, but I have always had the hope and desire to move forward. Thank's Fletch, for giving me those inspirational words of wisdom.
The most important things to me are God, family and friends. When you have this in your life you have it all. How one should measure success is by the people who stand by and with you though thick and thin. In all these things I am truly blessed.