Dubroff: The Business Times, 25, and MB&T, 50, share a unique birthday
We’re celebrating our 25th anniversary this week and it happens to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Montecito Bank & Trust, also founded on March 17, St. Patrick’s Day.
Both companies are privately held and independent, so I thought that rather than focus just on The Business Times, I’d invite Janet Garufis, Chair and CEO of Montecito Bank & Trust to talk about the changing landscape for business and banking on the Central Coast.
Montecito is the largest bank based in the region by a long shot. It was founded by the late Mike Towbes, a member of our Hall of Fame and a mentor to both Janet and me. He passed away in 2017 at 87.
We both agreed that it’s much harder to start a business on the Central Coast than it was 25 or 50 years ago.
That’s particularly true for Santa Barbara where, particularly in the downtown core, there are more rules, more permits, much higher labor costs and a stagnant business climate.
“It takes too long for a business to get open and too long for a business to become profitable,” she said. “That’s why State Street looks the way it does.”
She thinks it will take more public-private partnerships, including a newly formed improvement district to begin to turn things around. Having a vibrant small business economy is essential and she noted that small business remains the engine of the economy in Santa Barbara and cities across the region.
When it comes to banking, one thing that has changed is the level of regulation. But she said, “Regulation is there for a good reason,” to protect depositors, to protect the secrecy of customers and to curb illegal money laundering.
The high cost of technology creates a new set of barriers to starting a de novo bank.
When it was launched in 1975, Montecito was one of 15 to 20 local banks between San Luis Obispo and Simi Valley.
Now there are just three, and that loss of a home-town bank culture hurts. The region lost one of those hometown bankers, Jim Glines, co-founder of Community Bank of Santa Maria, when he passed away last month. The bank will soldier on in the capable hands of Janet Silveria, but the loss is a big one.
Garufis said that being an independent, privately owned bank means “taking care of friends and neighbors,” and not looking at the bank as an investment vehicle that could be flipped for a profit.
Towbes’ values included “doing the right thing, even when nobody’s looking” and making decisions based on what it would mean “100 years from now.”
In the 21st Century, the workplace has changed a lot, said Garufis, who has four decades of bank experience dating back to Security Pacific.
She’s not a fan of Chase CEO Jamie Dimon’s return to office mandates because she’s seen productivity gains and family values reinforced by a hybrid schedule.
She’s also keenly aware that, as in journalism, the career ladders in banking have been disrupted so growing your owntalent has become essential. The bank likes to “hire for fit,” looking for a unique mix of personality and skills.
She places a high value on mentoring and she’s learned that many veteran employees would love to take 30 minutes a month to chat with a subordinate. Sometimes, younger employees have to be encouraged to seek out mentors, she said.
The Business Times has to be very nimble to keep up with the changing technology in publishing and we have trouble staying current.
With a nod to both the regulators and the banking giants who run massive digital platforms, Garufis said that Montecito has no choice but to keep up.
“You just swallow hard and make the commitment,” she said. With major upgrades costing “seven figures,” she said, “that’s like a budget for a branch.”
Towbes was a pretty low-key guy. But he read every word of the Business Times and occasionally would call me to point out a typo.
“Onward and upward” was his motto and, as Garufis put it, that meant acknowledging mistakes and quickly moving on to the next opportunity.
Whether you are celebrating 25 years or 50, it’s the next opportunity that keeps you going.
Henry Dubroff is the founder, owner and editor of the Pacific Coast Business Times. He can be reached at [email protected].
