The father-son leadership team of New Jersey-based MRO and industrial distributor A&M Industrial sit down in the latest episode of the MDM Podcast to explore how this third-generation family business balances tradition with transformation.

A&M President David Young and COO Josh Young sit down with MDM Senior Editor Vesna Brajkovic to talk succession planning, family business dynamics, leadership collaboration and expanding into automation.

In the Store: MDM’s Family-Owned Business Report (free for Premium) 

Founded in 1954 as a small hardware store in Newark, A&M has evolved into a distributor with a robust in Northeast presence. Recently named a Family-Owned Business of the Year by NJBIZ, their story offers valuable insights for distribution leaders navigating values and tradition with and transformational growth.

Wall Street to Warehouse – Twice

David and Josh share more in common than being business partners and family — they also had parallel career path back to distribution. Like his father before him, Josh Young left a promising career on Wall Street to join the family business. Find out what brought them back, and what keeps them engaged.

“I grew up working at A&M from a young age, but it was really important to me to do my own thing first,” Josh said. “A&M presented an opportunity for me to get more holistic with my view across business.”

On MDM Premium — Survey: Most Family-Owned Distributors Maintain Confidence in Succession Plans (January 2025)

For David, having the next generation join the company has been transformative: “I never appreciated from my dad’s perspective how wonderful it is to have that next generation come into the business until my son did four years ago.”

Innovation Built on Core Values

A&M prides itself on its crisis response efforts, notably through 9/11 to Superstorm Sandy to the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the episode, David shares a story of how the company came to the aid of local hospitals when the region became the pandemic’s epicenter, and shares how the company’s commitment to community extends through the Monica K. Young Foundation, raising over $235,000 to date in support of ovarian cancer treatment, research and support services.

While maintaining these core values, A&M continues to innovate. In 2022, they launched an automation division focusing on robotics and manufacturing technology solutions – an initiative that has expanded their reach nationwide. The pair share how the division is fairing.

Related: How Family-Owned Distributors Approach Business Conflict Resolution (MDM Premium, January 2025)

“If you’re not investing in technology and innovation, you’re going to become stagnant,” David warned. “The market, our customers, our suppliers are changing all around us.”

The Next Chapter

A&M has plans to build a new 90,000-square-foot headquarters and distribution center in 2026. The project represents the company’s commitment to staying ahead of industry changes. Josh Young shares the company’s plans and vision for the expansion.

“This gives us an opportunity to keep up with the ever-changing demand in the industrial distribution space and outfit the organization with a state-of-the-art facility,” Josh explained.

The company is also actively pursuing acquisitions – a strategy Josh sees as particularly promising given industry fragmentation and succession challenges across distribution.

For other distributors navigating similar transformations, David offers this advice: “Having that perspective and being willing to make those investments is important, but you don’t want to rattle people. The bridge is really in communicating.”

Listen to full conversation via the audio player above. And, you can find all of our past episodes here.