Meet Our New Partnership Chair, Randy Resnick

COO: Resnick Energy, The Sullivan Events Center, Rez-Wear Facemasks

President: Penguin Energy, RezBear Propane, Liberty Market, Bernie’s Holiday Restaurant, BHR Caterers

Q. How long have you lived in Sullivan County? A. “I was born and raised in Sullivan County.”

Q. We know that you are involved with many businesses - how do you manage them all right now? A. “Right now, I’m running 8 businesses. I don’t sleep. I get up early and I go to work, and I go home and I go to sleep. It’s a tight balance, but the key for me is having really good people in each location.”

Q. Which one of your businesses are you most focused on today? A. “Definitely my energy businesses. I have the restaurants, obviously which are being affected by the pandemic. The catering business has been eliminated by the pandemic, the supermarket business has leveled out, but the energy businesses remain strong as they are kind of recession proof. You need the product that we sell. The Northeast uses more heating oil than any other region in the world so we’re supplying that, but I also do a lot of commercial and government accounts as well.”

Q. How long have you been affiliated with the Sullivan County Partnership and what made you initially want to get involved? A. “I’ve been a member of the Partnership for 10 years and have always admired the Partnership board. I’ve been in business in Sullivan County pretty much my whole life but there was a time where I used to see all these people on the board and they were all business people that I looked up to and admired. I never really imagined myself in a board setting; I’m more of a one-man show/dictator/operator than I am a committee person, but I think that that drew me to it - the fact that I wanted to be one of them at some point. I wanted to be at the top of the heap. Because it’s Sullivan County, I wanted to be a part of it and that’s why I joined and then years later I was invited to run for the board and have been here ever since.”

Q. What do you see as the primary role of the Partnership? A. “There’s no question that it’s probably the most important part for economic development. We are at the forefront. We’re the first line of defense for economic development in Sullivan County. We are the ones that introduce the area to people coming into the partnership; we are the ones that can hand-hold them through the approval process, make the phone calls, introduce them to the right people to do planning and construction. I think it’s an imperative part of economic development and that’s why I am still part of it because I really believe in the mission of the partnership.”

Q. How do you think the partnership has done throughout the pandemic? A. “I actually think the partnership has really stayed on track and on plan this entire year. Although we had to alter our approach to how we did things, overall, we have kept our interest focused. I believe that we have great staff inside the house that produces, and I would give them an A plus.”

Q. As the current chair, what areas of focus would you like the board of directors to prioritize during your term? A. I think going forward, I’d like to see us be a little bit stronger. We want to raise more capital individually and corporately. Overall, I think that we have good leadership. We need to be recognized as I don’t think people have the right information about what it is we do. People need to be more educated so that they have a clearer understanding, and not just guesswork from the misinformation which is provided to them now.”

Q. What do you see in the economic future for Sullivan County? A. “I think our future is bright. It’s been great that we’ve landed this economic development with Kartrite and the casino, but I also think that the partnership has really stayed focused on the other things that are going on. We still have very reasonable property; we still have local governments that want economic development and want growth; and I think we’re going to see a lot of that in the future. We’re just at the beginning of where we’re going to be. I think that we’re going to do really well over the next five years.”

Q. If you were to sit down with a new member of the partnership what advice would you give them to make the best use of their membership? A. “You definitely need to be visible. The partnership is a group of businesses that pays dues to belong to an organization of businesses. It is our responsibility to co-promote each other and that requires you showing up for the social events that we have whether they’re industry-related or new member related or entertainment related. It’s about networking. It’s about knowing who the other people are on the board and then helping each other - not just going and asking for help for yourself but also offering help to everybody else and as a team, as a unit, we’ll stand stronger than if we’re a bunch of individuals. That’s why it’s called a partnership.”

Meet Our New Partnership Chair, Randy Resnick