Snapshot

Wade Keats, Keats Manufacturing Co

Name: Wade Keats Nickname (if any): Vadle Company name and city: Keats Mfg. Co., Wheeling, Illinois. Brief history of your company: Keats was founded by Bert and Glenn Keats in 1958. The company was established as a fourslide and multislide company. We now have three locations in Wheeling, El Paso Texas, and Queretaro, Mexico.

Job title: Co-Chairman. Spring industry affiliations: SMI, CASMI, TMA, and PMA. Birthplace: Lake Forest, Illinois. Current home: Highland Park, Illinois. Family: My wife, Christine, two sons, Brad and Todd and two stepchildren, Michelle and Jason.

What I like most about being a springmaker: Helping the customer achieve their goals. Favorite food: King crab. Favorite books/authors: “The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century,” by Thomas L. Friedman. Favorite song/musician: “Winning it All” by the Outfield. Hobbies: Golf.

Favorite place: Amelia Island, Florida. Best times of my life: When my kids were born, and marrying my wife. A really great evening to me is: A romantic dinner with my wife. The one thing I can’t stand is: Someone who has no humility. My most outstanding quality is: I’m a good listener.

If I weren’t working at Keats Mfg., I would like to: Travel the world.

The most difficult business decision I ever had to make was: Putting the right people in the right places in the organization. I wonder what would have happened if: I had gone into the hotel restaurant business.

Role models: My dad. I would like to be remembered in the spring industry for: Making sure that the Keats organization is one of the most respected in the industry. But people will probably remember me for: Being a happy guy.

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