Chris and John Laggis, Laggis Brothers Farm, Hardwick, Vt.

How do you start a business?

Just do it.

And how do you succeed in business?

Find individuals who will give you the right advice, even when you may not want to hear it.

That’s the formula that two Vermont dairy farmers have followed since they were teenagers.

“Fortunately, we were clever enough to align ourselves with Farm Credit,” Chris Laggis says about how he and his brother and business partner, John, started their dairy farm in Hardwick, Vermont. “Dean Moreau and Ken Buzzell have been incredibly positive influences on us over the years.”

Chris and John prefer to keep a low profile and will do just about anything to avoid talking about their success. However, because they value their relationship with Farm Credit, they wanted to tell their story in this annual report.

For example, John likes to tell about receiving a letter from Dean Moreau when the two brothers were once in danger of being too highly leveraged. Dean mailed an article torn from a financial magazine to which he clipped a post-it note. The note read, “If we follow this recipe for the amount of debt a company can safely carry, then in 10 years we’ll be sitting by a lake cracking a 12-pack.”

Not your typical note from a lender you may say! That’s because Farm Credit is not your typical lender.

When the two brothers started their business they wanted to be their own bosses and milk their own herd of cows. “But we didn’t have a good grasp of finances and business goals,” Chris says.

“After years of having Dean and Ken drive balance sheet management into our heads, our goals are much clearer today: We want to remain profitable, keep a strong balance sheet and stay on the path of controlled growth. We want to be big enough to be competitive but no bigger than necessary. (The brothers milk 370 Jersey cows and crop more than 500 acres.) We are committed to our partnership and the good relationship between our two families. And we are proud of our talented employees who help us run our business.”

How do you run a profitable business?

You learn from the best.

Like Chris and John Laggis.

Click on the name of each of the entrepreneurs or graduates below to find out more about the road they traveled:

Entrepreneurs:

• Ben and Andrew Saenger, Saenger cattle, Shoreham, Vt.
• Dean Rheaume, Maurice Rheaume & Sons, Middlebury, Vt.
• Keith Sprague, Sprague's Ranch, East Brookfield, Vt.
• Mike Garrow, Rocklan Farm, Berkshire, Vt.
• Pete Norris, Jr. Greenhaven Gardens & Nursery, New Haven, Vt.

"Graduates":

• Ronald Patenaude, Patenaude Farm, Holland Center, Vt.
• Bruce Bascom, Bascom Maple Farms, Inc., Alstead, N.H.
• Chris and John Laggis, Laggis brothers Farm, Hardwick, Vt.

Click here for more information about our Young, Beginning and Small Farmers Program.

Contact us at info@yankeeaca.com for more information.

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