Robert "Bob" Schaeffer is retiring after a long, successful career in the construction equipment industry and with Elliott & Frantz.
In 1973, Robert Schaeffer found himself in training camp with the Baltimore Colts, a punter who could also play tight end, chasing a professional sports dream. But reality arrived with the first contract. For what the NFL paid back then, he realized, that he could make as much money, if not more, in sales than in football — especially important with young children on the way. So, he stepped off the field and started a new career that would demand just as much discipline, endurance and commitment.
Late that same year, Schaeffer entered the equipment industry, going to work for an equipment dealer called Basic Equipment. His introduction was simple and blunt: a map, a box of literature and a territory. "Here's what we sell," he was told. "Go to work." And he did.
The job meant long weeks on the road, five days at a time. As his family grew, that lifestyle became harder to sustain. During those years, Schaeffer had been appointed Elliott & Frantz as one of his dealers in the Philadelphia area, serving as their factory representative for two years. It turned out to be a relationship that would shape the rest of his career. In November 1982, Jim Elliott offered him a new opportunity: come to Maryland and help build something from the ground up.
Schaeffer accepted, becoming branch manager and moving into a small office in Baltimore City.
"Growth came quickly," he said. "It soon became clear that the company needed room to expand, so land was purchased in Jessup, Md."
Schaeffer helped build the facility that still stands today. He would remain branch manager until 1999, when he became president of Elliott & Frantz, a role he officially stepped into around the turn of the millennium.
Over the decades, Schaeffer learned that the toughest challenges in management had little to do with machines and everything to do with people.
"Recruiting the right employees, training them well and convincing them to stay was never easy," he said. "The landscape changed dramatically from the 1980s to today. Salespeople became free agents, moving from company to company for better deals, much like professional athletes."
Schaeffer himself received plenty of offers, but he stayed. Loyalty mattered to him — both personally and professionally.
That loyalty became a defining trait of Elliott & Frantz.
"While many competitors sold out, rebranded or reshuffled leadership, Elliott & Frantz remained independent, with the same management team it had from the beginning," he said.
To Schaeffer, that stability wasn't just good business — it was a promise to customers.
His philosophy was simple: build strong product lines, develop real relationships with manufacturers and always be there when help was needed. Those relationships paid off.
"One of the most notable successes came with milling machines," he said. "In a single standout year, we sold 45 units. Over 23 years, Elliott & Frantz has sold nearly 600 machines, helping define the market and set a standard in the industry."
Yet numbers were never what mattered most to Schaeffer. Contractors, he believes, are "the greatest people in the world. They're loyal, hardworking and straightforward. Over time, customers became friends. Respect came first; business followed."
His advice to younger people entering the industry reflects that belief: don't chase instant gratification. Earn trust. Once you have it, protect it.
As retirement approached — January 9 marked the official date — Schaeffer joked about what he wouldn't miss: the 50-hour workweeks.
"But I will miss the people … the customers and the manufacturers I worked with for four decades," he said. "Without people, you have no reason to turn the lights on."
Catherine Elliott, principal owner of Elliott & Frantz, reflected on Schaeffer's long and loyal service to the company.
"Elliott & Frantz wouldn't be what is today without Bob's leadership," she said. "He led with integrity, respect and warmth. He also taught all of us the importance of creating relationships with colleagues and customers that turn in lifelong friendships. I've known Bob my whole life. He was not only the president of our company who worked closely with my father [Jim Elliott], but they were very close friends. Their relationship shaped my opinion and of the industry and working under him for 15 years, his mentorship also was invaluable to me."
As he begins his retirement, Schaeffer said is what he's most looking forward to is freedom.
"No more 4 a.m. alarms," he said. "No more being the first one in the building and the last to leave, night after night."
He is looking ahead to the next phase of life that includes more time for his church, for community and for the things that had waited patiently while work came first. CEG
