ABOUT TODAY’S GUEST

Loyd Reagan is the current Southwest Region Manager for the Cutco/Vector sales organization.  His region has been #1 in the company the last five consecutive years.  He has a compelling story of success and achievement through some unique challenges in his life.  Loyd is the father of five children, three of whom have sold Cutco at this point.  He is one of the most respected leaders in the entire Cutco/Vector organization.

Q&A WITH LOYD REGAN

Q: How did you get started working with Cutco?

• My father was a very successful business owner that lost everything overnight at the time I was getting ready to go to college.
• Loyd’s aunt sat through a Cutco presentation and suggested Loyd get a job with Cutco to pay for school and his car payment.

Q: When did you decide this was something you wanted to stick with long term?

• My experience with Vector/ Cutco opened up a lot of doors for me once I was done with college but I was making more money, having more fun, and learning more from my time with Cutco than I was being offered.
• My dad told me that Cutco/ Vector’s program was so good that I should stick with it, if nothing else, to learn everything I can so I can duplicate it for my own business down the road.
• My dad told me, “if you ever take an hourly job, you will work for a paycheck for the rest of your life. If you build your own business, you’ll never go to work for the rest of your life.”
• Eventually it became more about making a difference than climbing to the top and I got around new role models who were making the difference I wanted to make in others.

Q: Who were some of your initial role models?

• My first District Manager, Mark Karuza, was one of my first role models who made the biggest difference.

Q: In the early part of your career you became a single dad. Can you share that part of your story?

• In my first year as a District Manager while I was still trying to learn the business and I had just had my first taste of success when I found out I was going to be a dad and that I was going to have to learn how to thrive as a single parent and business owner.
• We also found out that there were some complications with the pregnancy and the doctors were telling us that there was a very high chance our baby might not survive the birthing process and if she did, she wouldn’t have a very good quality of life.
• Fortunately my daughter, Addison, was born and miraculously survived the birth and the necessary surgery to repair the problem.
• I was running an office while being a single dad to a baby who needed a lot of care and I just had to figure it out.
• Although I received a lot of criticism from my family and friends, I received nothing but love and support from my Cutco/ Vector family.
• I learned to manage my time and solve problems and my staff really stepped up.

Q: You touched on the importance of time management as a single dad running a business. What did you find?

• You have to figure out what matters most.
• You have to learn to build and develop other people.
• My dad always told me that if you’re the only one running a business than you don’t have a very big business.

Q: What are some of the elements of culture that you’re trying to build in the Southwest Region?

• We have high expectations of ourselves and of our people.
• We can accomplish so much more than we think we can.
• There’s a badge of honor for taking responsibility, working hard, giving your best, not giving up when it gets tough, and not giving up on your people.
• “If you can do better, you should.” -Jim Rohn

Q: As you look ahead over the next 5 to 10 years, what’s exciting to you?

• I love what we do that I can’t imagine doing anything else.

Cutco/ Vector Terms:

• Branch Manager: a Cutco/ Vector manager who runs an office for the summer months. Usually this role is for students.
• District Manager: a Cutco/ Vector manager who runs an office full time, year-round.

Show Notes provided by Carlo Cipollina