Ron Suh
Ron Suh: Trailblazer in Dental Supply Business
Ron Suh with Senator Yonah Martin and Prime Minister Stephen Harper
The Beginning in Canada
I arrived in Vancouver on October 5, 1971, with my wife and my mother. I was thirty years old, with training as a mechanical engineer in Korea, and 6 years of experience working for large corporations like Ssangyong Cement Company and Samyang Shipping Corporation. I remember how confident I was that I would find a job right away. After a week of being told by prospective employers time after time that they didn’t have any work for me either because my English was not good enough, or I did not have any Canadian work experience on my resume, or my Korean engineering degree was not recognized in Canada, I began to worry for the first time. Thankfully, my worry was short-lived.
My first break came in the form of a tip from a friend. I was told that the Centennial Social Club had a job opening. Not even knowing what position was available, I rushed to the personnel department and presented my resume. The opportunity turned out to be a kitchen helper position which paid $2.50/hr (minimum wage at the time).
The job entailed washing dishes, cleaning the floors and everything else in the kitchen that needed cleaning. In order to support my family, I was happy to take whatever job I could get. A few months into my job as a kitchen helper, I was able to qualify as an engineer in Canada through a re-licensing process, but the language barrier was still against me. Finding a decent job was still very difficult. In my first year in Canada alone, I went through nine different jobs, including sawmill grader, hotel maintenance, poultry plant engineer, and door-to-door vacuum cleaner salesman.
On October 5, 1972, exactly one year after I came to Canada, I finally got a job which matched my training and experience as an engineer for the Wesfrob Mines Ltd. The job was in Tasu, a town in one of the remote islands located off the northwestern coast of BC. Tasu was completely inaccessible by land. After flying on a commercial plane to a tiny airport (literally called Sandspit) on the Queen Charlotte Islands (now called Haida Gwaii), I then transferred onto a tiny 5-seater float plane to get to Tasu. My job was to operate the power plant there as a power plant engineer. Although the pristine beauty of the natural surroundings was magnificent, it was undoubtedly the most isolated place I have ever lived. Because it was so remote, the workforce was quite transient. I was so thankful to finally have a job matching my training and experience and to have a decent home provided by the company for my family, which, by this time, had expanded to include my 1st child, that I happily worked 12 hrs straight each day for 6 months with no weekends off.
After one year of living and working in Tasu, we were able to save $10,000, which we used for the down payment of our first house in Delta, BC.
Professional Life – Engineer, Relator, and Dental Supply Distributor
From Engineer to Realtor
After 2 years and 11 months on Queen Charlotte Island, we returned to Vancouver, but (even with Canadian work experience) it was hard to find a good job as an engineer in the Greater Vancouver area. One day, I told myself, no more working for other people. I wanted to own my own business and work for myself. But what could I do?
I decided on sales because I thought it wouldn’t require much upfront capital investment to get started. After some consideration, I decided to do real estate sales as my career and registered for the real estate sales licensing course at the Vancouver Real Estate Board. During the course, I learned practical and valuable knowledge about writing legal contracts, arranging mortgage financing, and relevant commercial law and regulation. In March 1975, I passed the examination and was licensed to sell real estate in B.C, but I realized that I did not have the capital necessary to survive the 2 to 3 month period during which there would be no income due to the delay in the real estate commission payout upon completion of a deal. So, I went north again for the summer and managed to save about $7,000.
When I started in real estate, there were not many Korean residents in Greater Vancouver, and even amongst the few Korean residents, most were not financially ready to buy a home. Out of necessity, I had to develop my own clients without relying on my cultural community. Recalling the training from my days as a vacuum cleaner salesman, I decided that cold canvassing was the best way to get new clients.
Every morning at 10am, I went to certain blocks of different neighborhoods and canvassed homes for hours. Some people were rude and cold, but it did not bother me. My attitude was, “it’s okay if people are not interested in talking to me because I’ll just go to the next door.” Usually elderly people were the friendliest. They would often pass along contacts from their family and friends. What I learned during this time was that, if you canvas steadily and every day, there are always good people willing to give you a lead. I never stopped.
That experience was tough, but I am thankful for how it made me have no fear in approaching people. Meeting people every day from all walks of life helped me to become able to talk to anybody. In real estate sales, my philosophy was that I was not selling a house or a property, but rather, I was selling myself as the best person who could help my clients get what they need and want. I believed that if I handled my client’s first deal well and they respected my work, they would always come back to me and refer me to others. Above all, I value diligence, honesty, and respect. Working according to these three basic principles, kept me well in the business for a long time.
To Dental Supply Distributor
In 1991, another break came along in my life. My brother had had a dental supply company in the United States, called BISCO USA. He initially sold his products exclusively through another distribution company in Canada but the business did not do well. My brother then asked me to take over the Canadian distribution rights. That is how, in November 1991, I founded BISCO Dental Products Canada Ltd.
A lot of what I learned during my years in the real estate business proved to be useful in applying to my new dental business. Knowledge such as cultivating clientele, developing brand loyalty, and winning clients over by helping them was especially useful.
In the dental business, I constantly thought about how I could help dentists make their practices easier and better. Still, today, when I first meet new dentists, I ask them about their practice, their pros and cons, and how they wish to improve their practice, before talking about my business. I organize a lot of professional development seminars for dentists. We bring in renowned speakers from all over the place. This is an important way for me to stay connected with practicing dentists who are my clients. At the same time, by attending the sessions that I organize, I also keep abreast of the newest developments in dentistry.
I feel very lucky to be in the dental industry. Even though my English is not perfect, and I did not know anything about dentistry when I started, I was very lucky to meet kind and prominent dentists, who were generous with their time and patience to give me a solid introduction to the profession and industry.
Supporting Others & Giving Back to the Community
As a business owner, I believe that my employees should be happy working for my company. I try my best to pay above industry standards and provide my employees with excellent benefits, overtime pay, and other incentives.
Another way I give back as a business owner is by setting up scholarships and bursaries through educational institutions. For example, Bisco Canada provides five scholarships annually to the UBC Faculty of Dentistry.
For the Korean community in Greater Vancouver, I have served in numerous volunteer positions, including my most recent position as the chair of the National Unification Advisory Council of Western Canada (Vancouver) Chapter. Although those volunteer leadership positions often required a sizeable commitment of time as well as travel, the gratification I felt in being able to contribute to such worthy causes was invaluable.
Advice to the Younger Generation
What I can say to young people is that when we make others happy, their happiness comes back to you. Instead of pursuing things to make more for yourself, if you give to other people, support them, and make them happy, even more happiness will come back to you. That’s what I have found to be true, and that’s how it has worked in my business.
As a proud father to two grown daughters and a happy grandfather to 6 grandchildren, I am profoundly grateful for the opportunities that this country afforded me.
Related links:
Profile of Ron Suh in Tribute to Liberty
밴쿠버의 성공 신화, 비스코 서병길 YTN Documentary ((In Korean; be sure to use Microsoft Internet Explorer when you open the clip.)