Working Capital Management

CASE 3 Miller Building Supplies

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY IS LOCATED south of Baltimore, MD, and is the home of Annapolis, MD, the location of the U.S. Naval Academy. Annapolis and the surrounding area has become a popular recreational and retirement community due to its access to the Chesapeake Bay, historic areas, and decent medical care. Furthermore, a major airport (BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport) is less than one hour away, and Washington, DC, is approximately the same distance.

The potential growth of the county has attracted numerous businesses, with more expected to follow. The economy is diverse. Roughly 75 percent of employment is in service, education, and government; retail; financial; and the hospitality industry. Many Maryland state offices are in the area of Annapolis, and the county has such institutions of higher learning as St. John's College and Anne Arundel Community College, in addition to the Naval Academy.

JOSEPH MILLER STARTS MBS

Joseph Miller founded his building supply company after returning from the Korean War. He saw the migration of economic activity in the county from agriculture to a diversified mix of businesses, and located Miller Building Supplies (MBS) in the town of Glen Burnie in 1953. His choice of Glen Burnie was motivated by access to the major highways in that part of the state and the recent opening of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to access the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

The firm began as a wholesale distributor of various building supplies ...