BY DAN MINER minerd@gnnewspaper.com

Young, smart and savvy. They're the kind of employees who flock to flourishing cities like New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

But the co-owners of Commercial Collection Corp. of NY say their ability to find such workers in Western New York has been a key to their success.

Commercial Collection, a collection agency and outsourcing company founded in 1962, is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year. The company was originally headquarters in Kenmore, but for the last 13 years has been in the City of Tonawanda.

"We've got a great labor force to draw on," said Robert Ingold, co-owner and president of Commercial Collection. "We have an average tenure in our company of 12 years. We hire well and they stay."

Ironically, when businesses and young, educated people flocked out of the region in the latter quarter of the 20th century, it forced Commercial Collection to expand its focus, making it more successful.

"Most of our business came from the area," said Ingold, who began at the company at 1979, when it had 10 employees. "But as businesses went away we had to go elsewhere to find them.

"It was by self-defense." Commercial Collection now has about 60 employees, 50 who or whom work at the Seymour Street offices in the City of Tonawanda. Its clients are local — Rich's, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. — and national — USA Today and Toshiba.

Many of the 50 employees are collection agents who work to collect debt on behalf of credit granters and to reach agreements with companies who can't pay their debts. But there are also sales people, telemarketers and legal support staff, said Joe Grieco, another co-owner and executive vice president of operations for the company.

"We look for someone with great communication skills, some education, and — not necessarily experience — but people who are team-oriented so that we can train them to be their best," Grieco said.

Contact Dan Miner at 693-1000, Ext. 115.