Hey, Voices of the Bench community, Jessica Love here, giving me a shout out from Utah. As many of you know, I am passionate about creating natural-looking, beautiful smiles, and I also believe in simplifying systems without compromising on aesthetics. I am honored to be part of Ivoclar's development team to bring you a new stain and glaze system with structure paste. IPSEmax CeramArt. With this system, you can create beautiful works of art with depth and color in as little as one firing. Join us as we continue to innovate, simplify, and create meaningful change, one smile at a time.
Barb, I feel like Cam's been a pretty big topic on the show lately.
Pretty pig? That's putting it lightly, Elvis.
Yeah, that's fair. But let's be honest, a lot of that comes back to HyperDent.
I see HyperDent everywhere now.
Everywhere indeed. So instead of blabbering on about the software again, let's talk about someone who's been using it the longest.
I love that. So who are we talking about?
Well, the one and only Imagine USA.
Yeah, Elvis, they've been around forever.
Over 15 years of running Hyperdent in their own lab.
That's the difference maker, right? They're selling and supporting it, but they're also using it for their own production every single day.
Exactly. And they've run what? Like over a dozen different type of machines with it.
At least. So when they're supporting a customer, they rarely see an issue that they haven't already solved for themselves.
Right. And it seems Like all that experience is what's led them to release their own line of milling equipments. Bah, bah, bah. The iMills.
Oh yeah, the iMills. That's a great name. And it also includes the recent integration of Ivotion denture pucks, right?
Oh, that's right. I love this stuff, man. Them and Roland, which believe it or not, Imagine also sells and supports.
That's a pretty powerful lineup. I'd love to learn more. Have you connected with Felix yet?
I am working on it. He's got an interesting backstory, especially how he took over Imagine USA more than 15 years ago, back when they were calling it just iMilling. They were one of the first labs to bring titanium production in-house.
Lock it in, Elvis. We need him on this podcast. Stack.
All right, I'm on it.
All right, Matthew McConaughey.
Welcome to Voices from the Bench, a dental laboratory podcast. Send us an e-mail at info@voicesfromthebench.com and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. Greetings and welcome to episode 421 of Voices from the Bench. My name is Elvis.
And my name's Barbara. What's up?
Take two, Barb. What's happening?
Not a whole hell of a lot. How are you? I just ran for... Hour and 20 minutes, so I'm good.
Wow, that's great. What distance is that for you?
I don't know. I just run nowadays.
Do you really not keep track of distance?
No, actually I don't because it's been a long time since I've ran an hour and 20 minutes. So I'm hoping at least 8 miles.
I would hope so.
But you know, the older you get, you get a little slower. So we'll see. I'll start keeping track of it once I start doing it more often.
There you go. Makes sense. Yeah, I have a spreadsheet. If anybody knows me, I love a good spreadsheet. I got one going back to 2016 of all of my mileage. Jesus.
My son keeps track of his mileage. He's a beast now, so it's pretty impressive. I love it.
Oh, to be young again.
Yep. I don't know.
So hey, we are less than two weeks from the Exocad Insights in Mallorca, Spain. And honestly, by the time this episode airs, I'm about four days away from getting the hell out of Indiana and spending two weeks in Spain.
Jealous. I know. But I'm going to be there too, so not that jealous.
Yeah, I'm super excited. And of course, as always, we cannot thank Exocad enough for this amazing opportunity. And honestly, we hope to see some of our listeners there.
Exactly. I bet we are.
Yeah.
I bet we will. I mean, last time we were there, we did.
Yeah, we did. And if you are planning on being there, make sure you stop by, say hello. Not exactly sure where we're going to be, but we plan to be easily found.
And there is one thing about those meetings. We don't leave our booth. So you will find us and you will chat with us.
Yeah, you will.
We dog is pretty good.
Do not look Barb in the eye, she will grab you in the episode.
Yep, we love talking to people.
But with that being said, we got a job to do, Barb. We got a couple of episodes I would like to pre-record in order not to have to do it during my time in Spain so I can do whatever I want. Let's do it. Excellent. So this week, we're going to meet the HR director for a pizza chain turned CEO of Whip Mix, Katherine Steinbock ****. All right, all right, all right. Maybe the timeline was not that simple. But as you will hear, Katherine did grow up around that family business. Let's see, her great-grandfather started the company, then her grandfather ran it for a while, and then her dad was president for a long time. So it only made sense for Katherine to go into college for international business.
Super, you got it.
And from there, she fell in love with, well, oddly enough, HR and employee benefits. She ended up back in Kentucky doing HR for Papa John's. That's where the pizza chain comes in.
Right on.
But everything worked out when an employee was retiring from Whip Mix and she came on board to continue that Steinbock legacy. From HR over to operations to senior product manager, Katherine worked her way up until she became the CEO of one of the oldest companies in our industry.
And she's literally just so lovely. Just saying.
Yeah, she's super cool and it's a cool story. So join us as we chat with With Katherine Steinbock – Dyke voices from the bench, the interview. Well, after a little bit of technical difficulties... We finally get to talk to Katherine Steinbock-Dyke. Am I saying that right? Katherine Steinbock-Dyke from Whip Mix. How are you?
I'm very good. Thank you guys for having me on.
Good.
How are you? Thanks for doing a rare, super early 8 A.m. recording. We don't do this very often.
I know I was going to say that too.
Is everybody a morning person? I don't know.
I think technician-wise, I think we kind of have to be fair. I mean, I don't know if we get that choice, but thank you so much for joining us. I'm excited to have you on. I know we've met a few times at shows and you're part of the Steinbock dynasty.
Dynasty.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Absolutely. Yeah, sorry if my double name is messing you up. It's, you know, I got married. I was feeling very traditional at that point. Took my husband's last name and bringing out the Steinbock again. Now that I'm in this position just to kind of- Oh. Ease the way.
I see. So that was brought back. Interesting. Yeah.
Smart, smart.
So Katherine, give us the rundown. I mean, where are you in this whole Steinbock family tree? Where do you fall in?
Okay, so my great-grandfather started the company. My grandfather consolidated shares, so it started coming back into the line I live in. And then my dad was, Alan was president for over 30 years. He's already knocked on my window to my door this morning. I was like, not now. And then, so my parents, Alan and Sherry, were so intimately involved for over 30 years with the company. And then, so they have four children. I'm the youngest of those four. So Stuart, you know very well, is the oldest. And then there's 12 years between us. I'm the youngest and two sisters in between.
What are the two in between? What do they do? Do they get out?
They get out, definitely. But it's been funny because really my grandparents had this whole thing with education and making sure that everybody in the family got chances to go to school for whatever they were interested in. And so that's happened. Yeah, sure. My sisters have their own lives completely outside of dental, but they're super supportive, of course. So one lives in the Netherlands, Eliza. And is a professor, college professor. And then the other one, Stacy, is here in Louisville. And she is actually married to a prosthodontist, Jimmy Charette. So we finally get some actual clinical.
Interesting.
Exposure. Yeah. But she's starting her own business for tantra practice. So. For what? Tantra. So she is doing her own thing.
What is Tantra?
So if I understand it correctly, it's kind of like an Eastern practice of meditation, breath work, somatic exercises, get in touch with your body. So she's doing great.
That's pretty awesome. I've never heard of that before.
She went through ovarian cancer treatment actually during the pandemic. And it was something that really helped her kind of get through that time period and reconnect with her body. So she's doing awesome things. Yeah.
That is great.
Give us the story of you growing up in this family. I mean, Were you interested? Were you working there in the summers? Did they make you sweep floors? How did you get involved?
I would say it's always been a part of my life, just different ways. And I definitely did not anticipate being in the business.
Really.
Yeah, but I feel like that's like the typical story of next gens and family business, right? Like you.
Aren't you the next, next, next, next, next Gen.
Yeah, exactly. Exactly. So my earliest memory is definitely being in the plant and being in the machine shop. There's like a smell, an oil smell. Oh yeah. So I'm sure you all have that in a lab too.
Kind of like an acrylic smell, probably in dentures.
Yeah. Exactly, so that is a strong memory for me. I definitely remember selling Girl Scout cookies to all of the team members, and I still get teased about that. Because we have... You know, team members even remember me doing that, which is crazy.
So did you just show up and like set up table there and you're like, I'm done. I didn't even do that.
It was such a scheme. Like now that I think back on it, like, come on, that's not fair.
Everyone's got to buy your cookies. It's required.
This is going to sound funny, but I did the same thing at my dad's.
House. Oh, I'm I have someone in arms. Thank you, Barb.
And everybody bought them, so I always got my quota. It's like, there you go. Yep.
That's back when they were good with trans fats and everything still in them. Yeah.
And then I actually, I don't think I was a W-2 worker necessarily, but I was working here in the afternoons, I think when I was in high school. So I had a couple bosses that were all administrative staff and they made me sort envelopes. And once I could drive, I'd go up to the post office and help out. And that was actually really good for me just to, you know, be a teenager and understand, you know, some of those early workplace. experiences of who's in charge and what you need to do and being on time and all those things. But I did not come back to work here until after I'd had three jobs out of college.
Well, what'd you go to college for?
Oh, so I, well, this is kind of the other side. So everything I just described is like... physically, right, with the plant. But at home, we entertained so many people. it'd be some lab, but a lot of university faculty. Oh, sure.
Oh, yeah.
You know, dentists, traveling through the area, other manufacturers that my dad got to be buddies with through the DMA, which is now the DTA. And so it's just like constant, you know, entertaining at our house. And I really enjoyed the international flavor Like all of these people coming, they're all in the same industry, but some are from China and some are from Europe and South Africa.
Wow.
Yeah, it was really cool exposure. So that I went to school for international business and fell in love with Washington, DC. So that's, that's where I ended up. But it's not an affordable place to live if you've ever, ever tried or been there. So after school, I convinced my, my then boyfriend that Louisville was like the coolest place in the the world. So we moved back here.
That was smart. Is he your husband now or just the boyfriend back then?
Yeah, no, he is. We were engaged. Actually, we bought a house in Louisville right before the housing crash of 2008, which kind of highlighted to us like why there was a housing crash because we did not have jobs and we got a mortgage. Everybody gets a house. Exactly, Don't have a job, don't worry about it. But I had my first job out of college was with pharmacy benefits manager. So I was kind of interested in the benefits side of human resources. And so I came back here and worked for a really large company called.
How does someone get into that? I mean, no. I want to be like, yeah, I'm into benefits. I mean, who said that?
No, you're absolutely right. So there's a company, it's a global company called Mercer Human Resource Consulting. They have a large office in Louisville and I had interned with them and I really wanted to work for them. And one of their practices was in employee benefits. So that was kind of like, okay, well, while I'm in DC, let me kind of get some chops right on what that looks like. And I was lucky enough, I did get to work for Mercer and then I actually got to work for Papa John's, the corporate office here in Louisville.
Oh, wow, that's great.
Yeah, yeah.
And that taught you business and benefits.
You got it, yep. Yeah, and both were international, so that was pretty cool too.
Did you ever get to make pizzas?
Yes, you were retired.
Oh, really?
Yep, you had to work in a corporate store, I think once every year. Just once? I did. Yeah, 'cause they wanted you to like, get out and about and understand what it's about. And then in the corporate campus, there is a store, there's a restaurant there, and you have to work there, I think, like every six months or something, too. So I folded a lot of boxes.
I love that policy. That's great.
Yeah, absolutely.
What about the people that work there every day, and then here comes the executive that has to go work one day, and they're like, really?
Who doesn't know how to do anything?
I'm cleaning up after them today.
Exactly. Don't put her on the register.
That's cool. So what do you just like manage the benefits for employees? Is that?
Yeah. So like with Papa John's, they have kind of a, I think, typical model for most retailers. So they have corporate stores and then they have franchise stores. So we had a team of, you know, probably three or four of us that managed all of the 401K, medical, dental, vision. HSA, FSA. Oh yeah, thousands. So there's a lot of questions, a lot of enrollments, trying to come up with the pricing too.
And you're into that?
Yeah.
You know, I'm a nerd. I'm totally a nerd. So yeah, I was.
So how did you end up back in the company?
Well, so... My dad knew that the HR generalist at Whip Mix was retiring. She was married to our maintenance, our facilities manager, and they were ready to retire and move to Alabama. And gosh, she'd been there probably close to 30 years. So he took me to breakfast and he kind of tested the waters like, you know, are you happy? Do you like the corporate life? What would you think about, you know, working for Whip Mix? And I think at that point, it's like, but what happens if I don't like it?
You're stuck. That's a great point.
That's a bad conversation if you don't like it.
Right. Especially for someone in their 20s to be like, let's commit, you know, that's a big ask. So I thought on it. I came in for an interview and then it was like a foregone conclusion. It was like all the conversations changed from like, are you interested to like, okay, so you're going to start in May.
Yeah. So it was a yes right off the bat. It was a yes. Yeah. Whether you like it or not.
Exactly. Yeah. And I had so much fun. I had a great, great boss here. And we got a lot done quickly to really go into the 21st century, so to speak. So we got a lot of projects and continuous improvement.
Well, I imagine if you were replacing someone that was doing it for 30 years.
Yeah.
I mean, everything was probably still very paper and old school.
And it worked, sure. Like that's the thing that I just really admire when I come behind someone and I'm like, okay, they had a system and it worked. Like this, no, nothing fell through the cracks. How do I improve it? and still get it to work.
So when you started, what did they bring you on? What was your title? Like, what was your goal?
Great question. I was an HR generalist and I was over benefits and compensation, basically. So all the performance reviews and...
All the fun stuff.
Yeah, yeah, the details, the nerdy stuff.
So that's great. So you started with what your degree was in with the company. Exactly. So obviously you moved your way up.
Yeah. A little bit. A little bit. Wow. Yeah, but I never, I guess it's almost like, you know, the end was never in mind for me. I just kept learning. So after like four years, I felt like, okay, I could do this in my sleep. I had a child, I had my first child in that time period, and it was perfect because, she's so little and you get sick with daycare germs.
Oh God, yes.
All that stuff. But when she got a little older, I was like, you know, I'm ready for more of a challenge. And we had a really dynamic operations team that I just really enjoyed working with. So I kind of put my hand up when we had another big retirement. Sharon Young had been with the company for 48 years when she retired.
Oh my God.
Yeah, she ran the place. She had planning, so planning, manufacturing orders. She had continuous improvement, so all of the ideas that team members have to improve things. And production, so she was pretty much a production manager. Yeah, she had purchasing too. I put my hand up not to take her job, but to take part of it. And that worked beautifully because then I got to learn all of the, me nerd details, all the operations details. And I was just on cloud nine for, I think, close to six or seven years.
So what did you like most about that position?
So there's, I think the exposure to all of the different functions, because at first you're in your own little world trying to figure out your own little piece so you don't mess people up. Because she had a system and it worked. And I was building bills of material and trying to make our ERP system work for all the different products we run. I mean, when I talk to other manufacturers, they make a widget, but at Whip Mix we have chemical, dry and wet blending. We have assembly, we've been At that time, we were still making furnaces and we had model trimmers and mixers. And all of those ways of building products are so different from each other that in order to do my job appropriately, I had to figure out how it's made. And so that got me on the floor. It got me with supervisors and team members that I really in HR got to interact with, but more personal, you know, of like, well, do you need medical insurance for yourself? It's just, it's a different way of getting to know people. So.
Is there a product you started with? Like with your catalog so big, where do you even start? You know what I mean?
I know.
Stone.
Yeah, but That's a great question because it wasn't about me learning. It was me facilitating continuous improvement. So the first project I remember being on with product was our paddle shafts on the mixers. So we used to solder them, which is a really labor-intensive process. My first project was changing them over to rivets. So we'd punch through the metal instead of trying to actually get it to melt. So that was my first, very first. And then the one that...
Without knowing, did you accomplish it?
Yeah.
Are they riveted now? I don't know. Yeah. Okay, yeah. Good job.
Of course they are. Yes they are.
I don't know.
That's funny. Yeah, no, I'm really competitive too, Ellis. I don't...
I love it.
You've got to be competitive to do that kind of work. It's like success is the only way.
Yeah, that's right. That's totally true.
Yeah. So continuous improvement, you guys are still doing that. I remember when Wipmix came to our company and worked with us on that. Are you guys still practicing that or is it called something different nowadays?
No, it is. Our program is branded the WIN program. So it's the Wipmix Improvement Network. We talk, just vocabulary about writing up wins and getting wins done. And I think my dad stole that to some degree from Jasper Industries, which is an engine and transmission company in Jasper, Indiana.
He didn't steal, he was inspired by it.
Yes. Gosh, you're good. I'm married to an attorney. I really should have done better on that. But that's what we call it now. Barb, what did we help you with?
Was it the continuous flow in the model room at the time? So it was a while ago. Bob Long. Do you remember him? Yeah. He was the one that worked with us. I'm not sure where he is at, but he did a really great job.
He's with Elvis's lab.
No way.
He's a driver.
Yeah.
Really.
Yeah. Yeah, I see him every now and again.
Yeah, I ran into him at Nan Boyd's retirement party and it was just such a joy for me. I was like, what? That is the best retirement job. Like what an inspired idea.
Yeah. Well, there'll be a spot for you when you're ready.
Yeah. Thank you.
So what else did you work on? I was fascinated by this. You've taken over the spatula on the mixer. What else did you work on? Anything else that we would know?
Sure. Do you remember the time period where we were outsourced printing?
Yeah. Back when the Asigas were.
You got it.
Yeah. We were the only Asiga place.
That's right. So inside we were printing for universities who wanted models for their students and they didn't want to pour up stone. And so I was tasked with trying to come up with a more streamlined process for taking in those orders because it was so complicated. You know, every school had their own idea of what they wanted to work on. And so we had had Evan Kemper and Brandon Smith at the time working a lot of hours to get the CAD files and then translate it over to multiple printers. The really difficult part of that was printing the same dyes for different models, so removable dyes. It was like every printer, even though it was calibrated, didn't do it exactly the same. That was, what, I am competitive. I don't know that we did a great job, but we did better. You know what?
I mean, that was early. I mean, now there's, not hundreds, but a lot of companies that are like focused on just that organization of. getting files and printing. But back in those days, I mean, we just, we were hoping to get the files just by themselves.
You're absolutely right.
I can't imagine what it was at that scale. Plus working with universities, they had their own ideas. And, you know, they were always worried about files and HIPAA and all that stuff. I mean, exactly.
Yeah, it was a lot. It was complicated. And ultimately, we had to be honest with ourselves, like, are we really set up to do this in mass, because we're not allowed. Yeah. We're A manufacturer, so you want to, as a manufacturer, you want the same consistency for quality time after time after time, and just couldn't get there without a lot of... Very expensive labor, really.
Now you know how labs do it. Dude.
How do you remember the Astiga printers, Elvis? Where were you?
I was right here.
Who were you with and how did you guys use wet mix for your for your models?
Well, I was with Summer back in those days and Sherry was trying to sell us the Asiga. Was it Sherry? And we were looking at him. So I knew that's where the only place you could get it for a long time. I mean, somebody made that connection with Whip Mix and Asiga, and it must have been a genius move on your all part.
Yeah, I think the conversation started with Stuart, maybe Anne, but something happened where... We were evaluating a couple of printers, and this is not my time frame, so I can't speak to it totally accurately, but my understanding is we were looking and that someone called and was like, Hey, I know you were thinking about X, Y, or Z, but... you really should check out Asiga. So that founding of a relationship was perfect because they were looking to come to the US.
Yeah, they were in Australia or something, weren't they?
Yeah, exactly. Yeah.
Wow. So how are you in relation to aunt? Is she your aunt?
She is my aunt. Yes, we are both babies of our respective branches. So she's my dad's youngest sister.
Oh, that's so great. There's so many of you guys. Geez.
I know, sorry.
I love her. She's awesome.
So sorry, but it's been really fun. You know, everywhere I've been the last year and a half, getting out of the building and meeting people, they know someone, you know, so it's almost like a good thing. There's so many of us.
Yeah, so true.
They're like, oh, are you, you know, related to some, some remember my uncle David, some remember my dad, and obviously, and most people think I'm her daughter. So I just try to walk a fine line of like, I wish that's, It would be great, but I'm not. And then Stuart. And that's probably, because we're closer in age, just a vast majority of a lot of people that I talk to. So yeah, that's where I am. That's good.
So who was CEO when you came on board? Your dad.
It was my dad and our president was a non-Steinbock. So it was Jim Myers.
Oh yeah, Stuart talked about it.
Yes, yeah. And then Ann became CEO in 2020. So it was a little more recent.
God, I can't believe how long ago 2020 was. Jesus.
I know.
It's.
Wild to think back on. They're like little flashes, right? Where I'm like, oh my God, do we really do all that?
And what role were you in when Anne came on as CEO? Were you already in product?
Yeah, so I was at that point, my title is senior project manager, excuse me, and I was doing more of the product development side of getting products to market than continuous improvement. missed it. was like, oh, I love that stuff. But it was good for me. I mean, I really needed to learn. And we had so many digital products that we were like in constant flurry to get to market. So, all these great partners, Denka and Three Shape, and it was like, constant learning about their products, trying to turn them into something that we could purchase, sell, ship, and advertise, you know, to market for them as well. Wow.
You guys do a lot at that company. I never realized that.
Yeah.
Well, when you were first starting off in the first like two minutes and you were talking about everything you guys did, it's like, it's not just dry, it's wet, it's dry, it's articulators, it's material, it's, you know, it's pretty awesome. How do you manage all of that at this point? So you got to, I'm sorry, I'm going to digress. So then where did you go in your career? Did you go from that job right to CEO or did you have another transition in between?
No, I did. Once we exited digital reselling of equipment, that was kind of an inflection point, obviously, for our company. And, you know, I really stepped up to say, Ann, if you know, I'm ready, like I'll, I can Step into this role, because we really needed to refocus on our core products, and that, in a way, I think it's been really perfect because she can advise me on how and why we brought these products to market in the 1st place. I'm less emotional about, you know.
The longevity of it. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. So it's been a great experience for me. She's been such a supporter and fan and, you know, cheering me on. So I don't think that I think it worked out the way it should have, if that makes sense.
Yeah, totally.
Like most things do, I guess. Yeah. Yeah. But it was, you know, Ella saw my face last year at NADL. It was overwhelming to get out of the building and meet so many people. and have a lot more conversations with customers than I'd ever had before. So in a great way, I love that I've gotten to get out, so to speak.
Yeah, because the dental community is pretty awesome, right?
Oh my gosh, what an ecosystem. Like, this is very different from pizza.
So, can you talk about when they asked you to be CEO, or was it one of these things that you weren't even asked? Because I like how you got your...
I don't know.
I mean, you just kind of you went to interview for HR and then they were saying this. Yeah, that's true.
Yeah, this is your job. I think everyone but me knew it was going to happen. I don't know if that makes sense.
Oh my God, you're kidding me. That's awesome.
No, because I think I was just so focused on being a member of the team. I mean, I'm such a team player that it was like, yeah, okay, what's next, right? And how can I help? And I think the expectation of a family member in the business didn't really hit me. I was kind of naive about it. And when I was asked, my first reaction was, well, I'm not ready. I'm too young. I don't have enough experience. But when it was pointed out to me, you've got the tools, right? Like, all of us have picked up tools for a long time. And When you really think back on the body of experience, it's like, oh, shoot, I actually kind of do. What's my excuse now? And I think that was kind of a step up moment of, okay, yeah, you're right. I love this place. I would do anything to help. This is the next way I can help.
I like how you transitioned your roles and how each role was able to form your skills, you know, to take on that CEO role. Because we all know that's that's not the easiest role and you've got to have a lot of different skills and you've got to really know the company, really know the people, really know the products. But I like where you said less emotional because sometimes when you grow up somewhere, you've got that emotional attachment and that can be tough.
Yeah, I think, you know, for any family business, like going from founder onward, every generation kind of feels differently about their origin. You know what I mean? And I think, for an Ann or my dad, they still had that kind of looking through the perspective of their dad's time. And I never had that, right? Like when I was growing up, Papa was just my Papa. Like he was not my boss. We never sat in a board meeting together, you know? I just knew he really liked ice cream and I did too. But I think every generation has to put kind of their own spin on things because if you get so caught up in what someone else did. and trying to replicate it, you're kind of missing the bigger picture of what's going on around you. And there's so much within our industry to consider right now that the same playbook won't work. So I mean, I think there are some things about the past that really make sense. Winmix has done, you know, when I look back and kind of understand more, just a really great job of building partners and working with other manufacturers and acquiring products and selling them, that keeps us relevant. And I think that's kind of the direction we're headed, it just won't be necessarily the same products, right? Because things are changing so much. But that's my next job is, you know, really figuring out how to be relevant. And I think that's, that means getting out. And I'm, I'm excited to do that. That's been another education, like you said, Barb, another, another, you know, kind of role to figure out.
Did Anne take you out to dinner one time and be like, Hey, How do you feel about this whole CEO thing?
This is great. So, like, where my dad was like, Let's go to breakfast. It wasn't a singular conversation. She and I have Tuesdays that are just for fun lunch, so we can catch up with each other, and then we have Thursdays more one-on-one about business, and so it's just... kind of the conversation kept evolving and we had a professional consultant helping us at that time and he kind of got that ball rolling with me. Like what I was saying where I was like, what? But there's, I think there's two, like there's a big portion of Louisville and many, many cities that have family businesses that want to continue to be a family business. And I think that's a really important thing to check in, do we still want to be a family business? Do we still want to do this together? And I think Anne and I have had a lot of really good soul-searching conversations. And I cannot tell you how many conversations I've had, especially with our dealers, but definitely with lab owners too, about being a family-owned business. business. And I saw the LMT March issue had a little factoid about 50% of lab owners work with a family member. So it's kind of a, I feel like an old-fashioned notion. But man, it works. it's like, that works. Don't want to mess that up.
Well, it's a whole thing in dentistry in general. I mean, think of how many dentists are because of their dad was a dentist or their mom was a dentist.
So true. And they can take over the practice. It's like a ready-made, you know, succession plan.
I mean, it's definitely not as common as it was, but there's still a lot of history. and dentistry with that family business. I mean, hell, even Derby, his dad opened it, now he reruns it, so.
And BJ and me and yeah, additions like everybody.
I call my dad all the time and ask him how come he didn't have a lab that I can take over. What the?
Hell, dad? What is his answer?
I didn't even know about it.
Well, how did you stumble in it really quick, Elvis.
Me? I entered a part-time ad to be a Packer.
Oh, that's right. Yeah.
I had no idea either. And now here I am talking to the CEO of Whip Mix on Tuesday at 8 A.m. in the morning.
Right on. That's very true.
Yeah. Chris Fry told me if you're in dental for more than three years, you're in it for life. So I'm sorry.
You're the cutoff. I've not heard the thing. I don't know. I thought it took just a day and then you're sucked in. Yeah.
I got to go back to your point about being relevant. How do you, as a CEO of such a large company, how much time do you spend on that? Do you have like a facilitator that helps you or is it your mentor who sounds very much like it's Anne? How do you keep a company that large and that old?
That's such a great question because I think I'm figuring it out. I'm in that like in between of how much is it my time? How much is it my team's time? How much of it is outside advisor time? I should share too, we're all very focused here right now on consolidating our facilities. So we've had a facility in Fort Collins, Colorado for gosh, probably 15, 20 years because it was a division of Waterpik that we acquired the Hanau and Danar articulator.
Oh, wow. I did not know that. Okay.
Yeah, we're bringing it all to Kentucky. And you know, that's so much organizational focus. Yeah, for sure. And we're entering, we're about to enter the busy school season for those orders. So I think for our management team, it is priority number one as soon as we kind get our wits about us and have the dust settle. And so I did ask because I feel like I do best when I kind of see things. So I asked for some time with Buddy Schaefer at Bayview. Oh, yeah. Yep.
Yeah.
He has been so kind and generous. And he said, come down anytime. You can just hang out with us and see what we do. And so that was kind of an opening trip that I hope is quite a few more to, and I'll just invite myself to your all's labs. But I think it's really good for me to see in person what it means to be, like Buddy's lab is very hybrid, analog and digital, and he's... pretty demanding that things be as high of quality as they were when they were analog if they're going to switch to digital for anything. And so that was really good education for me to see. But I- Is that down in Florida? He is in Chesapeake, Virginia.
Virginia.
Yeah, he's a Dawson guy.
Yeah, that's exactly right. Yeah.
I was going to say, if you could choose to go to any lab, I mean, in Louisville in the winter, why are you not going to more California, Florida?
Man, you're so much smarter than me.
He's ready. He's ready for some Florida weather. He's coming down tomorrow. So I think.
Yeah, I'm looking forward to anything that's not chilly, windy, rainy. I'm looking.
Yeah.
Well, you're having an early spring in Louisville. Sorry, Elvis.
Yeah, I know. 70s. Hell, it's 88 here already. We went from being cold to 85, 88 already. It's crazy.
I love it when Barb says cold. I went from being cold, which is like 58.
Could I ask a question of you all? Sure. I was thinking a couple. So I had this really great conversation with Brian Hayslip. He's a lab owner in Georgia. And he told me that he can listen to podcasts or books like in his earbuds, so audio, and he can work at the bench and actually do things with his hands completely simultaneously. Is this like a thing? Like, is this like a superpower for lab techs that they can To listen to your podcast and continue working.
Well, that's the idea of the audio only.
Audio only.
We had so many people say, you know, when you're doing video, why aren't you doing video? Barb even says, we need to do more video face to face. I want to see people. And I'm like, I want to keep that audio so people can work. And enjoy the content.
But how? That's insane to me. That's like patting your head.
It's kind of like listening to music when you run, right? Like you're running, but you're brain is being soothed to buy the music or whatever you're listening to. And technically, like when I'm at the bench, I can listen and focus at the same time and it gives you, I don't know, like, I don't know, brain multitasking. That's awesome. Yeah, pretty much everybody in the lab's got earbuds in. And it is easier to do audio than try to work and watch, you know, something on your phone. So yeah, it makes sense.
Well, what about people at Whip Mix? Don't they have earbuds in and they're jamming away? Yeah.
Because I can see music. I just was impressed like a book or a podcast?
It takes a little to get used to that because it does take your focus away a bit because you're trying to concentrate rather than just hear a song. But I think people atone to it, I guess, and find that vibe. And I mean, I'll listen to podcasts and run and people think it's crazy that I do that.
I do.
Yeah, well, there you go.
I have a new skill to master. And I was also wondering, like, what led, because I went back to see how long you've been doing this since 8 years now.
A long, long, long, long time.
Congratulations. When you started it, did you start it for the same reason that you're still doing it today? Like, has that changed over time?
Not really.
Nope.
Not really.
Yes. I came up with the idea because I started going out to more dental offices and I started listening to dentists podcasts to try to kind of get the insight of what's going on in there. And it was just kind of like, wow, why don't we have a podcast to talk about our industry? And Barb and I both being part of the NADL and just being involved and having so many great friends in the industry. And It just took off from there. And I mean, even our first 10 episodes were all like, people we already knew.
Yeah.
We're willing to do it. You know? Do you want to be our guinea pig? Yeah. And it was all people that were in the foundation or the NBC or on the NADL that we could be like, hey, let's all get together and talk about stuff. And then it just, involved. And then we just started reaching out. Then we had this point where we're like, oh God, we're only talking to labs where they're decent size. What about those people that are by themselves? What about the HeSlips that you mentioned that they're just them two and maybe a kid if they can convince a kid to work with?
Them. Yeah, they will, they will, they will.
Yeah, you know, and we wanted to reach that. So we started reaching out to, I think Heather was our first one that Yeah, and she connected us with other people that were just by themselves that you just wouldn't hear about. And it just grew and grew and grew and grew. And that's where we ended up.
And here we are going to Mallorca next month.
Yay.
Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. That's amazing.
Yeah, we're excited.
That part's changed a little bit over the years. Okay. International traveling, and now it's like a goal every year. Where do we get to go? So. Yeah.
Did you do you did the IDS, didn't you?
Yeah.
That's awesome.
Have you been to IDS?
I went last year for the first time and my mind was blown.
Isn't it insane?
It's insane. I had no idea. Like I knew somebody told me ahead of time, like, you got to wear, you know, tennis shoes.
There's always like, prepare for walk.
But the diversity of products, the amazing, like I said, I've always been internationally kind of interested. And so I was geeking out like, what? This is so crazy. But yeah, just to see how many types of companies all over the world make up our industry, that was really cool.
Yep.
Except for the cigarette smoke in the pavilion.
If I could just get rid of that. What's crazy to me is when they have that initial map and you're like, oh, there's four buildings. That's cool. That's no big deal. Yeah, some of them are three stories. Right.
And you're like.
Wait a minute, what?
I went with Chris Fry and we were at some point we were like, how do we get out? Where are we?
We got real lucky our first time getting there. We were with Larry.
Oh yeah, Larry. I was thinking of him the other day. Yeah, it was Larry.
Yeah, Larry. He helped us from Exocad. He was with Mightfinder at the time, but I mean, he's been to that show for, you know, going on, you know, 20, 30 years or something. So We were able to Uber over with him and he got us to where we needed to go.
I know, but you do, you need like a Sherpa. Like you can't just like throw up.
I can still be looking.
Yeah, I know.
He's not even kidding. That was so tough.
It's a lot. I have, so Whip Mix has had an office in Germany for 15, 20 years.
Oh, really?
Yeah, really small, teeny tiny. But we had our German staff come, which was awesome. So that was our guide. It was like, this is our booth.
So do you get to travel internationally with Whip Mix?
Yes. This is like my love language. I'm so happy. So I'm going to Asia for the first time. I'm going to the Singapore IDEM show. Wow.
What is that?
So it's more of like the Asian regional big trade show. Wow. And it happens in the off years from IDS. So.
Is it about the size of what, Lab Day Chicago or bigger?
That's a great question. I think it's about the same size as Chicago. Cause when I got the like infographics about how many attendees there are, I was like, oh, that's okay. That's impressive.
Interesting. Okay. Yeah. Now there's a new show I want to go to Barb.
I know, I know. I was just thinking that. Like, yeah.
Cause it's, I think it's like hot and humid, Elvis. So it'll be just what you're looking for.
It'll be right up your alley.
Yeah.
You like to sweat it out.
Right, me too. And I didn't get to go, but Dubai was last, well, it was January, excuse me, it was the same time as the Dubai.
And you went to the Dubai?
No. Oh, that's the one I really want to go to.
What is that? Same thing, like a huge denim.
Yeah. But it's Dubai, which is like this crazy city that's like 400 years in the future, I hear.
Yeah, you're totally right.
Yeah.
So, you know, between Germany and Singapore, I feel pretty lucky and hopefully I can get out and about as we.
Yeah. So is your goal just to meet as many people as possible and just hope to know the whole entire community? Internationally, of course.
Internationally, absolutely. we do so much business in Latin America. That's a region that has been very kind to us. And because some of our products are considered medical devices in other countries that they're not for the US.
Oh, strange.
Yeah. It's a very business friendly area to sell into. So I think that's more in my future because there's so many dealers in Latin America that have been amazing. for Whip Mix for many, many years. And Canada is a really great market for us too. And Australia is on my radar because they have really gone digital and they have a lot of acigas. So for us, that's a good market for our resin.
Yeah, I would say so.
Yeah.
So we're coming up on the end here, but Give me a snapshot of Whip Mix today. I mean, so many people know for of stone, right? Yes. Or furnaces or the mixers you mentioned. I mean, I think Derby's got like a ******* 40 of them. I don't know.
Oh, yeah, they won't die. They'll keep it.
That's what everyone says. But Snapshot of Whip Mix today, what is the main thing you all do? Is it resins?
So our two main products are pretty equal to each other. So gypsum on one side and articulators. not still on the other. I think there's like the campaign we ran in 2025 was all about there's a time to print, there's time to pour, and we're here for both. And I feel like there's a couple. Thank you.
There's a time to print, the time to pour, the time to print and time to pour. I don't know. Sorry. It's early in the coffee.
That's where we are. I feel like we want to support both ways of doing business because I think that there's, an upfront cost. It's coming down for sure. But for labs that can't afford to go digital, we don't want to in any way say you have to, right? And there's so many regions like we just talked about that are emerging into digital but not quite there yet. I think on the occlusion side, our face bows and articulators, we've got to figure out a way to better work with our CAD CAM partners because I think there's so much value in having something in your hands on the bench and knowing what you have before you scan it, but I haven't quite figured that out.
So what, most students still get the Whip Mix articulators? Yeah.
Yes. Yeah, Mark 320, that is like our biggest seller and we're so grateful for our school customers.
Sure.
Yeah, I mean, talk about travel, those are visits I need to make to say thank you.
All the schools, good luck.
All the schools. There's a lot of schools. And growing, that's an exciting thing too. We're getting a new one in Kentucky.
Yeah, I've heard about that actually. Are the schools still wanting the articulators or are they looking for alternatives or?
No, there's only, I might be speaking out of turn, but to my knowledge, Toro in New York and maybe a handful of others have gone full digital. So they don't want any.
Interesting, yeah.
Most people do, that's part of their curriculum to be able to use it and to mount and to know visually. But I think the other part too is, most students now are like, how do I turn it on? It's like, no, it's a mechanical.
Where's the touch pad? Right.
You don't have to charge it.
That's funny.
So that relevance question is there. Like how to continue to be relevant is definitely still there. To answer your question, the resin side of our business is still pretty minor, but you know, we're really proud. We have self-formulated. I mean, we're not private labeling anybody's stuff. It's all our own. And that's all. A lot.
That's rare, isn't it? I mean, it seems like everyone is just relabeling someone else's.
Exactly.
Glue as Jimmy Carlson.
Yeah.
But you've made all those formulas yourself.
I know. And we're, you know, carrying a medical device manufacturer license. So I mean, that's quite a bit on each one. But I don't know, Elvis, if you got to see our Verifit splint at NADL or LabPress, but that's our newest one. So that was came out late 20 And it's for night guards, but it can also be used in ortho. And we're really excited about, like the feedback is really good of it being thermodynamic, being a little more user-friendly for placing with the patients and not having as many remakes. So that one we're excited about.
Awesome. And you have a bunch of nerdy scientists in Louisville working with us.
Yeah, I bet.
Yeah. they're my nerdy bugs. Not as many as we really need, to be honest. I think that that's become clear, like competition has fleets of PhD polymer scientists. We're a small company, we can't afford that, but we're doing what we can.
Sure. The nice thing about your resins is it's not tied to a printer.
Right. Yeah. Which is kind of like a blessing and a curse because it's hard to Kind of breakthrough, where printer companies are already selling. But then on the other hand, if you really like it, gives you more options. Sure. However many customers there are in all these different worlds of Elegoos or Frozens or. Yeah, for sure. But yeah, I don't know if I answered your question, but I hope I did.
Well, no, you did. And what about all the other equipment and machines? I mean, do you still make the mixers?
We do. Oh, God, yes.
They're whip mix. I don't, I think you always will, right?
I guess.
I guess. There's that emotional attachment. I think. As long as we're making gypsum, it makes sense, right? The hard part about it is when you have low volume, our suppliers, so the people we go to for the motor or the wiring, they eventually are like, hey guys, you're going to have to pay a lot for that or we don't want to do it anymore. So that's the hard part. And we'll do it as long as we can because I love walking into Bayview and seeing all of those VPM2s on their bench. gets my chest puffed up. Right.
I think as long as people like Pete Dawson, those courses are still going on, they bring them to St. Pete, but all of that's analog. I'm sure some of it, they teach scanning, but what makes a doctor a better doctor is being able to mount those on the articulators and take a look at the function and take a look at the bite and all of the issues that they're having. I just don't ever see that not being something that the doctors are doing, but we'll see. see in 20 years, right?
We'll see. I know. I got to attend a Dawson course last summer, and Dr. Hess was doing it, and it really did strike me how intimate our products are with that process. It was like, whoa, okay, I see it now, right?
Yeah. I've been to many of those courses and it's a big part of it. So yeah, I would, I think Buddy's a great guy too. So I'm not surprised that he had 30 articulators up there.
Katherine, are you able to mount on the Whip Mix articulator?
Oh Lord.
I doubt it. Yeah, but it's not pretty. I'm not going to send you pictures. I'll tell you that. Can I do a printed model?
Well, that would be me too.
Okay.
So what's next for you and Whip Mix? What's the big secret y'all working on that you can let us know here only on Voices from the Vin.
Sorry, no dish today, but I thought I'll let you know.
But we'll be the first to know.
Yeah, absolutely you will be. Yeah, definitely. And I think that, the Verifit split for us, that resin is taken, it's like I said, it's got people's attention. So I think there's a lot more to go there.
And are you going to be at Lab Day West, Lab Day East, all the other shows?
I am not. yeah, and the Singapore trip.
Oh, yeah. Yep.
Yeah. But we will have sales reps there. And we just added to our sales team. We're super excited. We've had been more covering the north part of the US. And he will definitely, he's been there to left a west. And then Patrick Allante just joined our team and he's covering the south. So the two of them will definitely help bolster Chris and I getting out and about.
Awesome.
Yeah.
I love it.
Yeah.
Well, Katherine, I think it's great that you're CEO and you're the new face and you're getting out. And I think it's exciting that somebody in HR is.
Do you remember meeting me? And you were like, my God, you're like Stephanie Goddard.
Yes, because we just had her on the podcast. And I was like, I didn't know who she was. And now she runs Glidewell. I didn't know who you were. And now you run Whip Mix. What's going on here? What's
going on? These women, they're coming out of the show out here. Yeah, me too. And you know, it was very flattering for the comparison. And once I met her, I was like, oh my gosh, what a great person.
Because she was in HR too, wasn't she?
Yes.
Yeah. I guess that's the new thing.
I don't know. Maybe it's a thing. Or maybe it's, you know, people that I feel like there's anyone who cares a lot will eventually be moved up to a leadership position, you know?
Yeah.
I think it is a mentality. Yeah. I mean, you know the employees. You know.
I love them.
Yeah. And that makes all the difference in the world.
Exactly. Yeah. Yes, all that responsibility is okay with me for a reason. it's like, okay, I know my reason.
And you can get us the best dental plan too.
It's free for our employees.
That's great.
You got to, man. You got to.
Well, Katherine, thank you so much. We appreciate you coming on the podcast, telling us the story. We love Whit Mix. They were huge supporters of the podcast when we got started.
Big time.
Yeah, we missed Bernie. Yeah, we missed Bernie so much. He was a huge supporter of this show. Some of the early digital forums, some of the early shows we used to go to back when Whit Mix did those shows in Louisville.
Yes, they were great. I caught a couple of them at the end and was really impressed with our staff. And, I'm actually really glad that NOAC is kind of sliding into that.
Lab fest.
Yes, what a great show. Oh my god, I shouldn't even show.
I had a ton of fun at that the first one and.
Yeah.
We'll definitely be back for the second. Barb will actually show up this time. Yay.
Sweet.
She won't be on a cruise. La de la.
Oh.
Yeah.
Well, then I will see you guys there.
Yay.
Definitely not to be missed.
Cannot wait. Awesome.
Katherine, thank you so much. And we'll see you soon.
Yeah.
Okay, sounds good. Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you.
A huge thanks to Katherine for coming on our podcast, talking about your journey all the way from HR to CEO. You know, Whip Mix has been a great company in our industry for so many years, and it's always had the lab in mind when making decisions. We really love, hold on, my dog's in my face. We love that they still supply many analog supplies to technicians that don't want to go digital. And you know what? Some just don't. Many companies have pretty much given up on them, but not Wipmix, while at the same time providing the resources for the ones that do. So do your lab a favor and support a really great family business by checking out wipmix.com. Is that it? No forward slash or what? Pretty simple. Next time you guys are needing supplies. Thank you, Whip Mix. Great job, Katherine.
Absolutely. And all right, everybody, I'm off to Spain and we'll talk to you next week.
Have a great week. Bye. See you.
Just lost. Those were some big ears. Did you just hear that?
Oh my God, I'm sorry.
The views and opinions expressed on the Voices from the Bench podcast are those of the guest and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the host or Voices from the Bench LLC.