At the Great Little Box (GLBC), we are extremely proud of the company we have developed into, and we accredit much of our success internally and externally to our founders, Robert & Margaret Meggy. Robert has maintained the unique and welcoming culture at GLBC over the past 40 years. By creating genuine one-to-one relationships with his employees while being an active leader, Robert has grown GLBC from two employees to almost 500. A good leader sets an example for their company, but a great leader leads by example.
Robert encompasses his philosophy on corporate culture on the following five terms:
1. Welcoming – In providing a welcoming environment, Robert has created an easy-going approachable rapport with employees. Robert goes down to the production floor regularly to see how employees and their families are doing.
According to Margaret Meggy, “Bob always drew people in; that was just his personality. He would have President’s meetings when he’d meet with every person in the company, eight people at a time. That was especially helpful for the many employees who had immigrated from other countries and felt shy about putting up their hand at a monthly meeting. In Bob’s office, they felt free to speak up.”
2. Open – By operating in an open workplace, the Great Little Box employees feel comfortable sharing ideas and opinions without judgment.
3. Fun – Through social events, internal competitions, and external activities GLBC is rooted in an endless circuit of fun.
4. Family – Robert and Margaret have inadvertently created a family by instilling their passion for packaging, print, and design in each GLBC employee.
5. Excellence – The excellent work ethic of each and everyone at GLBC stems from the devotion and love Robert and Margaret have for this great little company.
In Robert, we find an “open book” policy, both for himself and GLBC. He’s an advocate of honesty as he believes the best way to operate a successful business is by disclosing information to all employees. The open book policy encourages motivation across all departments as it quantifies the results of our collective hard work.
“The best thing I ever did was start running open books in the nineties,” he says. “I’d teach every employee how to read a financial statement. Every month, we’d review the books together. When you’re profit-sharing, it means people can see when they’ve made a few extra hundred bucks in a month and that’s exciting. Everyone feels and acts like an owner.”
Yet, with hard work and determination comes the most important thing—bringing employees together. At GLBC, we do just that through countless diverse events and activities throughout the year. Robert is adamant about cultivating the “family” mentality within GLBC. He continues to enrich GLBC through events like our Holiday Children’s Party, where Bob personally attends the event to oversee that every child and grandchild receives a gift. he personally purchases gifts for all of the children. With acts and values like Robert’s, GLBC has been named one of B.C.’s top employers and one of Canada’s Top Small and Medium Employers in 2022. Robert continually drives the GLBC team to think creatively and lead with passion. GLBC simply would not be without Robert and Margaret Meggy. We are grateful to learn from and grow with their supportive leadership. Thanks to the Meggy’s, the Great Little Box has inspired numerous colleagues to adopt a similar interest and passion in their practice.