By TOM MARINER //
A tireless leader, real innovation, deep devotion among staff – these are the hallmarks of many successful tech firms headquartered on Long Island.
But let’s not discount the “chip off the old block” factor.
Stuart Herskovitz, the spark-plug founder of Ronkonkoma-based medical-device component supplier Qosina, can tell you all about it.
IN 2015, the Town of Islip helped Herskovitz locate his factory/distribution center in half of a building opposite Long Island MacArthur Airport; my Quantum Medical Imaging occupied the other half. There were many evenings when I locked up after the second shift and noticed Qosina’s corner-office lights burning brightly. Inside was Herskovitz, head down, absorbed in his detailed work.
His business was related to mine – distributing parts for medical-device design and manufacturing phases, all highly regulated stuff. Years earlier, Herskovitz recognized an opportunity to supply the regulated medical-device community with stock components and followed a simple formula: easy-to-buy products from trusted companies, cleverly marketed.
Tom Mariner: Family man.
He understood that the two major parts of the “bio” industry – medical devices and pharmaceuticals manufacturing – were heavily regulated, and the FDA required quality systems and exacting specifications. He followed the specs to the letter.
In addition to visiting potential customers to learn what they needed, he took advantage of medical equipment tradeshows, where the customers came to him – stopping by his booth to discuss the products he exhibited and drop hints about their component-related “pain points.”
He saw that minimum-order restrictions, while appealing to large manufacturers, would deter smaller firms and innovative product development even in larger companies, so he insisted on sampling tiny quantities. Once the component was designed in, Herskovitz reasoned, prototyping would follow, and the need for larger volumes of specific parts would grow.
Even better, this would help end users see Qosina as a trusted supplier. A partner.
This focus on sampling has become an enormous Qosina distribution center, stuffed with tens of thousands of varieties of machine parts – all stored in an automated system designed for quick retrieval and rapid sample-order processing.
Stuart Herskovitz: Component proponent.
Herskovitz is not just a great marketer and manager. He personally innovates, with three patents in his name and two more applications filed. And he understands the need for a broad management structure, compelling him to hire super-qualified talent from outside the firm.
Eventually, though, he found the right corporate heir in his son, Scott, Qosina’s president and CEO as of 2018 and board chairperson as of this year.
Aha, you say, blatant nepotism. But nothing could be further from the truth.
After earning an MBA from Erasmus University’s Rotterdam School of Management, Scott struck out to make his own mark. He was the founder and technical director of Kooky Interactive, a late 1990s startup specializing in interactive multimedia; he spent years directing sales and marketing for North Carolina-based Andersen Sterilizers, which deals in high-efficiency ethylene oxide sterilization technologies.
He’s also spent years contributing to various high-profile director and advisory boards, including his current seat on the Medical Advisory Board of Stony Brook University’s Center of Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology and the Bio-Process Systems Alliance Board of Directors.
In 2006, Scott brought his talents to Qosina, first as business development manager. He embraced his father’s “easy to buy” mantra and helped the family business establish a strong e-commerce presence – among other things, he automated the firm’s superb catalog, a technical achievement that would make NASA proud.
As the CEO says, the latest marketing, distribution and management tools stay faithful to his father’s vision and lifelong work, with a few innovative wrinkles. Herskovitz’s circa-1980s trade show exhibits now happen 25 times a year, around the world, and have a particular bio-pharma emphasis (good news for Qosina, whose single-use components are ideal for critically important for things like mRNA-based vaccine research).
These days, it’s mostly Scott in the booth, echoing the senior Herskovitz’s lessons about up-close-and-personal customer interactions. His dad is still whispering in his ear, but you know the kid gets it.
And the Long Island family cycle continues.
Tom Mariner is the executive director of Bayport-based Long Island Bio.
