Mike Spelman of Mike's Maytag has been on the job so long he's even outlasted the Maytag Corporation

Business writer

Mike Spelman, owner of Mike's Maytag Home Appliance Center in Pittsfield, recently celebrated his 50th year in business.

PITTSFIELD — A lot has changed in the appliance business over the last 50 years, but in Pittsfield one thing has remained constant: Mike Spelman.

Spelman has co-owned Mike Maytag's Home Appliance Center on Gordon Street with is ex-wife and business partner, Sue, since 1992. But his career in the business of fixing and selling appliances actually began 20 years earlier. He remembers the exact date: Dec. 21, 1972.

"I was shocked when I looked at the date," said Spelman, who turns 73 on June 19.

To put that date into perspective, Richard Nixon had just been elected to his second term as president and Watergate had yet to reach its crescendo. Spelman has been on the job so long that he's even outlasted the Maytag Corporation, which was sold to Whirlpool for $1.7 billion in April 2006 and now serves as a brand of that company.

"I just went day-by-day," Spelman said summing up his career. "It's Monday. It's Friday. Because we’re busy, time flies.

"It's been very rewarding helping people," he said. "Everybody's got like five appliances and it's a good feeling when you’re helping people and trying to get them good service."

Spelman began his career in the appliance business as a delivery man at the former Harder Electric on the corner of First and Fenn streets and then went into repairs.

An electronics technician in the Navy, Spelman likes to fix things.

"I loved to take things apart and see how they worked," Spelman told The Eagle. He formed his first business, Mike's Appliance Repair, while still working for Harder.

"I got tired of making money for them," doing repair work, he said. "I said, ‘How about if I pay you rent and you give me all the service?’"

Mike's Maytag Home Appliance Center in Pittsfield opened on Gordon Street in 1992.

Spelman liked the setup — "I’ve got an answering machine, I take some calls. I play golf and whatever. I don't want to be tied down to a building."

But Mike and Sue changed their minds and decided to open their own home appliance center after attending a Maytag seminar.

"All the way down there we said, ‘We’re not going to do it, we’re not going to do it,’" Spelman said. "But after we watched the seminar and talked we were in."

Maytag's offer to help the couple set up the business was the selling point. The idea made sense at the time.

"Back in the day there were like 500 Maytag home appliance centers. Now I think there's about five in the United States," Mike said (the Spelmans’ store in Pittsfield is one of the remaining few). "They closed because of the big box stores. Of course you didn't have them back in the day."

The Spelmans, who married in 1980, have been divorced for 22 years. Navigating relationships post-divorce is never easy, but the Spelmans have remained good friends, which has helped their relationship as business partners. Mike concentrates on the repair side of the business, while Sue manages the retail side.

They have two children. Their daughter, Allison, also helps at the family business.

"We like each other," Mike said, referring to his ex-wife. "I still care about her and she cares about me. It wasn't a bad divorce. We just had nothing in common."

"I’ve been with my girlfriend for 19 years and it still bugs her that I work with my ex-wife. A lot of people think we should write a book," Mike said. "She's got a very nice man now, a super guy. I’m happy for her. ... It took a long time for her to find somebody like me."

Sue, who is sitting nearby, laughs.

"You can leave that part out," she says, while playfully jostling her ex-husband.

Mike, who is known for his quick quips with customers, wears a shirt with his name on it.

"I’m the front man," he said. "I’m the funny guy. She's the serious one."

"Compared to you anyone is the serious one," Sue said, jokingly.

As business partners, Mike and Sue have seen a lot of changes since they entered the appliance business.

"It's been very rewarding helping people," Mike Spelman said. "Everybody's got like five appliances and it's a good feeling when you're helping people and trying to get them good service."

"The industry has changed incredibly," Mike said. "I had a guy come in a month ago. He bought a pump for a Maytag washer 48 years ago and it's still working. Now, if you get 10 to 12 years you did well.

"We used to build appliances in America. Now we assemble them," he said. "So we don't have the quality control that we used to have. They’re much more complicated to work on now. You really have to be a technician. Back then you could be a parts changer."

When will the Spelmans leave the business? They’re not sure.

"I don't know," Sue said. "We’re getting tired."

"I don't want to die in here," Mike said.

"Don't say that either," Sue said jokingly.

Tony Dobrowolski can be reached at [email protected] or 413-496-6224.

Business writer

Tony Dobrowolski's main focus is on business reporting. He came to The Eagle in 1992 after previously working for newspapers in Connecticut and Montreal. He can be reached at [email protected] or 413-496-6224.