Stacey J. Schacter is President and CEO of Vion Investments which focuses on receivable buying, servicing and collections in the financial services industry. He also serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Briannaco Investments.
Stacey has also served as President of OSI Portfolio Services; President, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Legal Officer of EMCC, Inc.; and attorney and advisor to several debt and receivable purchasing firms. He was a practicing attorney from 1988 to 1999 and is a member of the Ohio and Massachusetts Bar and is authorized to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Here is a glimpse of what Stacey shared in the interview.
My family did not make a lot of money. My father came up through the great depression, and held down many jobs so that I could go to college. I learned the value of hard work and other principles from him. Yes, I would have to say he was my first mentor and from him, I learned that everyone has an obligation to mentor.
Mentors come along all through your life. You have to be open and accepting to what they have to offer. For example, Arthur Levine had a reputation for “chewing through people”. He was still a great mentor when it came to negotiation, or how to get the deal done. You have to understand what the seller is trying to accomplish and structure the deal around their need. It is not just thinking about the cash. Most mistakes have been made in the analysis of the person and not the numbers.
We need an economy that fluctuates. This fluctuation or adversity is what causes opportunities. We started out purchasing performing assets, but the market provided us a great opportunity in charged off debt. The market has now shifted and we are back focusing on other opportunities that have been caused by disruption or distress. You have to take risks and believe that the next great deal is around the corner.
If you are open, mentors can be all types of people. They can be your employees or people who have made mistakes. You can learn from an experience, like when I sold men’s shoes. My success came when I learned to talk to people and see what they wanted.
