VARTAN’S SON GROWING INTO HIS NEW ROLE AS CHAIRMAN
by Sharon Smitho

Patriot-News, PA
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July 1 2007

Most people would agree that John O. Vartan was an imposing figure
in Harrisburg.

A former engineer at Gannett Fleming, the Armenian immigrant vowed
to start his own business. He did when he created the Vartan Group.

Eventually, he became the dominant real estate developer in Harrisburg,
a restaurateur, the operator of a building-supply company and the
owner of a bank that bore his name.

Vartan wasn’t shy about taking on those in power. He took Harristown
Development Corp. to court for the right to develop properties in
the city. He ended up prevailing and received property on North Fifth
Street, where he built the Pennsylvania School Employees Retirement
System building.

Filling his shoes would be a tough task for anyone, but that’s what
his son, H. Ralph Vartan, did when his father died in December 2004
after a lengthy battle with throat cancer.

Most experts say successful family business transitions take time
and lots of planning. Time was something the Vartan family didn’t have.

Ralph Vartan was just 23 when his father died.

"He left great files for me," said Ralph, now 25. "He took me along
and I was sort of his sidekick for the last, maybe, eight months of
his life. But unfortunately, I was 23 years old and he died young. I
knew he wished he had a few more years."

While many people initially wondered how the company would function
without Vartan, most agree not much has changed, including the lobby of
the Susquehanna Twp. office building where the Vartan Group is based.

Reminders of the company’s founder are everywhere. A Michigan Tech
clock hangs in the lobby. John Vartan received an engineering degree
there. A framed cover of Harrisburg magazine hangs next to it. The
dark-haired, dark-eyed Vartan graces the cover. In a portrait hanging
on the next wall, Vartan’s arms are folded and his dark suit and
serious expression leave no doubt that he was all about business.

The Vartan Group might forever be associated with John Vartan and
its past. But it’s Ralph Vartan’s company now, and he’s its future.

It’s a role Ralph Vartan appears to be growing into.

A trained concert pianist, Vartan went back to school and is working
on a master’s degree in business administration at Penn State
University. He divides his time between classes in State College and
spreadsheets at the company headquarters.

Community leaders are impressed with the budding businessman.

"He is driven," said David Black, president of the Harrisburg
Regional Chamber. "And to that extent, his father was a very driven
individual. We’re going to see that in Ralph as he matures from a
business sense."

Ralph Vartan’s leadership skills will likely take on more importance
now that Robert DeSousa, the company’s CEO, has been called up for
military service.

Many business and city leaders credit DeSousa with giving the company
focus and keeping it on track after John Vartan’s death.

"Everybody was worried when John passed on that the company would
decline rapidly," said Randy King, former spokesman for the city.

"That has not happened. That’s been Bob DeSousa. Bob is helping to
mentor and train Ralph. Not much has changed really."

They also credit Ralph Vartan for taking on a taxing role at such a
young age.

"You have to admire [Ralph’s] dedication to the company and the
legacy as well," King said. "He could be selling out Carnegie Hall
every night. Instead, he’s here in Harrisburg keeping things moving.

He’s a warm, compassionate, sincere man."

And he seems up to the task of running the business in DeSousa’s
absence.

"Fortunately, his [military] deployment began right as my school ended,
so I can come back and help," Vartan said.

DeSousa’s temporary military duty is not the first hurdle Vartan has
faced since taking over. Figuring out exactly what the company owned
and what to do with it was a challenge.

After spending 11/2 months going through everything, the family decided
to shed some of the company’s peripheral businesses, such as Vartan
National Bank and the Parev restaurant, and concentrate on the real
estate end of things.

"For me, I grew up following my dad to the construction sites," he
said. "I remember the smell of drywall and concrete. I just love it."

It’s a love he inherited from his father.

"Whenever we passed by the Forum Place, he would always look up and
have a smile on his face," Vartan said. "And he would say, ‘Man,
that’s an awesome building.’"

With one more year to go before he finishes his master’s degree,
Vartan seems well-positioned to feel that same sort of satisfaction.

The Vartan Group, one of the largest private landowners in the city,
is holding land along North Sixth Street and Seventh Street, which
is ripe for development.

"I think if I did nothing right now but work on the stuff we have
ongoing, I’d be busy for five years," Vartan said. "So, I figure if
I could start one or two more projects … that will keep us busy for
seven to 10 years. So, yeah, we have a lot of work to do in this town."

Much like his father, Ralph Vartan sees what Harrisburg could be
instead of what it is. In fact, he plans to move to the city once he
earns his degree.

"It ought to be a city with 50 to 100 percent more residents," he
said. "It ought to have retail shopping. It ought to have a grocery
store — at least one."

Whether the Vartan Group will be the developer to build a supermarket
in the city remains to be seen. But it’s clear that Ralph Vartan is
committed to Harrisburg.

"I’d love to move our office downtown," Vartan said. "We have some
land on Front Street listed for sale. We have some beautiful land."

He also wants to expand the company’s geographic presence.

"We’re really focused in the Harrisburg area," he said. "I think
it’s a mistake for us, in the long run, only to be in Harrisburg. We
want to do lots of stuff downtown, but we want to do stuff in other
cities, too."

That might sound like a huge task, but in many ways Vartan’s biggest
challenge is the one he places on himself.

"I’d like to say if I am half the man my father was, I’ll be like one
of the best people in our community," he said. "Another part of me
says if I am not even greater — if I don’t even do greater things than
he did — then somehow I did not build upon the foundation he laid."