Switching from the automotive parts industry to newspaper
publishing is easier than one might think
– if you’re an accountant.
Chris Lake became the Mainstreet Media Group’s new chief
financial officer Feb. 2. He comes from Massachusetts, where he is
phasing out as chief financial officer of the Acushnet Rubber
Company, of New Bedford. Acushnet makes rubber brake components and
seal rings for cars and trucks.
Switching from the automotive parts industry to newspaper publishing is easier than one might think – if you’re an accountant.
Chris Lake became the Mainstreet Media Group’s new chief financial officer Feb. 2. He comes from Massachusetts, where he is phasing out as chief financial officer of the Acushnet Rubber Company, of New Bedford. Acushnet makes rubber brake components and seal rings for cars and trucks.
Mainstreet Media publishes the Gilroy Dispatch, Hollister Free Lance, Morgan Hill Times and other periodicals.
Lake, 34, hasn’t worked in publishing before, but publisher Steve Staloch, who is Mainstreet Media’s senior vice president and chief operations officer, says he likes Lake’s “broad and varied background.” Before Acushnet Rubber, Lake was CFO of the Geneva (food) Ingredients Group in Waunakee, Wis. Before that, he worked in manufacturing, retail distribution, investment and health care.
Mainstreet Media’s Chief Executive Officer Anthony Allegretti said Lake is an important piece in the new company’s strategic planning.
“We are thrilled to have someone with Chris Lake’s background on our senior management team. His diverse accounting expertise will not only assist us in the day-to-day operations, but also in our quest for other newspaper acquisitions for the Mainstreet Media Group.” Allegretti said.
It’s a time of transition for Lake, who has been staying in a Gilroy hotel for the past week while his wife Vicki and their daughters Brittany, 8, and Brianna, 3, remain at their home in Mattapoisett, Mass.
“We’ve got our house on the market out there, and we’ll start looking in the Gilroy/Hollister area pretty soon,” Lake said.
Meanwhile, he expects to keep working two jobs for the next couple of months until he can end his position with Acushnet.
His first impression of California is colored by the fact that Massachusetts is currently in the dead of a particularly cold winter.
“Great weather for this time of year,” he said.
He is curious about the coast and local golf courses, but so far he’s been too busy for sightseeing.
At work, Lake is “still getting my feet wet. … Soon I’ll be getting into streamlining the company’s financials, and making systems more efficient.”
Staloch said Lake “came very highly recommended.”
“Accounting is the service after the sale in our business,” Staloch said. “If our bills are wrong, if we don’t follow up in a timely manner, … our general customer service is affected.”
