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Frank Filmeck, longtime CEO of the Busy Beaver Building Centers chain, resigned from the company late last month. Joseph Kallen, a local business entrepreneur, will serve as the company’s new CEO.
Busy Beaver Building Centers was founded in 1962 in Pittsburgh as a distributor of roofing, lumber and building material products to professional contractors and d-i-y customers.
In the 1970s and 1980s the company continued to expand merchandise assortments to include hardware, plumbing, electrical and seasonal products.
Today, Busy Beaver operates 14 full-line home improvement centers in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.
Kallen is the son of the founder and president of Key Contractors, a construction firm located and operating in the Philadelphia metropolitan area.
He is also the founder of Asset Management Associates Corporation, a holding company for operating and realty entities. He has previous experience as a franchisee of Rita’s Italian Ice, a frozen dessert chain originated in Philadelphia; and a real estate and retail shopping center redeveloper.
As Busy Beaver’s new CEO, Kallen aims to focus on three strategic initiatives—engagement, enhancement and expansion—to guide Busy Beaver over the next five years.
