"I believe one of our main strengths has always been that we're a privately owned, family business," Toby Shine said. "I'm very proud of that. Everyone working together toward a common goal is a key to success for us. That extends beyond my family. We have other families who work here as well, including key people such as our General Manager Dan Wycoff and his son Mike, who is our Plant Manager. It's a really nice legacy."

Focus on metals

With each generation's ownership came change. Fur and wool trading was phased out in the '60s and '70s, and eventually Shine Bros. focused its efforts on processing ferrous scrap (iron-based materials such as steel, cast iron and tin) and nonferrous metals such as copper, brass, aluminum, stainless steel and zinc at its 38-acre site in Spencer. The company takes in ferrous materials from about a 200-mile radius, while nonferrous materials come from all parts of the United States. In addition to working with materials at its facility, Shine Bros. also offers off-site scrap processing.

"Most of our materials come from outside sources such as other scrap dealers or individuals who salvage scrap materials and want to sell them," said Dan Wycoff, who as General Manager oversees the entire Shine Bros. operation. "Much of it is brought to us, but we pick up materials as well. In addition, we're set up with mobile equipment, which we can take to a customer's location and process materials.

"We're equipped to handle just about anything quickly and efficiently," he added. "We pride ourselves on efficiency. We bring in, process and ship out most of our materials within 24 to 48 hours. The vast majority of those materials are used in steel mills or other

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