Our History

The Grossman family has deep New England roots. Family patriarch Louis Grossman emigrated from Podeski, Russia, to Massachusetts in 1890. He then started a salvage business that later became Grossman Lumber, for many years the largest distributor of lumber and building materials in the Eastern United States.

Grossman Lumber had 87 retail branches at its peak. After selling the operating business in 1969, the family retained and has since opportunistically redeveloped or sold the real estate. In 1980 Morton Grossman, the grandson of the patriarch, and Louis, Morton's son, amicably bought out the other 83 family stockholders and launched The Grossman Companies.

Today, Louis J. Grossman is chairman of The Grossman Companies, Inc. and sons, David and Jake (the fifth generation of Grossmans in the business) are Co-Presidents. We own a roughly 2.5 million square foot portfolio spanning all major property types and make private loans to builders, developers and real estate investors through our affiliate, First Boston Capital Partners.

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Timeline

1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1969 1970 1980 1990 2000 2009-2011 2010

1890s

Louis Grossman immigrates to Boston. After buying a horse and wagon, he starts a traveling salvage business, collecting and selling junk throughout the area.

1900s

In 1900 Louis' oldest sons, Reuben (14) and Jacob (12), come into the business. The company, now called L. Grossman and Sons, begins selling used furniture and acquires its first property, an abandoned monument manufacturing plant on Jackson Street in Quincy.

1910s

Selling more and more lumber and building materials allows the firm to purchase a new supply yard on Federal Avenue in Quincy (1915). Five years later, a site on Granite Street is acquired.

1920s

With the 1923 arrival of Sidney, all four of Louis sons are involved in the family business. The focus continues to shift away from junk and toward the lumber and building materials operation. In 1928, following Louis retirement, the firm becomes L. Grossman Sons, Inc., and the first branch lumber yard opens in Billerica.

1930s

The lumber and building materials operation continues to thrive and the company salvages more abandoned properties. After a devastating hurricane in 1938, the U.S. government buys damaged timber from distressed landowners and contracts with Grossman to transform the dead trees into usable lumber.

1940s

The Grossman Surplus Company is incorporated in 1946 and sets up shop in Braintree to store and sell unused war supplies from dismantled army camps, naval installation and shipyards. The massive yard attracts not only customers, but also sightseers by the thousands.

1950s

In response to the acute postwar housing shortage, Grossman's buys and transforms surplus Quonset huts and U.S. Army barracks into livable, short-term housing for young couples. In 1958, the company launches the "Build-It-Yourself" program, giving homeowners all the supplies and guidance needed to build their own house.

1960s

In 1962, the company enters the new "cash-and-carry" field, which represents the origins of today's home improvement industry. The test store in Wallingford, CT proves successful, leading to the opening of similar stores elsewhere in New England. By the decade's end, the company operates 81 building materials stores in the Northeast.

1969

Grossman Lumber (the operating business) is sold to Evans Products Company, but much of the company management still consists of Grossman family members. In addition, the family maintains ownership of most of the real estate and land, leasing it back to the operating business.

1970s

Grossman's Industrial Properties, the real estate-owning entity, enjoys continued financial growth throughout the decade.

1980s

In 1980, Morton Grossman and son Louis amicably acquire the real estate interests of the other family members by selling the majority of the lumber branches to a real estate investment trust. The Grossman Companies, Inc., a real estate management, investment and development firm, is born. Key investments this decade include Braintree Executive Park (Braintree, MA) and the McClellan Highway air freight industrial properties (East Boston).

1990s

The company continues to acquire property and manages through the real estate downturn of the early '90s. Key investments include 313 Washington St. (Newton, MA), 480 Sprague St. (Dedham, MA) and The Opera Building (Manchester, NH).

2000s

The Grossman Companies continues adding to its diversified, New England-concentrated portfolio. The 2004 purchase of an industrial building at 150 McClellan Highway in East Boston is followed by an expansion and conversion into an institutional-quality, 1,100 unit self-storage facility.

2009 - 2011

The fifth generation of Grossman's begins to make its mark in the business with the arrival of Louis' sons David (2009) and Jacob (2011). Each joins the company with seven years of experience in the real estate industry.

2010s

The Grossman Companies acquires over a dozen New England properties and revives its long-dormant private lending business. Reflecting the family's history and investment philosophy, over 1.3 million square feet of commercial property spanning all major product types is added throughout Southern New England. The private loan portfolio consists primarily of first mortgage bridge loans to residential builders.

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Meet Our Team

Louis Grossman

Louis J. Grossman

Chairman

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Jacob Grossman

Jacob M. Grossman

President, The Grossman Companies

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David Grossman

David B. Grossman

President, First Boston Capital Partners

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ABOUT LOUIS J. GROSSMAN

Chairman

Louis has been our chairman and treasurer since 1980, when he and his father, Morton, purchased the family real estate business and reformed the company under the new name. Under his leadership, The Grossman Companies has developed and acquired a portfolio of over 40 commercial and residential properties, primarily in New England.

In 1976 Louis began his real estate career with Sonnenblick-Goldman Advisory Corporation in New York. There, he served as mortgage officer for two real estate investment trusts. A graduate of Brown University with a BA in economics, Louis earned his MBA from Columbia University's School of Business.

ABOUT JACOB M. GROSSMAN

President, The Grossman Companies

Jake and his brother David represent the fifth generation of The Grossman family to work in our business. Jake is President of The Grossman Companies and his roles include sourcing new acquisitions and investment partnerships along with the asset management of our real estate portfolio, which comprises approximately 3 million square feet of properties in Southern New England.

Prior to joining The Grossman Companies in 2011, Jake spent five years at BayNorth Capital, a real estate private equity firm in Boston. There, he handled acquisitions and asset management of various real estate asset classes across the country. Earlier in his career, he worked in Cushman & Wakefield's Capital Markets Group. Jake graduated cum laude from Brown.

ABOUT DAVID B. GROSSMAN

President, First Boston Capital Partners

David and his brother Jake represent the fifth generation of the Grossman family to work in our business. David is President of First Boston Capital Partners, our real estate private lending business. First Boston provides construction and acquisition financing (debt and equity) to New England-based builders. In addition, he is actively involved in the asset management and financing of our commercial real estate portfolio.

Prior to joining The Grossman Companies in 2009, David served as vice president of acquisitions at Louis Dreyfus Property Group in New York. Earlier in his career, he worked for five years at Wells Fargo's Real Estate Merchant Banking Group in Boston; Washington, DC; and New York.

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Paul Dawson

Paul E. Dawson

Asset Management

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Ben Stillwell

Ben Stillwell

Private Lending

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Susan Healey

Susan Healey

CFO, The Grossman Companies

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ABOUT PAUL E. DAWSON

Asset Management

Paul worked in architecture and real estate development before spending eight years with Charter Capital Management, a real estate investment firm in Boston. More recently, he co-managed a 2 million square foot portfolio of retail, office and mixed-use properties for Crosspoint Associates (Natick, Mass.). He joined The Grossman Companies in 2012.

ABOUT BEN STILLWELL

Private Lending

Ben joined The Grossman Companies in November 2015 and is responsible for asset management of the private loan portfolio for the Grossman family’s wholly owned private lending affiliate, First Boston Capital Partners. Prior to joining The Grossman Companies, Ben served as a Portfolio Manager in Brookline Bank’s Commercial Real Estate Lending Group. Previously Ben worked for four (4) years at Gagnier Hicks Associates, a development consulting group specializing in affordable multifamily housing. Ben is a member of ULI and sits on the organization’s Program Oversight Committee and Housing and Economic Development Council. Ben graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Massachusetts, and earned a Certificate in Real Estate Finance from Boston University.

ABOUT SUSAN HEALEY

CFO, The Grossman Companies

As Chief Financial Officer at The Grossman Companies, Susan is responsible for control and accounting functions, including overseeing our financial records and internal auditing. Prior to joining our team in 2013, she spent 15 years as assistant controller at Samuels & Associates, a commercial real estate firm in Boston.

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Join Our Team

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About

The Grossman Companies is a growing company and always welcomes inquiries from exceptional candidates interested in joining our team. See below for a listing of opportunities.


If we don't have any open positions at this time — or you don't see a position that suits your qualifications — you can still get in touch.

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