Aside from being an active and proud Dad, Keith Webb, is the owner of a thriving business CVI Digital Solutions – a well-respected leader in providing digital office technology and caring partnerships to the Colorado business community. Also, back in the 80’s, Keith had the foresight to invest in real estate in the LoDo area because he believed strongly that the lower part of Denver, so rich in history, would blossom into what it is today.
Keith is a very soft spoken, considerate gentleman who seems to have the patience of a saint. He is very humble and unassuming. When I mentioned to Keith that I’d heard a story about how he sponsored a young aspiring fighter (without any resources) from the 20th Street Gym Boxing Team, so the young man could attend a championship fight out of town, Keith modestly confessed: “One of my past employees was a trainer for disadvantaged kids. I sponsored one of the fighters. I wanted to help someone have the opportunity to follow their dream.”
The Webb’s also support several charitable organizations in Colorado. Among the nonprofits they support are: The Beacon Center/Cherish the Children, The Arapahoe House, The Denver Rescue Mission, The Montbello Boys and Girls Club, and The Wildlife Experience.
Keith’s plans for the future include continuing to grow his business, and eventually, he would like to go back to working on some real estate development projects. You never know; maybe after the kids are grown, the Webb’s might just end up back in historic LoDo!
Tell me about your family’s Colorado roots? My parents moved to Colorado from St. Louis, MO in 1951. I was born in Colorado and have lived here all my life.
How did you get involved in the field you are in? My father, Clyde, started CVI in 1966. It was started as a coin-op {vend} for libraries and universities. We also had installs in Safeway and King Soopers stores throughout Colorado.
Your company has been around for almost 40 years. What changes have you seen take place through the years? We went from a coin-operated only to a full retail office products dealership when I took over the company from my father in 1988.
Why do you have an office in Boulder as well as Denver? We service the North Colorado area out of our Boulder office including Fort Collins, Greeley, and Loveland. We service and supply Central Denver and Southern Colorado out of our Denver office.
I understand that your company is the official copier and fax supplier to the Denver Broncos? How did that come about? CVI has been the official supplier to the Broncos for five years. We purchased a company called First Business Systems that had been supplying to the Broncos for approximately 10 years.
What do you love most about Colorado? I love the wonderful climate, change of seasons, as well as all the recreational opportunities Colorado has to offer.
Who is your hero or mentor? My father. He had so much ambition and drive, which taught me to work hard, take risks, and follow my dream.
What words of wisdom did your parents give you? I learned more from observing. I always watched how my parents did things. My Dad worked hard doing many different types of jobs, and I grew up in an environment that opened my eyes to what you can be when you work hard - and do take some risks. I’ve had a lot of rewards from learning by example.
What is your idea of a perfect get-a-way? I would really enjoy spending time in Italy up the coastline from Sicily.
What is the greatest problem this country is facing today? That’s a great question. We are becoming a global world. Everything is interconnected and intertwined - economies, currencies, stock; it’s interesting how one thing affects the other one. We saw it after 9/11; how the stock market reacted in the U.S. and elsewhere.
The issue of our country’s security, to make our lives safer, is a big issue. We are going to have to come up with more practical ways to do this. Safer borders are very important. It’s going to take a high tech process to start screening out who is coming and going in and out of our borders. World peace will be hard to accomplish, so we will need to figure out ways to protect ourselves. I hope that my kids will have the opportunities to safely travel abroad like I had. Because of the terrorism and negative things happening in other countries, it could make it hard to travel without worrying about your own – and your family’s - security.
What do you consider your proudest achievement? I am proud of my dedicated employees and how CVI has grown into a successful multi-million dollar company.
What does the future hold for Keith Webb? I’ve always had a little bit of the entrepreneur and developer in me. I’d like to do some building projects. It’s a bit out of the realm for now, but it’s always been a passion of mine to put an entire project together and develop it, so that’s something down the road that still will happen. I got a little taste of it with some of the buildings I’ve purchased through the years that I rent or lease out, and I’ve built some condominiums, etc. It’s just an interest of mine, and I definitely want to get more involved in that.
What is CVI’s commitment to your customers - and to the community? As our mission statement says: “CVI Digital Solutions is committed to providing our business partners with the best value in digital office technology. We honor our commitment to true value with ethical business practices, integrity, rapid problem solving, and quality equipment and services for long-term relationships. We are dedicated to creating an environment for our employees that promotes job satisfaction, respect, and personal growth.”
What advice would you give someone who is unhappy with his or her job? If you don’t enjoy what you are doing, especially in an office environment, then you shouldn’t be there. It’s a big part of your life. You need to go out and find something you have a passion for that you can make interesting and fun.
What do you attribute the success of your company to? I would attribute that to a lot of hard work from my dedicated staff and our commitment to customer service. We want to make all decisions a Win-Win for our customers.
What do you consider good customer service? With all the competition these days, what do customers expect? We expect to take care of their office product needs so that they can run their businesses smoothly. They expect ethical business standards and reliable, professional service.
What is the future of high tech in the United States? What will it take for us to be able to continue to compete globally? It changes daily and quickly. We need to stay informed and educated to keep up with these changes. We need to give our kids opportunities through education, to become entrepreneurs and experts in the high tech industry. Right now, several Asian countries have more people and manpower to potentially take over certain areas of technology and run with it.
What are your thoughts about big business mergers? In many cases it makes sense economically to be able to stay competitive.
What changes do you foresee making at your company to keep up with the future? We are becoming a solution provider from document management from start to finish, including disaster recovery, and document storage and retrieval.
What’s new and exciting in your industry? Everything now - once it’s copied - can be scanned into your hard drives, then you can modify it, change it, send it to anyone by e-mail, and then put it back into storage. It’s amazing what can happen now from what it was in the past. Now the copiers are multi-functional; they are digital so they act as copiers, scanners, and faxes - and all in color! Whatever source you receive a document in, you can manage it without out having to put it through a lot of different systems.
What different countries have you been to? I’ve traveled all over Europe - Germany Italy, Spain (some buddies and I go run with the bulls there). The East Indies, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Venezuela.
Anywhere you still want to go? Yes, I’d like to visit Asia - especially Thailand and Japan.
Where would you like to do some of your development projects? Wherever it looks like there are some new opportunities and new frontiers. I just flew out to Costa Rica and looked at some land there.
