Knowing the importance of service, he was often seen riding around in his first service vehicle, a motorcycle with sidecar.

At one time, the Spinello operation was as much involved with lawnmowers as with locks. Old photographs show rows of push mowers in front of the store awaiting sharpening and repair. But locks and locksmithing were Matt Sr.’s passion.

 
 

Matt Spinello Sr. became increasingly busy with his new business and removed his sons Joseph and Ignatius Spinello out of school to assist with the family business. Joseph quickly learned the tricks of the trade from his father.

Matt Spinello Sr. retired from the business in the 1950’s, Joseph took over the business. Joseph’s brother-in-laws Frank and Jo Jo Fasula were added to the work crew. The Master Locksmith, Joseph Spinello, taught them the trade. Frank Fasula and Jo Jo Fasula specialized in "safe cracking". They were two of the best "safe crackers" in the world.

 
The mobile service fleet grew from a motorcycle with sidecar to six radio dispatched fully stocked mobile workshops. They even spent additional money on the fleets exterior paint schemes to distinguish ourselves. Instead of one color, hand lettered vehicles; we went to a three-color paint scheme with graphics and the renowned Spinello logo. These vehicles are also our mobile billboards.  M. Spinello emphasized the importance of being able to handle the immediate needs of their walk in customers by stocking more products and adding employees. "Sometimes, our competitors actually refer their customers to us now," said James R. White. M Spinello and Son now employs ten full time employees and plan to expand their mobile service fleet within the year.

 
Another challenge M. Spinello and Son faced was the growing security industry. Large, national, chain hardware stores, and local and national security companies infiltrated the Rockford area. Providing just lock and safe service just wasn’t enough. The company integrated intercom entry systems, access control systems, electrical locks, keyless entry devices, closed circuit television systems, and other new age security products and services. M. Spinello were also careful to provide the same quality service with these new products as they did when they serviced push mowers and guns. These newer services were essential to the growth and prosperity of the business. They research new security products daily. Their customers wanted us to also install burglar alarms as well.  But M. Spinello drew the line because they knew that it would jeopardize their service quality.

Handing a company down through four generations, successfully, is not an easy accomplishment.  Times change and individuals and philosophies change with it. The older generations of Spinello wanted to replace a piece of equipment when it broke down. They younger generations wanted to replace the same equipment and purchase another, before the first broke down. The different generations voiced different opinions. Despite these differences, the family still acknowledged the importance and meaning of each business decision that was made. They took into account the previous experiences of the prior generation and tried to understand the decisions that were made with this in mind. This developed a trust from generation to generation. Family members now represent over fifty percent of the work force.

M. Spinello and Son now service over 4500 residential, commercial and industrial accounts. In the last six years, their annual sales have increased over 100 percent. The name M. Spinello is still synonymous with quality service and products in northern Illinois, even after ninety-five years.

"I remember one time a boy about five years old came in," said Joseph Spinello who passed away in 1996." He asked me how much it was to make a key for an old padlock. I told him the first key was a dollar the second key was twenty five cents." The boy said, ‘I’ll take the second one, and Joseph charged him twenty-five cents.