Two years ago, on one of my visits with GreatAmerica in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Tony Golobic said he wanted to take me to the airport. He wanted us to leave GreatAmerica a little earlier than planned so that we could have lunch before departing.
I was intrigued by Tony, the company’s founder and now executive chairman, indicating that he wanted to take me to the airport. He either wanted to share something confidential, ask me a question, or provide an opinion on something he was considering,
It turned out he shared with me about GreatAmerica going through a process to buy a bank. It was a highly confidential discussion because of the legal implications and the lengthy process of securing the right for GreatAmerica to own a bank.
As Tony said to me, dealing with a bank and its restrictions on what can and cannot be done impedes progress and limits marketing, forcing GreatAmerica to operate under their rules. “Once we own the bank, we can focus on doing what’s right for our customers and become more resilient for the long term,” said Tony.
The message was as clear as possible. Tony saw that owning their own bank freed GreatAmerica from taking certain risks and limiting what, ideally, they would want to offer a dealer or manufacturer.
Our congratulations to Tony, and his son, Martin Golobic, CEO of GreatAmerica. It will be interesting to follow what they focus on in creating new and different marketing plans.
VIDEO: Listen to how Martin Golobic explained the pending acquisition back in April 2026.
This company has been a trendsetter since Tony started the business in 1992. A key move was inviting Jennie Fisher to join him. (Jennie, who is retiring soon from her role of group president, Office Technology, was instrumental in executing on Tony’s vision.) It is fair to say that Tony had an exceptionally innovative idea of what he wanted to do with his new leasing company.
GreatAmerica Founder and Executive Chairman Tony Golobic
The GreatAmerica backstory
Jennie started working with Tony in 1990 at LeaseAmerica. They were in the process of being purchased by GE Capital. She worked with Tony at GE until he left and started GreatAmerica in September of 1992. “I helped him formalize and edit his business plan for GA. I still have it in a box somewhere – on floppy disc,” Jennie relayed to me.
Having worked together for a couple of years, he knew exactly what he could count on her for. One of the things GreatAmerica Leasing did was to employ women in sales, guided by Jennie as the sales team leader
The copier dealer is a very conservative entity and having a woman call on a dealer in 1992 was not rare but not plentiful either. They were successful in achieving their major objectives in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Today, GreatAmerica is the second largest organization in that city. Their corporate offices are in a significant building owned by them.
How much more can you say about this company? In 12 of the last 13 years, GreatAmerica has been rated Number 1. That is how consistent their dealers who voted for them have been.
It is rare that one company can lead a market space that features several other capable organizations that are very viable competitors. That said, dealers have made clear who they believe is Number 1 in our Annual Dealer Survey.
Top photo: Martin Golobic (from left), Frank Cannata, and Tony Golobic at The Cannata Report’s 39th Annual Awards & Charities Gala in 2024.
