I've always been amazed how many people touch each medal before it goes out the door," says Scott Haines. "Throughout the entire process, someone is actually working with the piece with their hands."

When an order is placed, the medal is linked to a chain, boxed, and labeled according to the retailer's needs. In almost all cases, the retailer will have their store name and logo hot-stamped inside the box. "All products are custom-assembled per the customer's specifications," says Jane Bliss. "The customer nooses the medal, chain and box style."

Bliss Manufacturing has a long history of conducting business the old-fashioned way-person to person-but embraces new technology. The company's website (www.blissmfg.com) went up years ago. "It's proved to be a tremendous asset to our retailers," says

Alan Hess. "They can view new products or help a customer find a particular medal or cross."

The company shies away from automating its customer service, though. "As wonderful as the computer is," says Frank Bliss, "I don't want a computer answering the phone.  When you call, a person answers the phone."

Steven Loewenthal, who handles the marketing and digital photography of the products, remembers his call for a job interview about five years ago. Frank Bliss

answered the phone himself. "I said, 'I like this-a hands-on guy who will answer the phone,''' Loewenthal recalls.

That hands-on attitude extends outside the company. Bliss Manufacturing was one of the first members of the Catholic

Marketing Network, which Frank Bliss saw as an opportunity not only for his company, but for the entire industry.

"Often, our retailers open a store as part of their ministry," he says. "Their business has to be profitable for their ministry to continue and for the owners to achieve their goals. We've been able to help the retailers through CMN publications and trade shows, our own monthly mailers, and through our sales staff."

Through generations of service and creativity, the Bliss family's focus has remained on high quality in every aspect of the business. "When that ultimate consumer buys one of the products we manufacture, 1 want that to be the nicest product he's ever purchased," says Frank Bliss. "That way he's going to go back to that store and ask for my product."