John Holman Watson knows a good investment when he sees one. He’s built his life and career around an uncanny ability to recognize good deals early on and make them happen. And he does it so everyone involved benefits from the venture.
Watson was born to Absolom and Mary Outlaw Watson on February 12, 1938, in the small rural community of Skipperville in Dale County.
With the success he has made for himself over the course of his 66 years, you’d think Watson would be beaming with pride. But friends and those that know him say the exact opposite, that even though he may facilitate a business deal and all credit for its succeeding should go to him, Watson would rather others get the praise for his work.
Watson worked a variety of jobs coming up, from delivering ice to carpentry to roof work. When he graduated a year early from Newton High School in 1955 he had a desire to play college football and become an engineer. He had promise as a running back but turned down a scholarship at The University of Alabama for Auburn University’s then superior engineering program. He also figured he could land a position on the football team as a walk-on.
He failed to make the team and was disappointed greatly, even more so when the Tigers won their only national championship that year. But, as he had learned early in life, when something doesn’t go right you have to move on to something else.
The first person in his family to attend college, Watson was a co-op student, working at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville and The Corps of Engineers at Ft. Rucker, and became involved in the advanced ROTC program at the University. Upon graduating from Auburn in 1960 with a degree in mechanical engineering, Watson married Gail Pearson of Ozark and entered the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a second lieutenant.
After serving on active duty in 1961 and 1962 during the Berlin Crisis, Watson and his wife moved back to Dothan where he took a job as an engineer for Smith’s Inc., the largest mechanical contracting firm in the area.
Watson worked 100 hours a week, and in 1966 he and two other employees bought 47 percent interest in the company from James M. Smith. Four years later they purchased the rest of the firm, a transaction made possible by Mr. Smith providing the financing.
Watson considered growing Smith’s Inc. into a regional or national firm but decided it would be better to diversify in other types of business because of ups and downs in the economy and it would enable him to be near home and be able to spend more time with his family. His dealings with Smith and the two partners that helped him buy out the business influenced Watson to want to continue to go into business ventures with friends and partners that he liked, respected and that could add value.
Watson has had his hands in a number of businesses, including Engineered Systems, Inc., a general contracting and design firm performing only negotiated projects. The company specializes in design/build projects on shopping centers, office buildings, warehouses, and industrial buildings. In 1998 the company worked with Auburn University and designed and built the Auburn Indoor Football Practice Facility; Higgins Electric Inc, an industrial contracting, engineering, and electrical supply business; Aladan, Inc., which became the largest latex glove producer in the U.S. and the largest condom manufacturing company in the world; USA Yeast, Inc. a baker’s yeast company built in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, which is the “state of the art” baker’s yeast plant in the world. The plant will produce 1/7 of the total U.S. fresh yeast demand and is the only American-owned baker’s yeast plant in America. (Smith’s, Higgins Electric and Engineered Systems designed and built the two plants); South Alabama Brick Company, which has offices in Alabama and Florida; Southeastern Commercial Financial, LLC, a company specializing in making asset-based loans to businesses and also now has offices in Nashville, TN and Atlanta, GA; and Twitchwell, Inc., a Dothan company with manufacturing facilities in China, specializing in the manufacturer of fabric for the casual furniture market.
Watson’s greatest asset has always been his ability to foresee a business opportunity, weigh rewards against risks, and, if he believes he can make it work, bringing in as many friends and their expertise as he can, spreading good fortune amongst those he likes and respects. He has been described as selfless, soft-spoken, and concerned for others.
Watson has served as a trustee and elder in the Evergreen Presbyterian Church. He has served on the board of Houston Academy, the Dothan Boys Club, the Alabama Research Institute, and the Alabama Industrial Relations.
He was named the 1996 Presidents Council Volunteer of the Year for the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind and serves on the institute’s board. He was the 1988 chairman of the Dothan Area Chamber of Commerce and a graduate of Leadership Alabama. In 1998, he received the Community Service Award from Troy State University Dothan.
He is a past member and Chairman of the Alabama Ethics Commission and currently on the board of directors of Regions Financial Corporation.
He and his wife, Gail Pearson Watson, have a daughter, Abby Jo Watson Down, and a son, John Ronney Watson, and six grandchildren.
