The Humble Beginnings of Anthony ‘Spag’ Borgatti
When he was a kid, Anthony Borgatti earned the nickname “Spaghetti,” later shortened to “Spag,” because he really liked spaghetti. He didn’t enjoy plucking chickens. In school, there was a girl named Olive Lutz who thought he fooled around too much and didn’t pay attention in class. His mother told him she didn’t want him hanging out on the streets, so he started a business as a teenager. His parents helped with some money and offered him a corner of a warehouse they owned. Back in 1934, it didn’t look like the Great American success story—times were hard, and people were poor. Spag owed everyone, but he was determined.
From Small Business to Family Legacy
Meanwhile, Olive was attending school at State Teachers College (now Worcester State College). She was a bright young woman with energy, guts, and a talent for organization. By the late 1930s, the store was evolving. Profits from fireworks sales had bought oil, batteries, and other auto supplies. In 1939, Spag added garden tools and hardware supplies. Then, in 1940, he made the smartest decision of his life—he and Olive went to work together to make Spag’s a success, blending two great business minds: the idea person and the organizational expert.
They started with humble means. Orange crates served as counters, and a potbellied stove provided heat. Spag’s pocket was the cash register, and Olive would run across the street to the market to make change for a $10 bill. She also attended trade shows, hauled fertilizer, and delivered goods to customers in her 1936 Chevy. In 1939, Spag met Mr. First of DeCar-Hopkins, a hardware wholesaler. Mr. First, who proudly wore honorary employee badge number one, became their counselor, business advisor, and friend. He encouraged them and eventually gave up his sales territory to focus fully on their store.
Success for Spag’s meant breaking a few rules, like ignoring “fair trade,” which prevented discounts on certain products. Spag and Olive believed this wasn’t fair to working people, so they generally ignored it. Finally, in 1974, the government agreed and abolished fair trade laws altogether.
The Turning Points: Expansion and Innovation
In 1945, the store expanded for the first time, and in 1947, another turning point arrived—introducing toys and car lots. Customers saw toys piled up in the warehouse and felt an urge to buy them, the essence of “impulse buying.” Before long, “Spag’s” became synonymous with anything and everything, where you might find lambswool dusters with the paint supplies, cotton swabs across the aisle from electrical supplies, or lawn furniture next to jars of grape jelly.
The Unique Shopping Experience at Spag’s
No business school manual would advise basing promotions on sentiment, but that was Spag’s approach. At Christmas, they sold oranges at cost because, as children, Spag and Olive considered oranges a luxury, a big treat. What kind of success did this young couple build in the 1940s? By the time their business reached maturity, it had grown to over $60 million in annual sales, with thousands of customers passing through its doors daily.
A Family-Oriented Approach to Business
Their success also spread to vendors—big and small. Many enjoyed the privilege of selling their goods in the parking lots, building mutual loyalty. Behind the busy registers and walls filled with merchandise, there was a deep sense of family. The office was always based in the Borgatti home so that Olive could be there when her children returned from school. Carol, Sandy, and Jean attended good schools, but they helped out in the store, knowing firsthand that success required hard work.
The Borgatti family extended to their employees and the community. Among them, Vinnie Mastro, who didn’t follow the traditional management path, started as a paper boy and became Spag’s general manager at 17. Anne Leman, a school friend, became the first female employee and stayed on for 36 years. One customer once remarked, “I think Spag bought you with his first can of paint.” In the beginning, they didn’t have bins or registers, making change directly from their pockets.
Spag’s Legacy of Fairness and Service
The Greater Community’s view of Spag and Olive is clear from the hundreds of awards they’ve received and the deep appreciation from those touched by their kindness, thoughtfulness, and generosity. Being fair to people has always been at the heart of their philosophy.
“The store is only as good as the people who serve you. I expect everyone employed here to always treat customers with courtesy and helpfulness,” Spag once said. “We need you, and you need us, and together, we can do a good job for our friends and customers who depend on us.”
After 60 years, Spag’s has flourished because of Spag, Olive, their children, and all the people who worked there over the years.
“We’ve always had excellent help, and we’ll continue that tradition so customers know they’re being served by people who truly care.”
