By North Andover Life Staff
Lisa Torrisi was just ten years old when she reported for her first job, working alongside her aunt operating the switchboard at her family’s business.
“I remember the bell ringing at the Kittredge School and walking out with friends,” recalled Lisa. “They headed home or to sports, and I headed to Lawrence to start my shift.”
That shift was at Jackson Lumber and Millwork, a business founded by Lisa’s grandfather in 1946. Over the decades, Jackson would grow into one of the region’s premier building materials suppliers, serving professional builders and project-minded homeowners alike.
By the time Lisa was old enough to work, she was joining a long line of aunts, uncles, cousins, and siblings who helped keep the family business running.
“It was work, but it was fun,” said Lisa. “I was surrounded by family.”
Her father, Al Torrisi, took over the family business in 1982, continuing a tradition of hands-on leadership that would eventually extend to his own children.
“Growing up, I worked a lot of different jobs at every level of our company,” said the elder Torrisi. “I’m grateful that my children embodied that same drive to be part of our business.”
For Lisa, the switchboard was just the beginning of a long list of responsibilities at Jackson.
“They had me doing a lot of different things,” she laughed, standing alongside her father at one of the many counters inside Jackson Kitchen Designs. “I joke that my after-school program was filing in the business office. Except it’s not a joke.”
But those early experiences taught her something that would shape her understanding of the business for years to come. The sense of family she experienced wasn’t limited to those who shared her last name.
“Even at a young age, I understood and valued my coworkers as family and – just as important – that we were serving people and families,” said Lisa.
That philosophy helped fuel Jackson Lumber’s growth. The company eventually outgrew its original Jackson Street location in Lawrence, relocating to a larger facility on Market Street. Its footprint expanded to include locations in Woburn, Amesbury, and Raymond, New Hampshire, as well as Jackson Kitchen Designs in North Andover.
Today, two of Lisa’s brothers and her cousin lead the company, while her father enjoys retirement. After spending time working in the private and nonprofit sectors, Lisa returned to the family business in 2015.
She now leads the company’s North Andover showroom, located in the Butcher Boy Marketplace Plaza.
It was there, seated at one of the showroom’s model kitchen counters, that Lisa and her father reflected on the company’s long history and the responsibility of carrying its legacy forward.
“We are wrapping up our 80th year,” said Lisa. “A lot has changed within our industry, and how people expect to be serviced. I think what has made us successful, including growing to the point where we now employ over 200 people across our five sites, is that we never lost focus on serving our customers as if they were our own family.”
For Lisa, that commitment takes on particular importance when working with homeowners navigating the often-overwhelming process of designing or renovating a kitchen.
“Building or renovating a kitchen has so many moving parts that it can leave homeowners feeling paralyzed,” she explained. “So it was important to us to build a team of professionals that go into every conversation understanding that feeling, and approaching the construction process with thoughtfulness.”
It is an approach rooted in the same values that guided her grandfather when he opened the business eight decades ago: understanding customers’ needs, earning their trust, and treating them with care.
Throughout the conversation, Lisa occasionally stepped away to answer a question or greet a customer. Her father remained seated at the model kitchen counter, watching his daughter carry on the family’s tradition.
For a man who spent much of his life building the business his father started, the moment offered a glimpse of what eight decades of hard work had made possible.
“I’m proud of my kids for helping carry this legacy into the third generation, and now we are starting to see the fourth generation,” said Al. “I think what’s made this possible is that they walked in the shoes of the people who work in the company. And what’s made it successful is that they serve our customers like they’re family. I couldn’t have hoped for more.”
