Building A Family Business While Being A Mother With Shauna Duggar

Abstract

Posted on November 28, 2022

It takes a lot of responsibility in running a family business. Your parents could’ve easily sold it for more money. So you have to show that you are ready and up for the task. Shauna Duggar grew up working alongside her father in the carpet and flooring industry but never imagined she would be the co-owner of Quality Floors & More with her husband, Brandon. After a few years of military travel, the couple came home to raise their family and were invited to join the business Shauna’s Dad had successfully run for years. When it was clear that Shauna and Brandon were ready, the business became theirs. Join in as Shauna shares how she balances her life as a mother and her life as a business owner. Learn how to run a family business and how you can help continue its legacy. Discover some entrepreneurial advice today!

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This episode is part of a local series focused on Wimberley Valley Organizations in partnership with Wimberley Valley Radio and brought to you by Ozona Bank. Our guest is Shauna Duggar, Co-Owner of Quality Floors & More. Welcome.

Thank you for having me.

I’m so glad to have you here. We’ve known each other for a little while. Now we get to dig in and talk more about business.

I’m excited about it.

Let’s start off with you telling us a little bit about who you are and who you were before you started officially working at Quality Floors & More.

I grew up in Wimberley, Texas. I was born at the San Marcus Hospital, so I went kindergarten through 12th grade all in Wimberley schools. I married Brandon Duggar. He was also part of Wimberley High School and we got married as babies. Didn’t plan that but he was enlisting in the military. The military had different plans for us and we were at a crossroads. We either get married or we break up because it’s going to be this long-distance relationship.

We got married and had babies. We realized that coming back to Wimberley, putting our kids in Wimberley schools, and being with our families was the most important thing to us. We came back to Wimberley, didn’t expect to be in flooring but my dad, shortly after we moved back, opened up his store.

I was excited for him and happy for him. It’s not where I saw myself but I have seen a part of it. I was a part of it before he ever even opened his doors to the public. I found myself there and it became a part of my life and I love it. My husband Brandon joined us in 2014, just a couple of months shy of our one-year anniversary and here we are.

What year did your dad open the store?

He opened the store in May 2013. However, my dad has been in the flooring industry since he was seventeen years old, so I have grown up with it my entire life.

We were talking about this earlier. My dad was a carpet installer. Was your dad an installer? Is that what he did?

It’s pretty funny. He started out sweeping the warehouse. It was his first job. He swept a warehouse and he did a good job. He got moved up to warehouse manager and started installing then they brought him in to do sales. He then became a co-owner of that business then and opened his own. He evolved from the bottom all the way up.

I love that story for so many reasons. Thank you for sharing it with us. The biggest thing is that a lot of people see this huge distance between running a business, owning a business, and where they are now and how do I get from A to Z and thinking that you have to be born into money or win the lottery or have something big happen or they say that, “You’re so lucky that you have this business.”

What a lot of people don’t see is that a lot of these small business owners started by just working hard. I say just because I always dismissed myself in that same way, like, “I’m not smart, I just work hard.” I realized that the work hard was the biggest part and the willingness to sweep the floors or do the dirty work, then continuing to see what was necessary and do the work. That’s what gets you in the position to be lucky.

He has a GED from high school and no further education than that. He built this incredible business. He worked hard. As you said, that’s what I feel like. A lot of society now lacks that hard work and that ethic to keep going and keep pushing. He instilled that in me and my siblings.

A lot of society today lacks the hard work and ethics to keep pushing. Click To Tweet

When your dad was installing carpet, he was working in the warehouse. You were right there with him a lot of times.

I was. Some of my fondest memories are in the warehouse with my dad, crawling on all the carpet rolls and playing. He worked for a store in San Marcos called McGlothlin Carpets. Ron and Cheryl McGlothlin were the owners of that store. They were at the hospital the day I was born. I was literally born into this business. It’s so fun looking back on the memories of being in the store and being behind the counter and greeting customers like I was a part of it.

That’s beautiful. There’s a picture on your website of you. Are you in a diaper?

I was in training pants. It’s pretty embarrassing.

With the kicker. If anybody’s worked in flooring, they know what the kicker is. It’s like between that and the stretcher. That’s how you get the carpet to be tight and fit into the room. It takes a lot of muscle and hard work to make that happen. You and I were talking about how we always wanted to be like, “I’m the muscle here.”

I loved it when my daddy would let me go to the job sites and do the kicker. I felt like I was a part of it.

Me too, then sweeping, cleaning up, and carrying the tools like we were tough girls who knew how to do all the things. When you first started working at the shop, what was your role at that time?

My dad is great at what he does but he’s not necessarily great with computers. The way I got the job was by going into the store as he was remodeling the building and getting ready to build his showroom. He was at a computer and super frustrated because he could not get the programming to work the way he wanted it to. I said, “Daddy, let me help you.” I got on the computer. The next day he called me back and said, “I need help again.” I said, “I’ll be right there.” The next day, “I need help again.” Before I knew it, I was there every day and I said, “Am I working for you or are we doing this?”

“Are you going to pay me?”

I had two little kids at home. I was happy as a stay-at-home mom. I never saw myself going to work for him but being there, I was happy to be with him. If I was going to go to work, I wanted it to be with somebody who understood that I was a mom first and then an employee. My dad saw that was my desire and he was able to work with me. I went in, helped with computers, started the programs, made sure the lights were still turned on month after month, and paid our vendors and our installers.

Family Business: If you want to be a stay-at-home mom first and then an employee second, you need to find a boss that understands that.

All of a sudden, I started doing all the tax stuff. It evolved into this thing where I was there every day. I was a major part of the management. He allowed me to make big decisions for the company with him. I did the hiring with him. I sat in on the interviews. I did a lot of the marketing. I went to the conventions. I went from trying to help out where I could whenever he was opening his doors to being in a key role in the business.

You said your husband Brandon started a year after the shop opened. What was his role at the time?

He was shy of a year. He came in not knowing anything about floors. He was in the military prior. He had been to Afghanistan on a couple of deployments and worked for NSA as a contractor. He didn’t have flooring on his radar of things that he was going to do but at the time, we saw that the business that my dad opened was growing and that we had a need for another salesman.

I hate to even call them salesmen because they don’t sell. We always say they don’t sell. They just educate but he was hired on to help in the showroom as a salesman. He learned the business quickly. He learned all the ins and outs of flooring quickly. He was a quick learner. He was on his own in a matter of six months to a year.

Did either of you see yourselves as going to be entrepreneurs or business owners at any point before that time?

Yes and no. Brandon and I always thought it would be so cool to own a business. I feel like I have a very entrepreneurial heart. I always have but when we got married, my dream was to go to school. I was starting school to be a CPA. I thought that was going to be my role whether I own my own firm or not. I’m not sure but I always had an entrepreneurial heart. Brandon had always said, “We need to own our own business one day,” but didn’t know what that looked like. It didn’t look like flooring at that time but we are very blessed to be where we are.

How long did you work for your dad?

I worked for my dad from May 2013 until December 2021. He won’t say he retired because he went on to do other things but he retired from the flooring industry. Brandon and I officially bought the business in January 2022.

What made him decide to move on to something else? That’s pretty much what he did most of his adult life, right?

It’s what he did always, yes. He was ready for a change. His passion is fishing. In high school, he was a fishing guide on the weekends in Rockport, Texas. He wanted to get back to that. He was at an age where he was ready to slow down and live out his dream of being a fishing guide. He is now a fly-fishing guide in Rockport, Texas.

That’s so fun. What an amazing American story that he has built for himself, starting with sweeping the floors, working hard, getting to know the business, and now having that ideal semi-retired life in Rockport, Texas.

I’m very proud of him. He’s come a long way and he’s created a huge legacy for himself.

What was the transition like in switching business ownership to you and Brandon?

It was pretty seamless. I say that because when we first got the idea that maybe this was our future, my dad and I talked about it a lot along with Brandon. When he got ready to be serious about retiring, he stepped back into his role and let Brandon and I step into his role a little bit and make a lot of the decisions for the business.

About the last year or two before he finally officially retired, Brandon and I were running a lot of the store by ourselves. He was involved in a lot of these decisions still but he let us take over. It was more like, “What do you think about this?” Rather than, “This is how it’s going to be.” Brandon and I got to step into that management position. It was almost like a trial run. It was pretty seamless because, at the point that he stepped out, Brandon and I had already been doing all of those things that business owners do. It didn’t feel like a big change at all. It felt very natural.

Has he been pretty good about staying out of the business?

He has. In the beginning, he was like, “How’s business? What do the accounts look like? What are your numbers now?” He asks a lot of questions but he’s let go. He doesn’t ask as much anymore but he said he’s done well.

I can imagine it would be difficult for me, especially when it’s a family business. You don’t get to completely cut it off. Thanksgiving and Christmas, do they still ask you?

It’s always a topic of conversation. “How’s business?” He asks that a lot but that’s okay. We don’t mind talking about the business. It’s something that we’re very proud of and we like talking about.

Do you still ask him questions or opinions?

Yes. In the flooring industry, especially Brandon who is on the job sites, there are things that you might see once every ten years. These oddball things can come up that he’s never seen before, even with all the experience that he has, and my dad has about 40 years of experience.

With this installation especially too, that’s a completely different level of insight.

It is. It’s awesome to have him because he’s this wealth of knowledge that we can go to and say, “What about this? We haven’t seen this before.” He’s always happy to share with us his knowledge and his experience. There are times that we reach out to him and ask him questions. It doesn’t happen often but there are times when we need him.

When you started to transition from being an employee into being an owner and co-owner with your husband, was it a lot more work or was it pretty much the same amount of work? Did it meet your expectations?

As I said, I came into the business and went from helping with computers and evolved to being very involved with all things. I felt like I was already doing a lot of it. I felt like I was helping with the marketing, going to the conventions, and helping with a lot of the decisions already. I felt like I already had that pretty well under control.

Brandon is still on the sales floor. He’s still doing the exact same job. He might write a check here and there for somebody when he didn’t write checks before but that’s the only thing that’s changed for him. It was super seamless and natural. I didn’t feel like we took on this huge new role that overwhelmed us at all.

You have three kids at home. Tell us their age ranges.

I do. Mackenzie is 13 and Landon is 14 months behind her. He’s 12 then we have a 7-year-old, Brady.

What is it like having your own, running your own business, and running the household at the same time?

It’s like a circus. It’s something different every day that the kids are very involved in sports, youth groups, and church. We have something every single night of the week. We’re never there. Running a household can be very difficult at times. There are times that we’re behind on the laundry or behind on the chores but Brandon is good about doing chores with me. I do all the cooking but he’s good at saying, “Do you need a night off? Let’s go out to eat.”

Running the household while running your own business at the same time is like a circus. Click To Tweet

It’s a lot of scheduling and time management that we’re still learning but I wouldn’t change it. It’s great. We’re very blessed to be able to be in the position that we are in where if the kids are sick, I can work from home. If we have a sporting event, I can leave to go out of town to watch my son play football in a different town. It’s a lot at times but it’s wonderful all wrapped into one.

How does it feel to you to have your kids growing up, climbing over the carpet rolls and up into the warehouse rafters?

It’s amazing. It brings back a lot of memories. I have a picture of my kids playing in the showroom. They have chairs lined up and they were all pushing each other. It brought back a lot of memories. When I had Brady, my third child, I was already working. The day after I got released from the hospital, he came to work with me. I went right back to work. I didn’t take maternity leave. They are being raised in the flooring store the way I was. It’s so fun to see them have the same upbringing that I did.

Do any of them express any interest in going to job sites or working in the industry?

Yes. Mackenzie loves the design aspect of it. We have an in-house designer that’s available for our customers when they come in to make selections. She’s always watching over her shoulder when she’s in there. She likes the design aspect of it. I don’t know if she sees herself designing in a flooring store but she does love that aspect of it. She loves seeing the before and after pictures. Landon and Brady, Landon is a very hands-on kid. He’s not necessarily a behind-the-desk textbook kid. That’s not him. He wants to learn how to do skills and so I can see him doing something with us later but they love it. They love being there and seeing it all work.

That’s awesome. It’s so much fun to see kids learn and watch the work. I work from home and so my kids get to watch me. They listen to some of my meetings and my show and see what it’s like and how I’m constantly running the wheels of what I need to do next. Even when I’m able to be with them and spend the summer with them and have that crazy entrepreneur balance. It’s not the balance that people think. As you said, you take off when you can and you’re able to make that choice yourself but you’re on in your mind still.

I feel like it’s very hard to separate work from home sometimes, especially because Brandon and I are working together. At the same time, I love that my kids get to hear us talking about different things that come up in a day and how we manage the business and how we do things because I feel like I always tell my kids, “You need to think outside the box with your future. You don’t have to do it the same way that society tells us to with school, college, or all the things.”

You need to think outside of the box when it comes to your future. You don't have to do everything society tells you to do. Click To Tweet

I don’t mind if that’s what they choose for themselves but I’m constantly encouraging them to think outside the box. For them to see us doing that, thinking outside the box, running a business, and being entrepreneurs instead of doing something in the corporate world. I love that they get to see that and get to listen to us bounce ideas off each other.

You folks do a good job of co-parenting and being together with the kids on a regular basis. You’re at the office or the shop all day together. What is it like sharing? It feels like almost every moment with your husband running the business together, the family together, then trying to live your own life.

It’s great, honestly. I hear a lot of people say all the time, “I can’t work with my spouse. That would be crazy.” Brandon and I always laugh because we feel like we get along better at work than we do at home. Not that we don’t get along at home, but it’s a different world at work. You don’t have kids under your feet. You don’t have the scheduling, the doctor’s appointments, the games, the stress of chores, and homework.

Family Business: It’s even easier to work with your spouse in a business than at home. You don’t have kids under your feet, you don’t need to schedule appointments, and you don’t have chores. You can just focus on the work.

You don’t have all that at work. We can go in and work. It works well for us. I have always said that we work well together. At the beginning of our marriage when I was barely nineteen years old, we got married and moved across the country, where we didn’t know anybody because he was in the military. We learned to lean on each other. Now it wasn’t always perfect and we haven’t always had a picture-perfect marriage but we learned to lean on each other. At that time, he was the only family or friend that I had when we moved across the country. We’ve always been good at being together. There was a time when we just had each other.

That’s important. A lot of people go directly into having babies or they have a long time in between. Seems like the pace at which you folks built your family and went into the business was right for you as a partnership, your marriage, and your relationship. Do your employees and team members fit into that family dynamic pretty well?

They do. We got married in 2006 and waited until 2009 to have our first daughter. As I said, careers changed and we ended up back home. It’s funny looking at the big picture now because of one of our employees, Ray. He was an employee of my dad’s. He started when I was about seventh grade. I feel like I’ve known him my whole life. I feel like he’s part of my family. He’s there with us every day. My kids adore him and he adores my kids. It feels like we go to work every day with family and friends because we have a huge history with the majority of the company.

You’ve been in this community from the beginning of your life as well. You know everybody and you get involved in the local sports and sponsor the baseball teams. What other ways do you get involved in the Wimberly community?

That’s something that we’re trying to do more of now but we sponsored the baseball teams as you said. I sponsor the Athletic Booster Club in Wimberley and the high school has the football calendar and volleyball calendar that comes out every year as the basketball one. We try to donate to that. We’d love to get more involved in the outreach of the community as far as the needs. Maybe like having a Christmas box, running a donation for different families, or at least being involved in that. Barnabas Connection does a great job of doing school supplies at the beginning of the year and things like that. We’d love to start getting more involved in and meeting the needs of the community.

This is such a great supportive community. There are so many great organizations already doing big things. It’s a beautiful community to be a part of. What’s been the hardest decision that you’ve had to make from joining the business to now?

Honestly, the hardest decision was when our youngest was born, and missing out on those first few years of life with him. I was a stay-at-home mom with my older two kids and I had to put him in daycare. He came to work with me to a certain point where I couldn’t chase a toddler around the showroom all day. Putting him in daycare was heart-wrenching for me but like I said, my dad always knew that I was a mom first at that point.

I did feel like I could be with him when I needed to be. I was at a crossroads. Do I continue to build this business with my dad to be a key role in this business or do I go back to being a mom and try to start over in a career later on when he goes to school? That was the biggest decision for me to this point. It’s not even a decision in business. It was more of a personal decision but that was probably the biggest decision I’ve made.

All those personal decisions do reflect on business and vice versa and they weave together. It would’ve made a huge pivot for probably your whole family business had you decided to stay at home.

It would have and I’m very thankful that I chose to continue to work because it made a huge impact on our family and here we are, owning the business now. I don’t know that that would’ve happened before just because my coming back to work and putting all my effort into it showed my dad that this is what we wanted. It was a good decision.

He could’ve sold to anybody. He didn’t hand us the business. It was never handed to us. We had to work hard for it. We had to prove that we could do it. He didn’t want it to fail. It was his baby. We had to prove that we could do it and we bought it from him. I’m glad that I made the decision to keep going instead of staying home.

I’m glad that you did too. It’s been fun to get to know you. We lived in the same neighborhood for several years and our kids play together. It’s been fun to watch them grow up and to see their interaction in the business and to watch you, folks, as a family balance work and home and personal. I feel like you do a good job of having all of them, having extended family in a part of your lives in a big way. Family coming in from out of state and you folks going and visiting and traveling and doing all the things. Balance is always a crazy word when it comes to work, especially when you have young kids still. Do you feel like it’s as balanced as you want it to be?

I feel that is as balanced as it’s going to be. Maybe not as balanced as I’d love it to be but we work hard to be the parents, the business owners, the aunt and the uncle, and the daughter that we want to be. I would love to hire my nieces and nephews. I’d love to bring them into this business. Balance is always something that’s going to be a struggle but what works this season might not work next season. There’s always a shift in the balance. We just finished football season. We’ll have a little bit of a break. It looks a little different but as long as we’re communicating and working together, the balance is as great as it’s going to be.

What works this season might not work next season. Balance is always going to be a struggle because shifts always happen. Click To Tweet

Having the perspective you do now, would you go back and do anything differently?

I don’t think so, honestly. I have enjoyed what we’ve done and where we are. I do like our kids seeing the days that we are chasing our tails. It shows them that we work hard and we believe in what we’re doing. Sometimes I feel bad for them because I drag them to work with me in the summer and get them out of bed early when they could be sleeping in. At the same time, I feel like we’re instilling those values in them by them watching us.

I agree. As you said, it’s so necessary and it’s a thing that seems to be lacking in a lot of the younger generation of knowing what goes on behind the scenes and what it takes to move up to that next level. You don’t necessarily have to have a college degree. You have to have the willingness to work first. Even if you have a college degree, you still have to have that willingness to work in order to get what you want. What’s something that you have learned along the way that you didn’t expect?

I’m not sure that there’s something that I didn’t expect to learn but what I have constantly reminded myself throughout the journey of being an employee to being a business owner is trust in God’s timing. All the things that are happening, I have to have faith and trust that the next step is supposed to be taken. I constantly look for closed doors or open doors or always trying to trust in the timing.

Family Business: Trust in God’s timing. Have faith in the next step you’re going to take. There’ll be times when things don’t go according to plan, but you just have to trust in the plan that has to happen.

It can be very challenging at times because things don’t always go how I want them to and sometimes things go how I want them to. Trusting in the plan and moving forward has been the most challenging thing. It does teach you a lot too. There are teachable moments in that but from scheduling at work to scheduling at home or being a business owner, there’s a lot of trusting in the plan that has to happen.

What’s been the greatest challenge so far?

The balance. We talked a lot about that. My dad had a great business. My dad had a great reputation. My dad worked with a lot of the local contractors and businesses around the area for many years. He gave us our reputation. He built a huge legacy for himself. I feel like that was on our side. That was great. There have been challenges with the pandemic, shipping delays, price increases, and all the things that a lot of businesses are experiencing. That comes with the territory of it. For me, the biggest challenge has been the balance of home life, work, and being a mom.

By taking it day to day.

Day-to-day is what you have to do. Honestly, the business is thriving and we’re in a great spot.

The business that 2021 has been seeming like settled into something and everyone’s talking about what 2023 might bring for our country and even into the world. Does that bring fear or are you pretty good at settling into that trust now?

Both. The economy and politics and all the things that are huge topics of conversation now can create fear. The economy does affect our business but we’re in this little hill country bubble where there’s a lot of growth here now. There’s a lot of new growth and new construction. There are a lot of people moving here. I feel like we are in a great area to be doing what we’re doing. We’re not safeguarded from the economy and the changes but we have work. I’m very thankful and I feel like it will continue.

I don’t see a huge slowdown for us maybe in some little projects here and there and the remodeling of a regular customer walking in wanting new carpet or something like that might slow down. We have a lot of contractors who are still very busy. I trust in that and in the bubble that we’re in. My dad has always told me there are going to be highs and lows. Especially as politicians change and the economy changes, there’s always going to be those times that dip and you won’t hit your peaks. You’re along for the ride but I trust that it works out. It always has in the past.

Family Business: There are always going to be highs and lows in your business. As politicians and economies change, there will always be times when you dip and when you hit your peak.

You wait long enough. It’ll work.

My dad’s seen it for many years. He saw all the changes. There are times that it’s hard. There are times that it’s great and you keep on going. Keep pushing through them.

Eventually, you’ll get to retire and have your own side business. You are very busy between having the shop and running your three kids around to do all the things. They all have their own separate, not just lives but they’re very active. How do you balance personally your expectations, burnout, and personal development but even rest?

Rest is always hard. I found that if I’m not taking the time to take care of myself, I cannot effectively take care of everything else. I have to give myself grace from time to time. It’s hard to do. I’m a perfectionist at heart, so I feel like everything needs to be perfect. It’s very hard not to feel overwhelmed at times but I have to give myself breaks. Whether it be 30 minutes in my room alone with the door closed, going to get a pedicure with friends, going out to lunch, or something like that. I feel like it’s very needed for moms and for business owners to regroup and take care of themselves. You can’t take care of anybody else if you’re not taking care of yourself.

You need to take care of yourself because you can't take care of anybody else if you're not taking care of yourself. Click To Tweet

You mentioned getting a pedicure or things like that. Do you have any particular rituals or go-tos that help you to take that breath and give back to yourself?

I’m always trying new things. I love to learn new things. I was big into the fitness world in the spring. I did challenges like 75 HARD and completed that. I taught myself to certain crafts and I get into a kitchen and bake as a way. I’m constantly learning new things. I don’t know that there’s a specific niche that I fall into but I always am trying to find something that I enjoy doing to decompress. I’m one of those people who dabble in everything. I love to find new hobbies and do new things.

What do you find yourself being inspired by? Are you too lost in the days to feel inspired?

Honestly, I love looking at other business owners and other people who have made it, who came from the bottom and made it through. I love to read the self-development books like that, the success stories. I’m very inspired by the success that people have and their determination and hard work. It’s funny when you start to look at all these people who have been very successful and you think, what did they do? What do they have in common? A lot of them wake up early and start by taking care of themselves, doing a workout, or doing something like that to start their day off on the right foot. I get very inspired by that. I always look at the people who have made it. What are they doing? I’m always trying to learn that too.

Is there any particular book, article, or business person that stands out to you that you’ve been inspired by or that you remember?

This is going to sound silly but if you haven’t read Bobby Bones’ books about his whole upbringing and where he is now, he’s one of the most inspiring people to me. He has the radio show in the mornings, The Bobby Bones Show but if you read his story and learn about his upbringing of being in a home with drug addicts and a father that abandoned him, being raised by his grandmother, being super poor, and having nothing to where he is now, it’s incredible. I love him and you have people who have done rockstar things like Leif Babin over in Dripping Springs. He was Navy SEAL. I love reading his books. I read a lot of those books that are more no excuses type things. I get inspired by a lot of people.

I read a lot of books and I work hard. These last couple of years, I have been burned out. The no excuses things have like taken a back burner to, “Take care of yourself.” You take what need at the time but then those no excuses come back in when the time is right and you trust that. Sometimes you do have to take a step back and take care of yourself but then you still have to get up every morning, do the work, and sweep the floor thing. Do the hard stuff that needs to be done.

At this store, there are times that I’ve been scrubbing toilets. I did it weeks ago. I shouldn’t have to do that at this point. It’s what maybe some people would think but that’s not how I think. It takes all of us to make it successful. I have to make sure my people are taken care of. I have to make sure that they’re happy where they are. I want them to know that I am willing to do the dirty work like them. I feel like it takes a lot of people. There are times when there are no excuses and times when you have to take a step back and reassess and take a deep breath. It’s a learning process all the way through. I don’t feel I’ll ever have all the answers but I wake up day by day and figure out what’s needed that day and tackle it.

Family Business: A business takes everyone to make it successful. As the owner, you have to make sure your people are being taken care of and are happy. Be willing to do the dirty work just like them.

What are you most proud of so far?

I’m proud of where we are. There have been challenges along the way. There’s been a lot that has happened personally and business-wise. I feel like every time that I am down or stressed, we rise above it. We work together as a team to take the next steps, whether that team is my work team or my team as a family. We work together to take the next step, rise above it, and not let it get us down. I’m proud of where we are now and where we’re going in the future.

We have some great things happening and we’re a part of the Abbey team. I’m not sure if you know much about them but Abbey is like a buy-in group for a lot of flooring stores that we’re a part of. They are able to help us negotiate pricing with vendors so that we can compete with box stores and things like that. We can get great products at the same price. They’re growing like crazy and moving in a lot of directions. Being a part of that team brings a lot of opportunities for us. A lot is changing in this industry and I’m excited to see where we go.

That brings up a good point. What would you say is the biggest benefit to working with a small shop like yours over the box stores?

Our customer service is top-notch for one. When you come into our store, you’re greeted by our designer or one of our sales team technically but like I said, I don’t even like to say that they’re in sales because they’re there to educate somebody on all the different floors. At the end of the day, it’s your decision what you want or even if you want to go with this or not.

You get somebody that is with you from the beginning of the planning process of the selections, choosing where you want, all the way through to the end when it’s installed on your floors or in your showers. We do countertops too. You have somebody every step of the way with you to walk you through it. You’re never alone.

We pride ourselves on the service that we give. We’ve been voted Best of Hays for the last few years. I think it’s because of our team. They’re phenomenal at holding your hand through the process and being there in the moments when you’re crying, happy, and stressed. We compete with the box stores. You don’t get that service whenever you go there. There’s not going to be somebody that you can call at 7:00 at night and they’re going to pick up their phone.

They don’t even have consistent contractors. They pick up whoever can take on the job when it’s booked.

We answer our phones. I sometimes get mad because my husband answers his phone at 9:00 at night but he answers his phone always. I know my guys do too. They always answer their phones. They’re always there to help. There have been times that my husband has dropped everything on a weekend to get out to a job site because there’s an issue, a question, or a panic. We stand behind our word and our work too. If something does happen to go wrong, we’re more than happy to go and make it right. We’re always going to do everything we can to make you completely satisfied and happy in the end.

That’s awesome. What advice would you have to give to someone who is thinking about starting their own business or taking the leap to follow their passion?

The best chance that you can take on life is taking a chance on yourself. You have to believe in yourself even if you don’t have all the self-belief yet. Believe in your vision, figure out what it is that you want, and make that vision big enough to overcome the days that are hard to get up and hard to put your foot in front of the other. Don’t let go of the vision. Take that chance on yourself because it’s completely worth it.

You stepped into your dad’s business and he has this foundation already set. The reason I’m saying this is that you have a vision and you talked about the vision for the business. It needs to be big enough to carry you through those hard times. With the business that you have, how do you portray that vision, that passion, and that feeling of service and family to the team?

As I said, Ray has been with us since.

He is family?

He’s pretty much family. He has the same vision, even though he’s not technically an owner of it. He is one of those people who will go above and beyond for every person. He makes you feel like you are his top priority. Even with myself, he makes me feel that way. We have a great team like that who puts the customer’s needs as their top priority. I feel like we all share the same vision of wanting to be successful and reach as many people as we can. We’re not a mom-and-pop store but we are like a mom-and-pop store.

We only have a team as big as we have now. We can choose to grow and expand but I feel like when there’s too much growth or too many ways you’re expanding, sometimes it can get lost. The vision can get lost. With the team we have now, they all see our vision but they are keeping our values and our quality at the front of that vision instead of the growth.

In the end, an unhappy customer, because we lack quality and rush through, is not as valuable as somebody who’s happy and is going to tell their friends about us. We do want to grow but we want to keep it very consistent with what we want to do in the company as far as the quality and the service and what’s important to us.

Is there anything else that you want to share? Is there anything on the forefront or any advice that you want to give in business or life?

I don’t think so. I feel like you asked a lot of hard questions and good questions. This is an incredible community to be a part of. It’s very supportive. I’m very blessed to get to work with people every day that I’ve known my whole life. I have a unique situation. I know that I do. I’m glad to be living out my dad’s dream of this store and here I am owning it now. I feel very blessed to be where I’m at.

That’s beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing your time and your story with us and sharing your business and your family with the community. It’s an honor to know you.

Thank you. I appreciate you having me on.

You’re welcome.

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