International Door & Operator Industry

MAY-JUN 2013

Garage door industry magazine for garage door dealers, garage door manufacturers, garage door distributors, garage door installers, loading docks, garage door operators and openers, gates, and tools for the door industry.

Issue link: https://idoi.epubxp.com/i/134362

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 23 of 112

DOORDEALERDIALOG (continued from page 18) however, was the family's livelihood, so Carl asked Christine to step in and help manage the business side of the operations, while turning to the then young adult Michael to take over the installations and service. Christine: "I told dad it was time to start running this venture like a business, so when he asked me to get involved in 1979, one of the frst things I did was get Carl's Door Service incorporated. Then, I started to gather all the information together so that we could start practicing some general accounting principles. Up until that point, dad did all the work and collected the money, and mom answered the phone, scheduled the calls and paid the bills. If I was going to help run the business, we were going to run it like a business, from that standpoint. The attitude and philosophy that my dad established through the county and surrounding areas was not something that could be improved, but could be carried on, and that's what we've done ever since." Michael: "Pretty much, my entire life revolved around this business, having started so young, but even major life events such as getting my driver's license, was centered on this business. Like every teenaged boy that ever lived, I couldn't wait to get my driver's license and my freedom. But, unlike a lot of other kids my age, my dad insisted I get mine on my 16th birthday, and he drove me to the courthouse so that I could get it on that day. The reason was that he and mom had a vacation planned. They were leaving the next day and there were installations that needed to be done, so dad made sure that I would be able to drive myself to those jobs." Christine recalls that she had created a management infrastructure for Carl's Door Service by 1980, and when she ran the frst numbers the company had $220,000 in gross sales. While the patriarch of the family remained involved in the business, his involvement was waning, and he would hand more and more of his responsibilities off to Michael, while giving Christine the room to transition the home-based operation into a more traditional business model. "When I started, I didn't know anything about doors," Christine said. "I had an accounting background and I taught myself the rest of the business. It really worked out well, with Michael knowing so much about the technical side of the business, and my having the accounting background. Among dad, Michael and myself, we turned Carl's Door Service into a true business by 1980. In 1983, prodded by the business-minded Christine and ambitious Michael, Carl took on the task of building an offce and warehouse. The current headquarters for the company represents several expansions, but it still resides on what was once a vacant lot, where an old schoolhouse once stood. As isolated as it might be to a newcomer, it is a well-known location to the old-timers. Continued on page 22 Technicians Kevin Connell (on left) and Rusty Eyre V o l u m e 4 6 i s s u e 3 2 0 1 3 21

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of International Door & Operator Industry - MAY-JUN 2013