It’s not terribly unusual to imagine people in, say, the
flooring business dreaming of doing something less strenuous someday, like
becoming a teacher--but John Glaser went to Bellarmine University and worked as
a schoolteacher before making the switch. “I went to work one summer for a guy
who imported flooring, and that started me in it,” says John, 64. He quickly
rose through the ranks as sales manager, creating a national sales force for
all things beneath his feet before founding The Floor Store in 1979.
As a kid, John’s son Matthew, 32, learned quite a bit about hard work from the
former teacher. “I grew up with the store and flooring,” Matthew says. “When I
wanted to earn money to buy my first Nintendo, I had to come down and clean
toilets.” Matthew studied international marketing at Indiana University
Southeast, but even as a student he had one foot in the family business--he
cleaned carpets, not toilets--and after graduation he took a full-time
position as a sales manager. “I didn’t expect this at all,” Matthew says. “I
was thinking of a career in the import/export business. I started a
small product acquisition company in Southeast Asia when I was in my
twenties--but now I’m working all aspects of the flooring company and I’m
really into that.”
From tile to laminate to hardwood to carpeting, the Glasers have Louisvillians’
flooring needs, well, covered. Matthew’s brother, Patrick, 25, works as an
installer (“He’s paying his dues right now,” says his dad), and John still does
most of the measuring. John says that installation is for “young people with
good muscles and strong legs,” but he refuses to let anyone coast. “We’ve all
been known to get on the forklift and unload trucks and do whatever it takes.”
Adds Matthew: “We’re like all small businesses. We wear all sorts of hats and
we don’t sit behind our desks. We get out there and work.”
And The Floor Store’s nine-person staff of installers, refinishers, designers
and salespeople all get out there and work--and John is very aware of the
responsibilities that come with working independently for the people of
Louisville. “We’re more than competitive,” he says of the shop, which is one of
a network of independent businesses that leverage their buying power to
negotiate prices that undercut the big guy. Matt says, “My dad started the
business to help small guys out and keep money in Louisville. We just want to
share that with the local community.”
The Glasers also share their expertise. If someone is thinking about getting
some new flooring, John says, “Hopefully they’ll invite us into their home.
We’ll do the measuring for free. We give free samples out and bring them out.
They get designer advice. And then hopefully we’ll get them in the store to
show them the big samples.” Unlike the competition, the family has decades of
know-how honed by real-world experience. At the other places, John says, “You
might get a guy who sells blinds or cabinets and five other things. We sell
flooring and that’s all we want to do. We know how to guide people to the right
flooring for their needs, like carpeting in the bedroom or hardwood or
good-wearing carpet in family room, where everyone lives. We do it all--new,
old construction, sanding, refinishing.”
“If it’s inside and you’re walking on it, we sell it,” says Matthew.
