|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Cover Story:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Gallery
|
| Click for larger photos |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ray Fry, owner of California Closets in western Pennsylvania |
CALIFORNIA CLOSETS® |
How many of you have stared at a garage that is so cluttered there is no room to park your car in it? Or a closet that looks like it’s been hit by a tornado (a.k.a. your teenage daughter)? If this sounds familiar, Ray Fry is the man to see.
Ray Fry specializes in the art of space management. This year he is celebrating 25 years as the owner of California Closets in western Pennsylvania. In a world where even the most venerable institutions are vanishing practically overnight, it is rare to find a success story as neat and organized as Ray’s.
In the early 1980s, Ray and his brother-in-law Paul Boy were victims of a changing global economy. They both worked for manufacturing companies that were forced to close their U.S. operations because they couldn’t compete with foreign imports. That’s when Ray and Paul went looking for a business model that would put them in control of their destiny and enable them to withstand the ups and downs of the market.
They were drawn to a company called California Closets while attending a franchise show in Pittsburgh in 1984. They thought the product was revolutionary and fresh, and they knew the concept would work well in an area like western Pennsylvania, where there were a lot of older homes without ample closet space.
A quarter of a century later, the company is still custom-designing and building unique closets for people. It’s even expanded its offerings, and today it custom-builds garage organizers, home-office workspaces, entertainment centers, laundry rooms, and a variety of other solutions that can maximize both the space and the functionality of any area in your home.
Although a majority of California Closets’ customers are in Allegheny County, they now do work in other parts of Pennsylvania, as well as in West Virginia and Ohio. Paul retired several years ago, but Ray is having too much fun helping people to think about that right now.
California Closets excels at utilizing the space in your home more efficiently. By creating areas in your home that are more aesthetically pleasing and functional, you will not only enjoy the immediate benefits of a neat and orderly living space, but you will also be doing wonders for your home’s resale value.
Ray believes there is a solution to every organizational problem, no matter how tough, and he won’t stop until he finds the right one to fit your way of living. “A closet is more than just a place to hang your shirts and pants,” says Ray. “Our professional organizers will come out to your home, consult with you, and create designs based on your lifestyle and your needs. And we’ll make sure there is a place for everything, even if you have a hundred handbags like one of my customers had.”
Ray’s passion is helping people organize their home—from pants to shirts to laundry to tools. But even the king of closets knows who the boss is when it comes to his own home. When asked how he built his own closets, he wisely pointed out that he doesn’t have any closets. They all belong to his wife, Noreen.
Ray’s secret to lasting so long in a highly competitive industry is as refreshingly simple as the designs he and his team create. It all starts with his approach to customer service. “From day one, we knew that we better do it right the first time because we might not get a second chance,” he says. “So everything we did, from pricing to design to construction, had to be the absolute best.”
Ray’s engineering and management background has served him well in this endeavor. Before the first customer walked in the door, the company had developed a formula so that each person got the best price on a product, each and every time. Through his experiences in the home industry, Ray saw how other companies had developed bad reputations for being unreliable and not showing up when they said they would. So he put special emphasis on being punctual on sales calls, and he is proud of the company’s reputation for being courteous and respectful of people’s homes.
These are just a few of the reasons the company enjoys an intensely loyal following of customers who keep coming back when they buy another house or do more renovations. Loyalty doesn’t stop with the customers, either. California Closets has nine employees, five of which have been with the company since day one.
Ray is proud of the experience his team brings to the table, and he credits his employees’ deep knowledge and expertise as the keys to his success throughout all the years. “Every day is something different and new,” he says, “and it’s gratifying to take care of problems and help people. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished so far, but we’re not finished yet.”
So look out messy garages, empty spaces, and disorganized closets – Ray Fry is coming for you.
|
