Entrepreneur Interview: Jason Goldberg, America’s Floor Source

Business Name:
America’s Floor Source

Website URL:
www.AmericasFloorSource.com

Year Founded:
2000

Business Partners:
American Society of Interior Design, Angie’s List, Better Business Bureau, Building Industry of Central Ohio, Builder’s Association of Greater Indianapolis, Homebuilder’s Association of Dayton, Homebuilder’s Association of Northern Kentucky, Homebuilder’s Association of Greater Cincinnati, Columbus Apartment Association, Floor Covering Installation Contractors Association, Habitat for Humanity Restore Partner, International Design Society, National Association of Homebuilders, National Association of the Remodeling Industry, National Kitchen and Bath Association, National Wood Flooring Association, Tile Council of America, World Floor Covering Association

Number of Employees:
67

What does your company do?
We provide high quality flooring products and professional installation services to residents and businesses in Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, and Indianapolis. We also sell area rugs, backsplashes and window treatments, and we offer other services like carpet cleaning, hardwood refinishing, and the Mobile Floor Source Shop at Home Service.

Was there a specific turning point when you realized your business was moving to the next level?

Last year, we went through a significant company expansion: we opened 3 new locations, started several new divisions, and brought a large number of new employees onboard. We were in a strong financial position that allowed us to make such an aggressive strategic move in spite of the economic state of our industry. Most of our competitors were making significant cut backs while we were continuing to grow.

What processes or procedures have you implemented that have helped grow your company?
Our company puts a great deal of emphasis on training and education. We have weekly training sessions during which sales representatives from our vendors teach our employees about new flooring products.

All of our employees complete an intense 180 day training session and work directly with myself to discuss all that they have been learning.  The training program consists of product education, reading material, sales training, social media training, and general business training.

What is most rewarding about running your business?
I enjoy the freedom of being able to run my business the way I see fit. I no longer have to follow a boss’s orders: I can set my own hours and work from wherever I want, whenever I want. It took a lot of hard work, dedication and time to get my company to a place where I can do this, but I really appreciate the lifestyle it has afforded me.

I also feel very fortunate to have the team of people I have working with me at our company. I love my people and care about their well-being, and I enjoy contributing to their professional and personal development.

What challenges have you faced and how have you overcome them?
The significant drop in housing starts in recent years has taken a toll on our builder customers and subsequently our builder division. Our builder sales team has had to work diligently to win new builder accounts as these customers represent a large percentage of our company’s sales volume. Networking at homebuilder industry events and implementing targeted selling strategies have helped us to better connect with and serve our builder clients. We are committed to helping our builders find more cost effective products to use in their homes without sacrificing quality.

If you were starting over today, what would you do differently?
Honestly, there isn’t a thing I would do differently. I have learned a great deal of important lessons from every mistake and success. The highs and the lows are what have shaped me personally and professionally; so to say I regret something would mean that I wish I were a different man today.

What advice do you have for other business owners?
The most important part of building a business is finding the right people to work for you, people who have the same values as your company. The wrong people will put you out of business. Having core values and goals is also critical. Your core values define your company and guide all of your business decisions, while your goals allow you to measure your ability to hit your targets.

Please list any favorite books, tools or resources (software, website, etc.) you would recommend for others:
Good to Great by Jim Collins
Built to Last by Jim Collins
Pleased But Not Satisfied by D.L. Sokol

What is something that people might be surprised to learn about you?
I’m a huge fan of chess and have been playing since I was a little kid. I’ve always enjoyed strategy games and activities that are intellectually stimulating.

Is there anything else you would like to add?
Do what you love doing.  Don’t sweat the mistakes – learn from them instead.  But most importantly, do what you say you are going to do, do that consistently, and by all means take care of your customer.  If you don’t someone else will.