Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, October 31, 1995 TAG: 9510310059
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MEGAN SCHNABEL STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
When Steve Aguilera left Southern California for the Roanoke Valley a year and a half ago, it wasn't exactly a business decision.
But a move made to get his family out of crime-ridden Los Angeles has turned into a business opportunity for Aguilera and his brother-in-law, Curtis Carter, who recently opened a furniture finishing business in Southeast Roanoke.
"I took one look and I knew this was the place," said Creative Finishing owner Aguilera. "At night when I go home, I have to have my bright lights on - not for kids or pedestrians, but for deer!"
The shop offers traditional wood-tone finishes and some of the more elaborate treatments that Aguilera said were popular in California. He and his crew - one part-time and one full-time worker - also restore antiques, and the shop is equipped to finish steel items such as hand railings with special zinc and epoxy coatings.
Carter, who's also the executive chef at Hunting Hills Country Club, takes care of the shop's paperwork. Aguilera works on furniture and deals with customers, who he said are sometimes overwhelmed by all the new choices.
"I have to shepherd them through it," a lesson he learned not long after the shop opened. He had refinished a piece of furniture for a woman, in a color she had selected. She loved the results, her husband hated it, and Aguilera ended up taking the heat when she called back to yell. "She got mad at me because I didn't suggest to do it in a different color," he said, shaking his head.
"From now on, I ask. The customer's always right. After all, they're the ones who have to look at the furniture every day." He grinned. "But I try to help them make a decision."
Aguilera got his start in the refinishing business when he was a 14-year-old paperboy whose delivery route included a furniture finishing shop. He pestered the owners to let him help, and eventually they gave him an after-school job. He ended up working there nine years, and then he bought the company.
Most of his business was at hotels and offices, where he refinished baseboards and moldings that couldn't be moved to his shop. He did similar work when he first moved to Roanoke and took a job with Hesse & Hurt Inc., one of the finishing companies involved with the Hotel Roanoke restoration.
He said he'll likely do some out-of-state work, perhaps for some of the large furniture contractors based in North Carolina. And he has plenty of room to expand; in addition to the 8,000-square-foot space he's using, he has access to an additional 6,000-plus square feet in the building.
Aguilera said he knows the local market might be limited and that there's no shortage of other people offering similar finishing services. But he and his family are happy in Roanoke, he said, and he's ready to take what comes.
"If the business stays level and I can make a living, I'll be happy."
by CNB