 Glass Block
When [Scott] stepped foot into the A&I Company building when he
was 15, he had no idea what he was about to set off. He had originally been
asked by a family friend if he wanted a summer job, but when he got there he
found that they did not hire anyone under 17. By the end of the day, he was the
exception to the rule.
"At the time, A&I Company was one of the oldest contracting companies in
West Virginia and I worked for $6.85 an hour learning the glass block trade from
Tim Parsons, who had over 10 years experience with glass block at that time," he
says.
After working with A&I for five years, [Scott] decided he wanted to open
his own glass block business. [Scott] opened The Glass Block Place in
Charleston in 1996. "I worked 70 to 80 hours a week installing glass block
during the day and most nights learning about accounting, taxes, workers
compensation, budgets, marketing, etc. I knew most people expected me to fail
because they did not think a young, non-college educated person could run a
successful, self-sufficient business using a specialized product in West
Virginia," he remembers.
The company has developed patented products that help decrease installation
time while still providing the same quality as traditional methods. They also
work on large-scale projects, such as a school remodeling in 2002 that used over
10,000 glass blocks.
[Scott’s] personal philosophy is a phrase by William Blake, which says, "No
bird soars too high if he soars on his own wings." That is not to say that
[Scott] is not thankful for how others have helped him and how fortunate he is
to have a successful business. "Everyday I wake up and still know I must prove
my worth. Although I take ownership in creating The Glass Block Place, key
employees who have grown with me from the beginning each carry my vision of a
successful business where we work together as individuals with common goals
doing something we enjoy, which is different from the typical corporate
atmosphere."
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