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."