Middleton, WI, September 15--Hussein Zoroufy is a big name in a very small world, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Here's how small: His business is headquartered in an all-but-anonymous gray building in a suburban Madison industrial park. The firm has 13 employees. And it is apparently one of the country's largest -- perhaps the largest -- suppliers in its field.
When you deal in a niche like stair rods, a little goes a long way.
Stair rods, for those not versed in interior design accessories, are gleaming rails that rest in the corner between the riser and tread on a staircase carpeted by a runner.
Decades ago, they were functional, holding the carpet in place. Today, they're strictly decorative, but with their polished brass, fancy finials and intricate brackets, they still evoke traditional elegance. Think Tara, Biltmore, the White House.
This is Zoroufy's world.
"We live, eat and breathe stair rods," he said.
From a business standpoint, it's been a healthy diet. Zoroufy Stair Rods, the firm Zoroufy runs, is a profitable, respected company in its tiny field. It bills itself as the biggest name in the trade, and it very well may be.
"We may not have been the first ones to come up with the idea of stair rods, because they've been around for centuries," Zoroufy said, "but we're the first company to make it a national brand."
The firm's rods occasionally shine in the spotlight, and its responsiveness wins applause from its dealers.
The rods have been installed in Las Vegas casinos, Ritz-Carlton hotels and the Presidential Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. They were recently used in the White House. They've appeared in films such as "Vanilla Sky," "Wild Wild West" and "Mrs. Doubtfire."
Zoroufy particularly likes "Mrs. Doubtfire": Lots of scenes were shot on the steps.
"I love that," he said. And Zoroufy has customers who share the love.
"They have an excellent reputation," said Sandy Henderson, owner of Rug Rats, a high-end rug and carpet merchant in Farmville, Va.
"Very good quality," said Armen Hadjinian, director of operations at Bogosian Carpets in Wauwatosa.
"I've used several companies in the past," said Mickey Hervey of Somerville, Mass., flooring distributor L. Bornstein & Co., "and Zoroufy has the best service. They're also the -- absolutely, no kidding aside -- absolutely nicest, friendliest people to deal with."
This all started with Zoroufy's father, Hassan, an Iranian immigrant who went into the Oriental rug business around 1970.
Demand for stair rods wasn't as great then. Wall-to-wall carpeting still ruled the nation's steps. But with the '80s came a resurgence of interest in wood flooring, and with it demand for runners -- runners that could be complemented with stair rods.
Responding to customer inquiries, Hassan Zoroufy developed some designs for rods and in the mid-'80s began selling them. Hussein, 35, recalls sitting in the family living room as a teenager, assembling small brass parts.
"We were right there at the right time, and it's just taken off considerably," he said.
Zoroufy would not disclose the firm's annual sales. But he said that over the last 10 years, sales growth had averaged 25 percent to 30 percent annually.
"We have thousands and thousands of dealers in the country that carry our product," he said.
Actually, most don't really carry the rods. They funnel orders to Zoroufy, which fills them from its Middleton warehouse. It's not a large place. Items for shipment are picked from the orange storage racks not with a forklift but by hand.
But, in testimony to the company's growth, the little warehouse has doubled in size since Zoroufy moved to its current location in 1999.
Like many business people, Zoroufy says his firm is committed to top-notch service. In this case, customers confirm it.
