Wisconsin Retailer Opens in New Location Seeking I
Racine, WI, October 7, 2005 -- Like father, like son; Shannon Curtin is getting serious about the flooring business, according to the Racine Journal Times.
Curtin, 32, has just opened his new store, Lakeside Flooring, at 1318 N. Main St. The business previously existed at 1010 State St. However, "Nobody knew it was there," Curtin remarked, probably accurately.
"We needed more exposure," Curtin said. The new store, in what used to be Custom Sails, is a concerted effort to raise the flooring store's profile.
Curtin also plans to push walk-in sales by hiring a couple of inside sales people. "This will be more full-time" than Lakeside had been, he said.
He is the second flooring entrepreneur in the family. His father, Paul, who now owns North Beach Oasis, started the former Country Carpets, at 3215 Washington Ave. in West Racine. Years later he sold it, but a later owner abandoned the business.
The elder Curtin also had the former Carpet Clearance Center in Westgate Mall, which is now called Westgate Square.
Shannon Curtin said he started Lakeside Flooring just for friends and family. "People just started calling me to get a good deal." He opened with a tiny office with "a desk and a phone on it, and 100 square feet of storefront."
It grew from there into a 6,000 square foot store as Curtin picked up lots of work from the property management and new construction industries. Now, he said, he keeps two or three installation crews busy each day.
Lakeside sells and installs carpets, vinyl, ceramic, laminate and hardwood flooring and custom blinds.
The storefront will also serve as the office for Curtin Homes, a builder of new homes owned by Shannon Curtin and his father.
Lakeside Flooring is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. For more information, call the store at (262) 633-4838.
