Ed Sieber - Charlotte, North Carolina

Ed Sieber, principal owner of the Glass Doctor of Charlotte, N.C., franchise is celebrating 20 years as a Glass Doctor franchise owner.

Ed credits his success to keeping his life balanced between his family, his church and his Glass Doctor team. A few years ago, Ed’s business struggled to grow even though he was working harder than ever. Ed felt his life was unbalanced. By re-focusing on the business techniques in the Glass Doctor franchise system, the business rebounded, and Ed found he had more time for family and church activities. Now he’s looking forward to the future.

What made the start-up of your Glass Doctor franchise successful?
When my brothers, Tim and Wyatt, and I opened the shop in Matthews, N.C., we saw the opportunity through Glass Doctor but we didn’t have any glass services experience. We realized we had to learn how to cut, install and glaze glass ourselves. We never would have had time for that without the Glass Doctor business systems in place.

What challenges did you face when you started your business?
We basically had three managers and one service technician. We over-evaluated every decision we made. The Glass Doctor system helped us streamline our management and focus on what really matters: how the customer feels when we are done.

How has your glass service business changed over the years?
After the business started to take off, Tim wanted to move on to other challenges, so I bought his share of the business. Wyatt opened his own shop he still manages in another town. In 2003, we acquired another shop in Charlotte, and the manager, Gary Blakely, stayed on to ensure a smooth transition. But after all that happened we started to lose focus.

We were so concerned with handling the expanding operations that we lost focus on the customer. We had to evaluate the business system from when the phone rings to when the money is collected. We were good at the installation and technical things, but how the customer is treated from the word ‘Go!’ is the real key to our success. That’s what the Glass Doctor  system is all about.

How are your preparing for the future?
I’m very optimistic about the future. In more than 20 years with Glass Doctor, this is the most excited I have been about the franchise. The Dwyer Group® has been moving us in the right direction and the Glass Doctor leadership has been getting us ready for the future.

What is the biggest impact Glass Doctor has made on your life?