| Jack moles not only want to
clean your carpets, he wants to change the way you feel about the
carpet cleaning business.
"Our
biggest goal has been to build a company people could really
trust," Moles said of his 9-year-old business, Drycon Carpet
Cleaning, Inc.
Moles, of
Donelson began formulating plans for his business over a year ago,
after a home carpet cleaning experience left him and his wife Jeri,
feeling ripped off.
He
especially disliked the "hidden
costs" the company charged him, such as extra fees for
larger-than-average rooms for spot cleaning. Also aggravating was
the fact the the process left his carpets soggy for days, Moles
recalled.
"I
said "There's got to be a better way.'"
Within a
year, Moles had researched and developed what he
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thought was
a superior carpet-cleaning method, using products that dry quickly,
and contain only biodegradable, non-toxic substances.
But, having
switched careers once in mid-life - from Pepperidge Farm route
salesman to owner of his own produce store - Moles was reluctant to
start yet another new business at age 48.
Until fate
forced his hand.
The produce
business began losing money just as his daughter, Holly left for
college at the University of Tennessee.
"We
wanted to keep her in college; it was her dream," Moles said.
"So basically, I was forced into business.
I had the
cleanser, a buffing machine and a pickup truck. I worked 12 to 15
hours a day trying to make it. And, of course, we did.
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The company
that got started on a shoe string in 1991 registered $2 million in
sales last year. Moles advertised Drycon only through word of mouth
the first few years, yet the business kept growing.
In
the mid-1990's, he started adding staff, including daughter Holly,
son Allan, and Allan's wife, Yvonne Moles.
He
has also worked our business agreements with nine subcontractors to
cover territories ranging statewide, from Memphis to Bristol.
Drycon has focused on integrity in a business that has a
less-than-stellar track record, Moles said.
"We will not do telemarketing," Moles said. "It does
work, but I believe you wind up aggravating more people than you
gain as customers."
In
the past two years, Drycon has added carpet sales to its operation,
buying directly from the mills in Dalton, GA.
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