Franchisee Profile: Gary Schmidt

For more than 10 years, Gary Schmidt spent his days selling industrial chemicals—a job that he still refers to as a “dog-eat-dog world.”

In search of some respite, Schmidt, a native of Iowa, decided to buy a woodworking machine, and over time, he realized he was coming home from work earlier and earlier just to develop his newfound hobby. Eventually he taught himself how to build bookcases and end tables. After all, woodworking is in his blood—born and raised on a farm, Schmidt is used to hard work.

“At one point, I remember asking myself if I could find a business that will allow me to do something of the same order,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt stumbled upon an ad in his local paper advertising a franchise that was for sale—Kitchen Solvers. Initially looking into another franchise company, he was quickly turned off when they wouldn’t send a list of franchisees he could call. But Kitchen Solvers was different—when he checked in with the company, they sent the whole nine yards, and franchisee after franchisee in Iowa gave nothing but thumbs-up reviews. Schmidt decided to take a chance and joined the team.

“Kitchen Solvers really helped me get started—they bent over backwards helping me, telling me what to do and what not to do to grow my business,” Schmidt said. “The way they teach you to do cabinet re-facing is probably the best that’s out there. There’s nobody in this area that does a similar thing.”

Today, Schmidt is the proud owner of two Kitchen Solvers locations. Between the two, he covers three counties, which includes the Cedar Rapids area and the Iowa City area. In a typical year, Schmidt is working on nearly 40 kitchen installations. His jobs entail everything from spending two to three days re-facing, to spending three weeks tearing out drywall.

“On one job, we discovered there was no insulation in the outside wall, and there was water damage in the ceiling. We took that kitchen down to the joists. It was a major job,” Schmidt said. “But three weeks later, the family was eating in their kitchen again.”

Schmidt says that his secret to success is giving people the time to ask questions, and he usually spends an hour-and-a-half to two hours with the customer to fully understand how he can help make their kitchen more enjoyable and more efficient.

“The more they ask, the more you know that they’re interested in what you’re doing,” Schmidt said. “I know I’ve got a competitor who goes in and is only there for 20 or 30 minutes. That doesn’t give a customer enough time to ask questions.”

After spending a decade in a job where things were often out of his control, Schmidt enjoys the perks of being his own boss and being 100 percent responsible for his own success. Kitchen Solvers has also helped him progress his woodworking skills. Schmidt has already built three china hutches: One for himself, one for his daughter and one for a customer, and he’s pretty happy about the way they turned out, too.

“I get so much satisfaction knowing I’ve made people happy,” Schmidt said. “But I’ve also learned how to do a lot of things that I didn’t know 20 years ago. I plan to continue with woodworking in the years to come—I get a great deal of fulfillment from seeing what I’m able to build with my own hands.”