Bill and Marie Mahoney, owners of the new Floor Coverings International franchise in Midlothian (Photo by Jay Paul)
“We are about solving clients' problems and providing their desired outcomes based on traffic patterns and space usage,'' says Bill Mahoney, who co-owns the new Floor Coverings International (FCI) franchise in Midlothian with his wife, Marie. The mobile flooring franchise brings name-brand flooring samples directly to consumers' homes.
The Mahoneys, both retired U.S. Army colonels, discovered FCI while looking for the right franchise to launch their second careers. The couple sought advice from a family friend and consulted a career coach with The Entrepreneur’s Source.
“[We selected] Floor Coverings International, [which] has over 30 years of solid franchise history with steady growth, even during COVID-19, and the values, principles and goals that align with ours,” Bill Mahoney says.
Further incentives included outstanding corporate support and the ability to bring their children into the business. Their son, Max, came on board last year, and daughter, Maura, helps with social media content.
“We love being able to include our children in the business, leaving a legacy,” Mahoney says.
The FCI mobile business delivers 3,000 luxury vinyl, wood and laminate floor samples to the customer’s home. If a desired product is not appropriate for the site, an alternative set of samples can be pulled easily.
“We truly custom-design each product because we have so many samples within the van that provide a different set of custom looks,” Mahoney says.
Unlike a big-box store, the Mahoneys show their floor samples in your house.
“We can even order larger sample sizes for the customer to live with and move around the home to make a better-informed decision,” Mahoney says. “The effects of lighting, shadows and sunshine are different when you see the sample in the store versus your home.”