ABS Insulating starts small, grows by 550%

Owning a growing business is challenging as well as rewarding, according to Allan Hoppe and Steve Carter, owners of ABS Insulating in Indian Trail. But after 10 years of owning their own business, the two say the benefits far outweigh the challenges.

After a combined 20 years as insulating salesmen, the tow opened their own business in 1991 – during a recession, which they call a blessing in disguise. “We were staying busy with three trucks,” Carter said. “The recession allowed us to grow at a gradual rate.”

The company now runs 20 trucks with 50 employees, servicing single family construction in the Charlotte area plus multi-family construction in neighboring states.

As the only company in Charlotte area whose insulators are certified by the National Association of Home Builders Research Center, the company is continually audited to ensure appropriate price, advertised value and quality of work. “This certification was not easy to obtain, but we feel it’s important to our business. It tells customers that our business if very professional,” Carter said.

“We’re a hands-on operation; we’re not a conglomerate,” he said. “Customers can call us and talk to people who sign the checks, order the supplies and install the product. We offer one-on-one customer service at the customer’s convenience.” Another convenience the firm offers is gutter installation, which it started about 10 years ago. “We started gutter installation strictly as convenience to our customers,” Carter said.

While both men rotate handling the 6am truck dispatches, they divide the office duties. Hoppe focuses on the paperwork, ordering the materials, and the financial operation, while Carter oversees the sales team.

ABS’s initial commercial banking was with Steve Barnes, now city executive of American Community Bank’s Indian Trail location. “A local community bank got us started in the business,” Hoppe said, “and we want to stay with a local bank.”

When American Community Bank opened in 1998, the company moved its accounts. “We can talk directly to a banker, someone who can make his own decisions,” said Hoppe. “I don’t have to show my identification to them, they all know who I am.”

“Going to any other bank is like going to the dentist,” Carter quipped. “It can be a painful experience. That’s not the case at American Community Bank.”