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Galaxy® Glass & Stone in Fairfield, N.J., was started in 1977 with the concept of providing quality custom glass and mirror work for designers. The company has made a success of this strategy with the addition of a couple of corollaries: expansion into related non-glass markets to provide a total package to clients, and diversification into more traditional flat glass areas to gain exposure to a wider customer base and to provide a solid all-around base for the company.
Eugene M. Negrin, president of the company, explained during a recent visit to its new location how the company has evolved. "When the company was started, the strategy was to operate a retail glass and mirror sales outlet serving local needs in the metropolitan tri-state region," he state. "In the early 1980s, we started buying highly customized automatic equipment and expanding to offer quality glass and mirror products that we manufactured," he adds.
The work his company was doing in the up-scale residential and commercial markets made it clear to him that diversification into other areas to offer clients one-stop shopping for jobs would enhance the value of his company to clients. Thus, in the mid-1980s, Carved Glass Associates was incorporated to manufacture decorative etched glass and in the late 1980s Galaxy Marble & Graniteworks was begun to manufacture marble and granite floors, walls, counter and sink tops, fireplaces, thresholds, tables, etc.
This successful strategy allowed the company to integrate its glass work with the stone and wood portions of projects. "The integration of this product line has brought us new business," Mr. Negrin states, "business that we normally would not have seen if not for the ability to manufacture stone-related products." He offers a stack of photographs of jobs which the company has completed: ceiling-high fireplaces made of glass and granite, rooms with stone floors and mirror walls, bathrooms with marble top mirror furniture.
Selling to this market demands a thorough knowledge of the level of quality clients are seeking, and a professional approach that they encounter in other contractor relations, Mr. Negrin points out.
"Personal presentation is very important in dealing with designers and upscale customers," the owner explains. "It is also important that you be able to articulate clearly to your client," he adds. People must be comfortable that they are dealing with a professional who does quality work, he advises.
One of the most important things, he points out strongly, is to realize that custom is not a price-driven market. "Getting a higher price means you have to produce a higher quality product," he explains.
"My strategy is: You get what you pay for plus. I have to get a fair price and clients have to get what they deserve."
Working with designers and doing custom has always been the owner's first love and has been the concentration of his company's efforts. Custom has the most potential for profit but it doesn't always work out that way, he explains. "Sometimes to get things just the way we want, we have to put in extra time. I'll sacrifice profit for quality any time," he states. This attitude, which is reflected in all the company's employees, has resulted in good word of mouth for Galaxy and it finds that most of its clientele is repeat and referral.
