Innis Arden Living Sponsor Spotlight – Cressy Door and Fireplace
Posted Friday, January 11th, 2019
Meet Rick Witters and His Team at Cressy Door and Fireplace
Where did you grow up? How long have you lived in the area? Tell us about your family.
I grew up in Lake Forest Park and have lived in the Puget Sound Region for 61 years. Since 1952 Cressy Door and Fireplace has provided NW homeowners with unsurpassed experience, knowledge, integrity, and service. I married the girl of my dreams in 1995 and moved to Bonney Lake, WA.
My wife Karen is a licensed Occupational Therapist and owns Pioneer Therapy Center in Puyallup. We have three sons, Connor, Austin, and Gabe. Connor works with me at Cressy Door Company and runs the Pedestrian Door Division. Austin works for Reardon Motors in the finance department. And, Gabe is studying at Eastern Washington University preparing to be a licensed Occupational Therapist and hopefully take over Karen’s practice.
Tell us about the events that led up to where you are now (i.e.education, career path).
Having always worked for my dad (washing cars and mowing lawns), I followed him to Cressy Door Company in Fremont, WA where I swept the floor, unloaded freight, and learned about how to build and install overhead doors. After taking some college courses and deciding college was not for me, I started working full time at Cressy Door Company learning more about how to install and service doors and openers. After eight years of installing and servicing doors, I ventured into the office and learned the estimating side of the business as well as dispatching the guys every day.
I took a three-year break in 1990 and worked in Alaska as a commercial fisherman. In 1994 my Dad came to me with a proposal that I accepted, for me to buy the business from him. At that time Cressy Door Company consisted of six employees and me. We have been fortunate to be able to grow to 56 employees, and two locations, Shoreline and Kent, WA.
What is your business and how/why did you start your business?
When my dad purchased Cressy Door Company in 1974, their specialty was manufacturing aluminum service station doors that were being installed at all the new service stations going up in Alaska, Washington, Idaho, and Oregon. We started concentrating more in the residential line in the early 2000s, adding fireplaces to the mix in 2003 along with a variety of other door related products. In 2010 we started the Pedestrian Door Division and after some ups and downs it has finally taken off and is one of our fastest growing divisions within the company.
What is unique about your business (what sets you apart from the rest)?
The one thing that truly separates Cressy Door Company from the rest of the door companies
are the employees and the expertise within each individual department. Cressy Door Company is very unique in that we sell and service a very wide variety of products. As we have
grown, we have attracted experts in the door and fireplace industry that give every customer the very best information and products for whatever type of project they have.
Given your business expertise and the nature of what you do, what advice can you offer to Innis Arden residents?
Don’t always go with the low bid! Always get more than one bid and base your decision on the reputation of the company that you are thinking of doing business with. Go online and research the business and the brands you are looking at, so you know what type of questions to ask when you talk to the estimator. Look at the referral and review page of each company that’s bidding your project and ask to see previous projects that they have done.
What else we should know about you, your family, or your business?
I have been blessed with a family that loves and supports each other, and a business that has the very best employees that any owner could possibly ask for. Give us a call and we’ll take care of you just like family. Contact Cressy Door Company Now.
To Advertise in Innis Arden Living, Call Stephen at (206) 456-6872
This article has been republished with permission from Innis Arden Living, December 2018
