I’ll start my story in the mid-1990’s when my parents decided to emigrate to the United States, a couple years after the fall of the Soviet Union. My parents made this move, not because life was bad for them, but because the US is the land of opportunities, and my parents remind me to this day that they made this trek to create a better future for me and my sister.
By the time I got to College, I had no idea what exactly I wanted to study. I first started taking political science courses and business courses, trying to combine the two to be an international business major. I even went and studied abroad in Hong Kong, thinking that I would be able to pick up Chinese language (back when I went to college, it was obvious that China would be a big part of the international trade scene.)
Unfortunately, I found out quickly that the Chinese language wasn’t something I would be able to master in only a year, so when I finally got back to the US, I made a complete U-turn and shifted my focus to complete my business degree. My school allowed us to pick concentrations, so since I felt that accounting was my strongest subject, I ended up picking accounting as my concentration. As luck would have it, by the time I graduated in 2008, the financial crisis hit, so the only job that I could secure was as a local and state auditor, putting the dreams of owning my own business on long hold.
After several years of being an auditor, I decided to go into business valuations. A couple more years went by, and I made my first jump into “business.” Even though the pivot was great in terms of growth, I jumped into a publicly traded company, which, as I discovered in a very short time, primarily cared about keeping investors happy with news to drive the stock price.
After a year of this and having to separate from the company because of sluggish numbers, I was on the lookout for a new opportunity that I could call a career. A friend of mine suggested I get into home services; he owned two very successful home services businesses, so it piqued my interest.
However, after striking out at my last job relatively quickly, I just wasn’t ready or confident enough to go out on my own. Luckily, Dulles Glass extended an offer to join their accounting team. When I learned what they were doing in terms of manufacturing and research, and development, it absolutely blew me away, and I ended up accepting the position.
Even though by 2015 Dulles Glass was established both online and locally, I was able to contribute right away to its growth and expansion. I spearheaded the migration of its accounting system to QuickBooks online, as the company became increasingly technologically advanced. Furthermore, because of my background in government auditing, I helped launch our government division, which grew to more than 7 digits a year. Even with all these advancements, as well as a quick promotion to Chief Financial Officer, the void was always there of how to bring a Dulles Glass showroom to every corner of the United States.
Everything about us was so carefully thought out, there were only two ways to grow, and that was by doing it in-house by hiring employees, finding locations, researching markets, etc. Or by franchising! After buying our building in Arlington, Virginia, it became clear to us that we needed to look for the right individuals that know their market and that want to be partners in bringing this incredible business to every market in America.
After several years of research and development, Dulles Glass Franchising, LLC was finally launched in 2025! I am so proud of this rollout, and I can’t wait to start seeing a Dulles Glass showroom, hopefully in every market in America. Our first Baltimore, Maryland franchise location is already cruising.
