Roots in the community
In 1935, my grandfather built the cottage where my wife and I have raised our son and are proud to call home in Free Union, VA. Next door and a couple of hills over is my parents’ house where I grew up and where my mother, Marjorie Kindrick, started the family business Kindrick Draperies.
Roots in the business
As a youngster, I regularly went out on jobs and helped my dad install blinds and shades along with the beautiful draperies and valances that my mother became so well known for. After college, I resumed working with the business, which by then had a dedicated shop on the property and employed several seamstresses. This was a natural step, but one I viewed as a temporary measure while I considered my path forward.
Climbing the ladder
“Temporary” lasted for the next 25 years, as I realized along the way that I was where I belonged and doing what I was supposed to do. It is not a path to material riches, but I have been richly blessed and I am very happy that the only company ladder I have ever encountered on a daily basis is literally a company ladder.
All good things
In time, my mother prepared to retire from the business through which she had added beauty to the homes of thousands of clients all over the area. She brought a particular touch and a talent to her work that is rare today, and it was clear that the name Kindrick Draperies should be respectfully retired as well. When the percussive song of Mom’s 1962 Singer Slant-O-Matic reached its closing notes, that wonderful symphony had been completed. I am proud to have played a role and was privileged to meet and share the company of so many truly fine people along the way.
Do all of your work as unto the Lord
I had long known that my next step would be self-employment. This would be the the only course forward in which the new “boss” and I would still be equally committed to the same uncompromising focus on excellence first and foremost; with faith that the bottom line would then take care of itself. That priority is non-negotiable for me, so when the time came, I started Kindrick Shade Solutions, LLC to continue the legacy and the work that I enjoy. The name would be new, the principle that guides the work remains very, very old.
“About got the hang of it”
I have been hanging window treatments of every description since my youth and I may just about have the hang of it. That being said, I still work hard to stay abreast of innovations and changes in the industry and diligently continue learning and refining my craft.
Otherwise
I am also a lifelong woodworker and I often call on those skills and tools to further customize a shutter, intricately fit a wooden valance or overcome other obstacles and challenges of difficult windows. Aside from shades, blinds, and shutters, I also enjoy working on the property that I dearly love. I am an antique tool collector, and I play the piano from time to time.