When Richard and Susan Kaplan opened American Stair and Rail Artisans in 1979, they weren't thinking about creating a three-generation family legacy. They were thinking about building a good business, taking care of their customers and creating something they could be proud of.
They believed in working hard, doing quality work, treating people right and standing behind everything that carried their name.
Nearly five decades later, that name means even more.
What began with Richard and Susan has grown to include their daughter Renee and her husband, Steven, and now their grandsons, Justin and Michael. Three generations of one family have shared the same workplace, learned from one another and contributed to a company that has become much more than a business.
For the Kaplan family, American Stair and Rail Artisans is part of who they are.
Like many family businesses, American Stair and Rail Artisans began with hard work and a belief that if you take care of people and do good work, customers will remember you.
Richard and Susan built the company one relationship and one project at a time. There were no shortcuts to earning a reputation. Every staircase, every railing and every customer mattered because their family name stood behind the work.
Those early years established principles that still guide the company today: work hard, be honest, take pride in your craftsmanship and always do what is best for the customer.
When their daughter Renee and her husband, Steven, eventually joined the business, they inherited far more than a company. They inherited those values.
They learned the business from the inside — not only the technical side of stairs and railings, but the importance of listening to customers, solving problems and treating every home with care.
Over time, Renee and Steven took on greater responsibility and eventually helped lead American Stair and Rail Artisans into its next chapter.
They respected what Richard and Susan had built, but they also knew that honoring a family legacy did not mean standing still.
They embraced new technology, expanded product offerings, modernized operations and continued looking for ways to make the company better.
The goal was never to change what American Stair and Rail Artisans stood for. It was to make sure those same values could carry the company into another generation.
For Renee and Steven, seeing their sons, Justin and Michael, begin spending their summers at the family business brought everything full circle.
The boys had grown up knowing about the company their grandparents started. But working there was different.
They were no longer simply hearing family stories. They were becoming part of them.
While completing their college degrees, Justin and Michael spent their summers at the shop learning how the business operates, helping wherever they were needed, asking questions and seeing firsthand how much work goes into taking care of customers and running a successful company.
For their parents and grandparents, watching that happen was emotional.
"There is something very special about watching your children and grandchildren walk through the doors of a business that started with an idea back in 1979," the family said.
Justin and Michael are learning from the two generations before them, but no one expects them simply to copy what has already been done.
Their parents want them to bring their own ideas.
They have grown up in a different world, with a different relationship to technology and new ways of thinking about how businesses communicate, operate and grow. When they see an opportunity to improve something, the family encourages them to speak up.
That exchange between generations has become part of what makes the business special.
Richard and Susan created the foundation. Renee and Steven built upon it. And now Justin and Michael have an opportunity to imagine what American Stair and Rail Artisans might become next.
There is another reason the work feels personal to the Kaplan family: every project becomes part of someone else's home.
A staircase is something a family may walk up and down thousands of times. It can be one of the first things guests see when they enter a house. Children may grow up using it, and years later, those same stairs can still be there as the home passes through different stages of family life.
That is why the team at American Stair and Rail Artisans sees its work as more than simply supplying building materials.
Every homeowner has a different vision. Some know exactly what they want when they walk into the showroom. Others arrive with a photograph, an idea or simply a feeling they want to create.
The process begins with listening.
For Renee and the design team, one of the most rewarding parts of the business is getting to know customers, understanding their style and helping them turn an idea into something they can actually see and live with in their home.
There is a special satisfaction in watching someone's vision go from a conversation in the showroom to a finished staircase.
And because every homeowner is different, no two projects need to feel exactly alike.
Today, many customers are drawn to modern and modern farmhouse designs, but even within those trends, there is tremendous room for personality.
Some homeowners choose Craftsman-style posts for warmth and character. Others prefer metal posts and glass railings for a cleaner, more contemporary look.
Large, chunky 4-inch treads have also become a popular statement, particularly when combined with horizontal or cable railing.
The Kaplan family enjoys helping customers navigate those choices because a staircase can dramatically change the feeling of a home.
American Stair and Rail Artisans works with everything from custom stairs, balusters, treads and interior railings to winding, spiral and curved stair systems — projects that can transform an ordinary architectural necessity into the centerpiece of a home.
But regardless of the style, the goal remains the same: create something the homeowner will be proud to live with for years.
Of all the milestones the business has experienced since 1979, this past summer was especially meaningful for Renee and Steven.
They had something many parents never get to experience: the chance to work alongside their sons.
There were ordinary workdays, questions to answer, things to teach and jobs that simply needed to get done. But underneath those everyday moments was something much bigger.
They were watching Justin and Michael become young men while also watching them develop a connection to something their grandparents had created almost 50 years earlier.
For Renee and Steven, it was every parent's dream.
They describe it simply as the best summer of their lives.
Now Justin and Michael have returned to college, where their parents want them to continue learning, growing and experiencing life for themselves.
There is no rush to write the next chapter for them.
What matters most to Renee and Steven is the pride they feel in the men their sons have become.
And if Justin and Michael ultimately choose to make American Stair and Rail Artisans an important part of their own futures, they will have something few young people receive: a foundation built by their grandparents, strengthened by their parents and waiting for them to make their own.
Much has changed since Richard and Susan Kaplan opened the doors in 1979.
Styles have changed. Products have changed. Technology has changed. The company has grown, and another generation has arrived.
But some things are not supposed to change.
Work hard.
Take pride in what you do.
Stand behind your work.
Treat people right.
And never forget that when a customer chooses your family business, they are putting their trust in your family name.
That is the legacy Richard and Susan began. It is the legacy Renee and Steven have worked to continue. And now, Justin and Michael are beginning to understand what it means to carry it forward.
"For us, American Stair and Rail Artisans isn't simply a company," the family said. "It's our family's story, our reputation and our legacy — and we're proud to put our name behind it."
American Stair and Rail Artisans
1 Sandart Plaza
Jackson, NJ
Specialties: Custom stairs, interior railings, balusters, treads, winding and curved stair systems, and custom stair and railing designs.
Website: stairsnj.com
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