AFTER YEARS IN CORPORATE MANAGEMENT LOCAL MAN OPENS HIS OWN BUSINESS TO STAY CONNECTED WITH FAMILY

(Irmo, S.C.) --- Rob Greenlaw knows the value of hard work. The 41-year-old started working for Target in 1988 as a cashier in Atlanta, when he was only 15 years old. After graduating from Georgia Southern University in 1996 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance, Greenlaw returned to Target and worked his way up to Store Manager before being promoted in 2007 to a position in asset protection, a job which required him to relocate to Minneapolis. He oversaw a region that contained 7 distribution centers. When Target moved him to Columbia in 2010 to work in logistics, he knew he’d found a place worth settling down.

“Family is important to me,” Greenlaw said. “I decided to leave my previous career because I knew I didn’t want to relocate again, which was always a risk in the corporate world. My family had established roots here in Columbia, and I wanted to be able to build my own schedule and make time to be with my family. Owning my own business seemed like the logical choice.”

Greenlaw had managed upwards of 200 employees in his previous career, so he knew the struggles that come with overseeing a large team of workers. The ethics of a small business appealed to him, and with a lifelong interest in home improvement, he decided to open Floor Coverings International. Greenlaw’s business, which opened June 23, operates out of 130 Centrum Drive, but his mobile trucks, which serve the Columbia West region, are what set the business apart from their competition.

Rob says he wishes he had known early on what experience has taught him about transitioning from a long corporate career and into owning his own business.

“Do something you are going to enjoy,” Greenlaw said. “But do your homework and know what you’re getting into beforehand. That’s one benefit to buying a franchise—you know you can trust the system, and ask for help when you need it.”

Floor Coverings International has nearly 100 locations throughout the U.S. and Canada and expects to add 50 additional units by the end of 2014, targeting markets such as Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta as well as other strategic markets across North America. For more information, please visit www.floorcoveringsinternational.com/.