Today we’d like to introduce you to Ray Walton.
Ray, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I worked in sales and sales management in the medical device industry for twenty five years, primarily for start up companies. Although the relationships built and work were rewarding, over the last nine years, I spent about 130 – 170 nights per year away from home on business. With three daughters, this extensive travel meant missing out on so many important events during their childhood, which began to gnaw at me more and more over time.
I often spoke with my wife, Laura, about a desire to one day start our own business that would allow us to create something on our own and provide for our family without being tied to a role that required such extensive travel. About the middle of 2016, the opportunity arose with my separation from the last medical device role. I’d developed a set of criteria, with input from a trusted friend, for acquiring a San Diego based company. It took me about three months to finally settle on a franchise called The Flying Locksmiths.
We opened our doors for business January 16, 2017 and have been building our presence in the San Diego market with a focus on providing commercial property security solutions.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Anyone that has started a business knows there will be bumps in the road, and our story is no different. Within three weeks, our first technician hired decided to move to the east coast. Fortunately, there were already plans in place to hire a second technician shortly after opening, so we were able to bring another technician on board and not have the business impacted too much.
Additionally, learning an entire new industry takes time. I’ve done my best, with the support of the franchisor and our lead technician, to learn all the relevant vernacular to support conversations and projects. It’s been quite the learning process, and I’ve always been open and honest with our customers along the way. The vast majority of them have been quite understanding of my promise to them that if I don’t have the answer to one of their questions, I have access to the resources to get the answer and will follow up with them as quickly as possible.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with The Flying Locksmiths San Diego – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I’m responsible for operating and growing the business, which basically means I do everything other than the actual execution of the services and goods for each individual project. We hire licensed, trained technicians to perform the work on site, which frees me up to run the business.
We specialize in commercial security services, which runs the gamut from electronic access control, CCTV, master key systems, door installation, door repair, locks and keys. We know we’ve done our job properly when our customers know we offer far more services than simply working on locks and keys, as today’s commercial property requires so much more technology than what anyone could have imagined just ten to fifteen years ago.
As an example of one of the services we provide, we’re proud to be certified installers for a few different access control systems that utilize smartphones as your key. With smartphones both being pervasive and one of the most protected pieces of personal property one owns, many businesses are moving away from traditional keys or fobs, which are easily lost or temporarily given away, to systems that utilize smartphones for access to their businesses.
These systems allow the owner to document the flow of personnel through different access points within the business that have been identified as high priority. Some are cloud-based, which can make the installation expense more cost-effective than older, hard-wired systems as well. This type of service is not traditionally associated with a locksmith, so we’re proud to offer these systems as part of our portfolio of services.
In addition to access control, we’re known for being able to provide and/or repair virtually anything having to do with a door. If your commercial property needs new door hardware, such as a closer, lever set, panic bar, vertical rods, etc., we will both source the materials and install them for you.
There are numerous features we offer that set us apart from our competitors:
* Local ownership with twenty-five years of business and customer service experience
* National pool of experienced business and technical resources with hundreds of years of combined
experience
* Ability to leverage national purchasing power to provide industry competitive pricing
* Top of the line continuing education
* 100% committed to each customer and project – we will always be open, honest and transparent with our
customers
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Our plans for the future include continuing to expand our team, both with our presence in the field as well as personnel in the office. Our goal is to grow into the leader in security solutions within the San Diego County market.
We have multiple initiatives in the works now that promise to assist us toward achieving our goals but have nothing to disclose publicly at this time.
Contact Info:
- Address: 12320 Stowe Dr. Ste J Poway CA 92064
- Website: www.flyinglocksmiths.com/san-diego
- Phone: 8588779330
- Email: sandiego@flyinglocksmiths.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tfl_sandiego/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheFlyingLocksmithsSanDiego/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/tfl_sandiego/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-flying-locksmiths-poway
Getting in touch: SDVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
