Window To Opportunity
By LISA LOEWEN | Photos by BRIAN PETERS
The company started as a residential window and shower door business and now fabricates and installs glass storefronts and curtain walls. Sowards Glass has worked on projects across Topeka and throughout Kansas and Missouri, from apartment buildings and schools to glass skyscrapers downtown.
Keith and Linda were born and raised in North Topeka. The couple met at Seaman High School, fell in love and have been life partners for the past 40 years.Keith started working with glass after he graduated from high school. His cousin helped him get his first job at Harding Glass, but not as an installer. Instead, he pushed around a broom to clean up broken glass.
“I was fascinated by the work the guys ahead of me in the company were doing,” Keith said. “Every time I moved up, I did what I needed to chase that next promotion. I always wanted the biggest, most complicated jobs I could find.”
EXPANDING THEIR VIEW
Keith and Linda moved to Olathe in search of a bigger market where he could work with different types of glass. After five years spent broadening his installation skills and knowledge of the glass business, they decided to move back to Topeka.
“We had our first daughter, and we wanted to be close to family,” Linda said.
But family wasn’t the only factor that pulled Keith and Linda back to Topeka.
“I enjoyed the work I was doing in Kansas City,” Keith said. “But something was still missing. I wanted to be able to choose the projects I worked on and have the control to make sure the quality of the finished work was up to my standards.”
That meant starting his own glass company. Like many startups, the first couple of years were a struggle financially. Linda’s job at Security Benefit paid their living expenses while Keith focused on growing the business.
They purchased a small house with a detached garage that served as the glass shop.
“Linda and I are very conservative. We don’t buy things we can’t afford. We don’t borrow money unless it makes good business sense. That has always been our philosophy from the very start,” Keith said.
That philosophy served them well, especially in the first few years when every dime Sowards Glass earned went back into the company. Their first customer was an apartment complex that needed to replace its exterior windows. As word of mouth spread about the quality of his work, Keith added more apartment buildings and residential jobs.
BREAKING OUT
Sowards Glass operated out of their garage for only a year before outgrowing it. When Keith added some small commercial projects to the mix, it became clear they needed more space to fabricate larger glass projects.
After leasing the building at 2717 North Topeka Blvd., they eventually purchased it and expanded. But once again, the space couldn’t keep up with demand.
“When we found ourselves having to store things outside, we knew we needed to find another solution,” Linda said.
They purchased the land behind the Taco Bell on North Topeka Boulevard and built a bigger building than they thought they would need. Seven years ago, they again ran out of space and had to store materials outside.
In 2017, Sowards Glass purchased the building at 2600 NW Topeka Blvd. that formerly housed Southwest Publishing. They renovated part of the building and leased the rest to two other businesses. They have since taken over one of the leased spaces and will likely expand into the remaining space in a few months, giving them a total of 44,000 square feet.
“Everything that we’ve done has been in this same area of North Topeka,” Linda said. “We love this area and want to invest back into our community.”
POLISHING THE TEAM
Sowards Glass started as a one-man operation, but as the business grew, it needed more staff. Each year brought additional work from repeat customers and new clients from word-of-mouth referrals.
“After that first year, I realized that we couldn’t keep up with demand, so we hired a guy to help out. That soon led to hiring one or two more,” Keith said.
The company hired a couple of new employees each year to keep up with additional projects. Then in 2000, Linda joined the company full time as office manager. Keith calls it the biggest shift in the business.
“When Linda took over the office operations, it allowed me to step out of the office and put all of my focus on bringing in new business, building relationships and managing the projects to ensure quality and efficiency,” Keith said.
Linda’s career shift also meant their two elementary school-age daughters would spend more time in the office.
“If the girls were out of school, they were spending the day here, or if one of them wasn’t feeling well, we would make up a bed on the floor of my office,” Linda said. “They both grew up helping in the business one way or the other, whether they were mowing or rolling rubber in glass frames.”
Both daughters joined the business after they graduated from college. Melissa helps Linda with accounts payable and payroll, while Jessica works with Keith on operations.
“Jessica was always interested in the production side of the business,” Keith said. “She would go out in the field with me, so she knows all aspects of the installation side from bidding and estimating to project management.”
Even though the business has been great for Keith and Linda, they agree that if the business ever creates a rift in the family, they will shut it down.
“Family always comes first,” Linda said. “We will never let anything get in the way of that.”
SCALING NEW HEIGHTS
Today, Sowards Glass has 35 employees and a satellite office in Olathe, Kansas, that serves the Kansas City and Missouri markets.
Sowards Glass has grown by expanding the types of projects it takes on, moving from residential jobs into more complex commercial jobs.
Their first major commercial project was the new fitness and wellness center at Hays Medical Center. While the project was challenging, the bigger issue was the three-hour distance between the glass shop and the work site.
The completion of that project allowed other contractors to see the quality of their work, opening the doors for them to bid additional jobs. They began working with several local contractors and completed glass replacement at several local schools.
Projects include several of the 501 schools, FHLBank, Kansas Avenue Lofts, The Pennant, Capitol Federal, Kansas Children’s Discovery Center and Cotton O’Neil Kanza Park.
The company’s latest project is also its largest to date. Sowards Glass just finished the Docking State Office Building, which used new glass technology. Two sides of the building have custom glass that transitions from clear to dark, much like transition sunglasses, except the contrast is controlled electronically rather than by light levels. The operator can decide how dark the tint should be and program it to follow the sun, so windows darken as the sun rises in the east and lighten as it sets in the west.
“The contractor asked if we could install that type of glass,” Keith said. “We hadn’t done it before, but we did a lot of research and after talking with the glass manufacturers, felt confident we could provide an installation that met our quality standards.”
They are now working on a similar project in Emporia, Kansas.
CLEARLY INNOVATIVE
Keith says technology has propelled the company’s growth by improving efficiency, increasing output and improving quality control.
“When I first started, fabrication was all done by hand, kind of like a carpenter, only with metal instead of wood,” Keith said.
Sophisticated machinery controlled by computers now does most of the fabrication. However, new equipment requires significant investment.
“Every three to five years, we incorporate another piece of technology to keep us on the cutting edge of this industry,” Linda said. “We know that if we don’t keep up on the emerging technology, we will be left behind.”
Their most recent investment lets Sowards Glass handle larger pieces of glass. They purchased special equipment to lift and move glass that can weigh more than 1,000 pounds. They have manipulators with large suction cups that hold the glass in place while a crane lifts it. This method is safer for installers and reduces breakage.
“I am always looking at what will make the job for the glaziers safer,” Keith said. “I grew up out in the field as a glazier, so I know how hard the job is. I have a soft spot for what the guys need to make their job easier.”
REFLECTING ON BLESSINGS
Keith and Linda say they haven’t built the business alone. They credit their success to a higher power.
“Everything we have ever gotten, we believe has been given to us by God,” Linda said. “Because we truly believe that we must be good stewards. That means with money, the people who work for us, and the people we work with. We have to do right by everyone because that’s our calling.
”Doing right by everyone means remembering that every business decision affects not only their own family, but also the families of the 35 people who work for them.
“We try to be fair with everything. If something goes wrong, we work to make it right so that both parties benefit in the end,” Linda said.
Because the Sowards believe their business keeps growing because of their faith, they feel called to use the company to give back. They support the Topeka Zoo, Kansas Children’s Discovery Center and Men in the Mirror, a religious organization that supports men and the family unit.
THE NEXT CHAPTER
Having great employees and leaders working for Sowards Glass has allowed them to take a little more time off than they used to. However, time off for two workaholics such as Keith and Linda doesn’t really mean resting.
“I am up at 5 a.m. on Saturday waiting for it to get light enough for me to go outside and start working on a project,” Keith said.
“And I am up at 5 a.m. on a Saturday on the front porch with my coffee, waiting for the sun to come as well,” Linda said. “I guess we are a good match.”
Once they do decide to put away the glass, Keith and Linda plan to enjoy working more on the 45 acres that surround their house, clearing brush and other projects to keep them busy.
“It is quiet and peaceful up there,” Linda said. “And our grandkids are going to live next door. It doesn’t get any better than that. Life is good.”
