|
 Close
To Home was born on December 3rd of 1999 in a 500 square
foot retail space in Shelburne Village. The store consisted
of 300 cabinet knobs, a bunch of nifty gift items, and a couple
of sinks and toilets that looked very much out of place.
As the business started taking off and growing it found a
new home in a 1,500 square foot house. Many more hardware
and fixture lines were added along with a pickup truck for
deliveries. It was a funky interesting new showroom with stairs
and a low ceiling to the second floor bath showroom. Most
of our clients would have to duck as they ventured up the
small stairway to look at faucets and fixtures. The business
continued to grow and thrive but the small village location
- though lovely and quaint - could not handle the massive
delivery trucks and customer parking.
Then in 2005 a major leap occurred. The store found its new
home in Williston with a 5,000 square foot showroom and equally
large warehouse. A larger delivery truck was added and that's
were we are today after our eleven year journey. Close
To Home is a local home grown business caring for a great
number of superb clients and excellent employees. Thank you
to all who helped us along the way!
| Frank DeAngelis,
owner |
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| email: frank@closetohomevt.com
|
I am
the founder and part owner of this wild and wonderful
business. My fantastic wife Leslie Tucker is also
part owner and she has been very instrumental in
helping me grow the business from my meager start
in 1999. I am originally from the suburbs of New
York and grew up surrounded by the great punk music
of The Dead Boys, The Stimulators, and scores of
other powerful bands. I spent my late teens at rock
clubs like CBGB's and also produced a marginally
successful fanzine magazine called CHAOS.
Upon graduating high school I went directly into
the world of plumbing and for 12 years worked side
by side with my Dad as a plumber. In 1989 I got
the rock climbing bug and moved to Vermont to be
closer to the mountains. I worked a plumbing counter
at Hulbert Supply and then later became a top salesperson
at a great decorative hardware and lighting showroom
called Conant Custom Brass.
In 1999 I married the love of my life Leslie and
she convinced me that I should open my own showroom.
So I rented a 500 square foot storefront in an old
house in the Village of Shelburne and started this
whole Close To Home thing! I can recall the
lucrative early days of the business when I made
$8.00 in sales all in one day!!!
I now enjoy a successful business and a sweet life
with Leslie and our two Australian Shepards in the
hills of Charlotte, Vermont. Oh yeah and I still
love the wild music and dancing in the clubs!! Long
live the music of the 70's and 80's!!! |
| Leslie Tucker,
owner |
 |
| email: leslie@closetohomevt.com |
Founder
of Roundstone
International and co-owner of Close To Home.
At Close To Home I do the back of the house
stuff, finances, IT and support our fantastic sales
and support staff.
Unlike my other business I am more of a 'behind
the scenes' person, working to make our store both
healthy and strong, creating a smooth running business
for our staff and customers.
I received my degree in psychology in 1993 but always
loved business and the mechanics of business. Curious
about the nuances of organizational dynamics, I
intensively studied systems thinking, which led
to my passionate belief that organizations benefit
from people having a better attitude toward each
other, management and their company. For the past
18 years I have consulted businesses for profit
and not-for-profits around the world. Through fostering
creative partnerships that increases productivity
and competitiveness, my team
and I have produced many sustainable breakthroughs.
I am a 9th generation Vermonter, returning home
in 1999 after living in Canada, Europe then Northern
Virginia for 10 years, I met my fantastic husband
Frank. We now we live with our doggies Nui and Dunkin
and together we enjoy bike riding, hiking, snowshoeing
and dancing whenever we get the opportunity. My
daughter, Sage is a painter and her paintings are
on display at Close to Home. |
|
Deiter Ludwig, Controller |
 |
| email: deiter@closetohomevt.com |
|
I grew up in Orange County New
York and moved to Vermont in 1998. I am a graduate
from Saint Michael’s College and Champlain
College with degrees in Business and Accounting.
I worked as a Manager of Canoe Imports in South
Burlington and I also worked for a Public Auditing
Firm in Burlington. I decided to make the move
to into private Accounting for Close to Home
as their Controller. Here at Close to Home
I am in charge of making a very successful business
operate and maintain its success while creating
ways for the business to grow and become more
financially effective and efficient.
I am avid white water kayaker and enjoy the outdoors.
I live with my wife Kourtney and our Chocolate
Labrador Cooper in Essex. We love to frequent
Indian Brook Reservoir for hikes/snowshoeing.
We also love to travel, ride bikes, play tennis,
and do things around the house.
|
| Ernie
Hathaway, Sales |
 |
| email: ernie@closetohomevt.com |
Background:
managed Peel Gallery of Fine Art in Danby, VT for
11 years.
Education: BA in Art History specializing in Material
Culture & Decorating Arts and currently working
towards certification in Personal Property Appraising
and Antiques.
Personal: avidly collects Early American glassware,
early lighting and furniture, and likes to upholster.
Wow Factor: people say it's his depth of knowledge.
What You Didn't Know: directed the Handspinning
& Handweaving exhibit at the Vermont State Fair
for over 20 years. |
| Mark
Lewis, Sales |
 |
| email: mark@closetohomevt.com |
|
My story is quite simple: I
had a great childhood in Oneonta, NY and then
went to school in Pottstown, PA. Later in life
I traveled out west and spent a year in CO ski
bumming in Vail, went back to college at Colorado
Mt. College and then moved to Seattle and opened
a home maintenance business.
After a while in Seattle I moved back to Oneonta
where I worked in my family's wholesale food business.
After we sold the business I decided to travel
a bit more and while doing so, like most people
would do, I joined a circus and traveled with
them for almost a year.
What a great way to get paid to travel and meet
people!! I eventually settled down and moved to
Vermont in 2000 to work in the golf course industry,
got married a few years later, and now reside
south of Burlington with my wife and our daughter.
Working at Close To Home is a great fit
for me: It's a fun place to work and I get to
help people create dream homes for their families
with our one-of-a-kind, amazing products.
|
| Todd |
 |
| email: todd@closetohomevt.com |
|
I was born and raised in Brooklyn,
NY. After a brief stint in college I began working
as a location scout in the film and television
industry. I had a great time learning the film
industry for six years and decided it was time
to slow down a little bit so in may of 2001 I
joined the U.S. army infantry. Needless to say
it was a great idea. Upon leaving the army I returned
to Brooklyn where I met my wife Hillary. She and
I moved up to Vermont.
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| RILEY |
 |
|
Riley is our newest dog member
at Close To Home. He came to us through
Aussie Rescue and he is a very active 18 month
old male Australian Shepard. He likes to carry
enormous trees and branches through the woods
and wrestle with Nui. Though he is a real sweet
guy you may not see him on the showroom floor
till we work on his manners!
|
| NUI |
 |
|
My life's ambition is to catch
lots of Frisbees, eat lots of steak & chicken,
and greet customers at the store! I enjoy hanging
in the warehouse with Todd, doing deliveries with
Frank, and hiking with Leslie & Frank. Oh
yea, and I like the water bowls from Yardbirds
that we have in the store!
Duncan was a great pal and I miss him a lot. Though
it is nice to get all the attention and food!
I am hoping to find a new friend real soon!
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| DUNCAN |
 |
|
Our beloved Duncan passed into
doggie heaven on July 21st 2007. He battled courageously
but succumbed to lymphoma. We miss his wild bark,
hearty appetite, and crazy personality. He will
live on in our memories and in the annals of Close
To Home history. The Duncster shall never be forgotten!
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