Jim E. Glasgow Sr. has been a merchant for 45 years. Taking pride in finding quality products that consumers want, and then providing them to the market place at affordable prices. He started in high school getting buyers and sellers together. Later, he managed variety stores (the old five and dimes stores). In the 1970's, he managed large discount stores. In the 1980's, he ran a company that manufactured back yard buildings and spas.
In 1987 Mr Glasgow founded The Back Yard Store that later became Patiostore.com. Originally the company manufactured storage buildings and the retail stores sold spas and above ground pools along with the storage rooms. Customers that where fixing up their yards also needed carports and patio covers, those where added in 1990. That was followed by patio furniture, as the concept of everything for the back yard developed. The company's three retail stores now offered; storage rooms, patio furniture, above ground pools, patio covers, patio rooms, portable spas, swing sets, BBQ grills, and pool accessories. Other than landscaping, the company could do almost everything for the back yard.
By 1995, increasing competition, lower priced imports and a basic change in the way manufactures treated their dealers is what caused reductions in profit margins. These changes made retailing with a high degree of customer service unprofitable. The customer wanted more for their money, and a way to offer that was needed. The low price, cash and carry shops where growing at the expense of the full service retailer.
And then there was the Internet. In 1995, after watching an Amazon ad on TV, Mr. Glasgow had hit upon the future of his company. Patiostore.com was formed over the next three months and the rest as they say, is history. Half the staff thought he had lost his mind and quit within the next six months. Office space was rented, new people hired, and web site coding had begun. Over a two year period, stores were closed, and the manufacturing plant for the storage buildings was sold. Within three years, the old company was gone and the new Internet based Patiostore.com was formed. Over the last thirteen years many changes have been implemented as the whole world adjusted to the changes brought on by the Internet.
Today, Patiostore.com represents some 150 manufacturers and offers those products to everyone, everywhere. We no longer sell a few hundred products to the local community, but rather, tens of thousands of products are shipped all over the world. The goal of any merchant is to offer high quality products at reasonable prices. The Internet has allowed us to continue to do just that. The Internet has allowed us to offer lower pricing, and vastly more selections, to many more people. The Internet is a merchants dream come true.
As a company, it has been our goal to offer the consumer more choices. We still offer products that give the consumer choices in color, size, material, fabric and options to make your purchase fit your needs. To that end, we have on staff, product specialists in our sales department, that can assist you in getting what you need.
Patiostore.com is evolving into a community of web stores that offer, and will continue to offer, a vast array of products in boutique sized web sites with superior quality and choices at discounted prices.
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