As a long-standing independent retail store owner in the appliance, electronics, and furniture industry, I can attest to the impact that Steve has had on our business. Since 1983, we’ve been thriving, but when the market shifted towards e-commerce in 2010, we knew we needed help.

That’s when a mutual contact introduced us to Steve, who had successfully bootstrapped his own e-commerce business and approached things differently from others in the field. From our first meeting, I was struck by Steve’s meticulousness, work ethic, and clear vision.

Despite the changing nature of our business relationship over the past dozen years, Steve’s core values have remained constant. He has been instrumental in helping us navigate the online marketplace, providing guidance on everything from our web presence to who we hire to help us manage our ecommerce store internally. We also count on him to attend our trade shows and sit in on our meetings.

While Steve can sometimes get tunnel vision, he also has a unique ability to think outside the box and isn’t afraid to give it to you straight. He is fiercely loyal and never one to shy away from a challenge. I have complete trust in his abilities and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him to any other business owner.

Terry Oates

Owner
King’s Great Buys Plus

Having worked in retail for my entire career, selling products has always come naturally to me. I’ve sold to large retail chains, traditional stores, and even online retailers like Overstock, but I struggled to sell my bed-in-a-box brand directly to consumers (D2C) online.

It was 2013, and the online mattress industry was still in its early stages. I tried hiring full-time help twice, but both efforts were unsuccessful. One person had a strong retail background but no e-commerce experience, while the other was an IT expert who didn’t understand that I was actually in business to turn a profit. I nicknamed them Porsche an Ferrari as that’s what I could have had in my parking lot for what those two cost me.

I was ready to give up on my D2C aspirations until I started working with Steve through Always Open Commerce. He immediately understood my business needs and spoke to me in terms of bottom-line profits. Within a few months, my D2C brand became profitable, but I faced a major issue. Steve was only available for a limited number of hours, and I didn’t have the time or inclination to hire someone else.

That’s when I made him an offer he couldn’t refuse – to become my business partner. That’s how much I thought of him. With Steve on board, our business became a profit-generating machine. If I had to describe Steve in one sentence, it would be this: he does what he says he’ll do.

Joe Shingary

Former Owner
Bedding Stock – Icon Sleep