Guhde's recipe for success

By Patricia Nugent

What’s your secret recipe for success?

If you ask the Guhde family, which started a business in the Nifty ‘50s, the recipe would be a perfect balance of talent, skill, determination and hard work.

Just as a beautiful home is comprised of perfectly chosen decor elements, so, too, is this synergistic family dynamic. Each member brings a unique skill set to the table.

Once Upon a Time...
After years working in the flooring business, Grandfather Donald Guhde opened his own flooring store in Euclid in 1957. His son, Michael, who he used to take along on jobs as a little boy, is now president of Guhde Flooring America.

Michael’s wife, Diane, married into the business in 1976 working in the showroom, and even setting up a playpen in the back of the store when daughter Monica and son Mike Jr. came along. Today, Mike Jr. is general manager and Monica is office manager. Michael Sr. and Diane remain active in the business.

In 2015, Monica married Shawn Rosa, who also has an extensive background in the flooring business. He now wears the hat of sales manager.

Last year the family grew again, with the addition of Vayda, a precocious boxer pup that Shawn and Monica bring to the store each day. Her unbridled nature charms customers.

The next gen of Guhdes and Rosas are waiting in the wings to one day join the business (though they are still in grade school, preschool and diapers). Shawn and Monica have three children: a son and two daughters, ages eight, 10 and 12. Mike and his wife have two daughters, ages three and one.

There They Grow Again
In 1989, the family business moved from Euclid to its spacious showroom in Painesville. Although they had always offered carpet and hardwood flooring, the new showroom gave them plenty of space to branch out into luxury vinyl, tile, countertops, backsplashes and even paint.

This year the family is branching out again. They’ve just begun construction to expand their showroom to house a kitchen and bath design department.

Says Monica, “We’re adding about 800 square feet of space to showcase model kitchens and baths. Anything you can imagine will be on display, from countertops and cabinets to light fixtures and faucets.”

“All In” When it Comes to Giving Back
As Platinum Sponsors of the 2017 Lake County YMCA Dream House, Guhde Flooring America has donated all of the flooring and tile in this amazing home. They have participated as sponsors of the house for the past 20-plus years.

“This is our biggest charitable effort,” says Shawn. “It’s a good decision to support a great cause that typifies what this area is all about—volunteerism and helping each other.”

A few of the striking details:

• Flooring is Downs H2O in a plank style called Joshua Tree, which reflects a rich patina of grays and browns.
• Kitchen backsplash is hexagon-shaped slate gray glass tiles interspersed with different textures.
• The master bathroom shower reflects the trend of mixing several different styles and sizes of tiles in one area, from skinny, vertically-laid tiles to add height, to tiny, square, glass tiles in the shampoo niche.
• A crowning element on the second floor is the 3-D accent wall in the study. It looks like ripples of hexagon-shaped pieces of driftwood. Monica reports it’s available in eight designs and eight colors.

“We discovered the new company, Vertical Illusions, at our most recent trade show,” she reveals. 

Guhde Flooring America is located at 1880 Mentor Avenue in Painesville Township. Hours are Monday, 10:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m.; Tuesday, 10:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; Wednesday, 10:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; Thursday, 10:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m.; Friday, 10:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; and Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Call 440-639-1990, or visit GuhdeFlooringAmerica.com for more information. For details on the Lake County YMCA Dream House, check out the insert within this Mimi issue, or visit YMCADreamHouse.org.