By Ron Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University
“Treat the customer like you were doing their work for yourself.”
That simple rule has been a guiding principle for the founders of a rural Kansas business. This business has operated for nearly a half-century and is still going.
Lois and Gilbert Wenz are the owners and founders of Wenz Interiors in Holyrood, Kansas.
Lois is from Ellsworth originally. She attended a Lutheran junior college, then earned a teaching degree at Southwestern College in Winfield.
After graduating, she and her parents attended the dedication of Holyrood’s rebuilt Lutheran church, which had burned down earlier. There she met a young man named Gilbert who helped build the new church. There must have been sparks again, because she and Gilbert were ultimately married.
Gilbert Wenz was from a farm in the rural community of Claflin, population 543 people. Now, that’s rural.
Wenz graduated from Kansas State University in agricultural mechanization. His father was a farmer and carpenter. Gilbert came back after graduation, worked for a large building contractor in Hoisington, and farmed. Lois taught high school.
The Wenzs bought out Bunk Floors & Tile in Hoisington. “The owner was going to work with Gilbert and train him for the first year, but shortly after we bought the business, Bunk’s lungs collapsed,” Wenz said.
The Wenz’s moved the business to Holyrood where they had built their home and opened a home décor center of their own. They attended many training sessions on products, installation and design.
The business, named Wenz Interiors, began in 1978. “At first we had the store in our house, due to no real estate being available,” Wenz said. In 1983 they built a new building and added on as the business grew.
Wenz Interiors is located on Highway K-156 in Holyrood. The company serves as a one-stop source for residential and commercial building and decorating products for new construction and/or remodeling. Wenz Interiors offers flooring, cabinets and countertops, building materials and décor, windows and doors, and even skylights, water conditioning products, and much more.
The company has done work all over Kansas. “We do both new construction and remodeling,” Wenz said.
This year will mark Wenz Interior’s 47th year in business. How can this type of company succeed in such a rural setting?
“We try really hard to do really quality work for a reasonable price,” Lori Wenz said. “Gilbert is a perfectionist. He’s really talented and knowledgeable about our products and does quality professional installations.”
“We don’t cut corners. Everyone has a different style and budget, and we try to have different price points for people.”
The Wenz’s also believe in supporting the community. For 25 years, Lois served on the Ellsworth County economic development committee and many other volunteer organizations.
“We believe in supporting our local schools, organizations, churches and communities,” she said. “In a small town, people step up to support local activities or when there’s a fundraiser for special needs.”
For example, when the local Santa Fe train depot was being remodeled, Wenz Interiors did much of the restoration at no charge.
Repeat business has been a hallmark for Wenz Interiors. “We’ll work on one house and when the people move, they’ll want us to come do their next one,” Wenz said. “Often their children or other relatives that live elsewhere will ask us to come do the work on their homes or businesses.”
“The Lord blesses others and you as you follow His commands,” Lori Wenz said. “We’ve been blessed and truly appreciate the business with so many good people over all the years.”
For more information, see www.wenzinteriors.com.
“We just try to treat them like we were trying to do the work for ourselves,” Wenz said. That commendable philosophy has led Gilbert and Lois Wenz to make a difference by operating their rural business for nearly 50 years. That is a golden rule to live by.
And there’s more. Remember the Santa Fe train depot that was being remodeled? It is one of only five like it in the entire nation. We’ll learn about that next week.
Audio and text files of Kansas Profiles are available at https://www.huckboydinstitute.org/kansas-profiles. For more information about the Huck Boyd Institute, interested persons can visit http://www.huckboydinstitute.org.
