CASEY MURPHY/STAFF DON THEDFORD STARTED Don’s TV & Appliance with one employee in a little shop on Front Street in 1979. Now, the business has 40 employees in a 25,000-square-foot building housing a 15,000-square-foot showroom and service department, as well as a 12,000-squarefoot warehouse on two acres on South Broadway Avenue.

When Don Thedford started Don’s TV & Appliance with one employee, he was concerned about how he would put food on the table for his wife and three young children.

Now, 35 years later, his two sons, Donnie and Brian, are co-owners in the business that has grown to 40 employees. They long ago moved from the 2,000-square-foot building on Front Street and now own a 25,000-square-foot facility housing a 15,000-square-foot showroom and service department, as well as a 12,000-square-foot warehouse on South Broadway Avenue.

They no lon-ger only sell televisions and a variety of appliances — such as washers and dryers, refrigerators and ovens — they offer home theaters, mattresses, grills and other merchandise.

“It’s amazing how God laid this out and put it into place,” Don, 65, said when recalling how he started the business.

In 1970, he began working for Chamness Appliance in Tyler for nine years, managing the store for the last four. In 1979, he became a salesman for Duofast of Texas, selling commercial fastening equipment and nail guns around East Texas.

But after six months there, Don realized he missed interacting with people and staying on top of technology in the TV and appliance business.

Don opened Don’s TV & Appliance on Nov. 1, 1979. Without having any money or savings to speak of, he was able to get inventory financing because of the confidence companies like RCA and Whirlpool had in him, he said.

He sold his first washer and dryer the day before he opened, as he was unpacking merchandise. Don and one employee did everything — from unloading trucks and displays, to selling and delivering products, he said. After about a year, he began to hire part-time delivery help.

 

MAKING A LIVING

When he started, Don was 30, married and had three young children.

“I was pretty concerned about putting food on the table and making the house payment,” he said.

His wife of 46 years, Pam Thedford, agreed.

“It was a stretching time for us. … We walked by faith,” she said, adding that they had a group of strong Christian friends around them who supported them.

Don said some of their friends actually came to fill in at the store when he had to be out making deliveries.

During the early days, Pam, 67, handled the books.

“The first year, we were able to make a living and our business continued to grow,” Don said.

In 1981, he relocated to the corner of South Town Drive and South Broadway Avenue. At the time, there was forest across the street and competitors used it to their advantage, telling customers they shouldn’t drive out to the country to Don’s.

“It’s been interesting to watch this part of town develop,” he said, adding that it was 1983-84 that he started to see the area change.

The building they moved into in 1981 soon became too small and they added onto it in the early 1990s. Once they outgrew it again, they moved to their current location on 2 acres in 1997.

Even through the rough economy of the 1980s, the community supported their business and allowed them to grow. In 1983, they were in the Top 15 RCA dealers in Texas and maintained that for years, Don said.

“Our business continued to grow because taking care of each customer individually” is what they tried to do. “They were the most important thing,” Don said, adding that making sure they make customers for life is still their goal.

He said they have very loyal customers, some of whom are grandchildren of their original customers.

 

CHANGING WITH THE TIMES

When Don’s started, they sold washers and dryers, televisions and VCRs, which had just hit the market. The “brand new toy” sold for $1,399 and could record one hour of TV on a VHS tape, Don said.

Soon, microwave ovens came on the market, followed by built-in refrigerators and appliances.

In 1971, Don went to a meeting with the head of RCA, the leading TV manufacturer at the time. The biggest TV they had ever made was 25 inches, and they claimed to be working on something that would hang on the wall, like a mirror. No one believed it was possible, but starting about 10 years ago, flat-screen TVs that do just that started becoming popular and now are in nearly every home.

In 1997, his oldest son, Donnie, came to work for the company and wanted to start selling home theaters, a relatively new concept at the time. They began installing projection TVs and screens and built-in speakers.

Donnie, 44, remembers his father’s first store, where he would go to work with him most Saturdays and they would walk to Loggins for lunch. He worked in the warehouse throughout high school.

Donnie said their father needed help with deliveries, so he started working to make his car payment while attending Tyler Junior College in 1989. He recalls selling his first washer and dryer, which he wrote up incorrectly and shorted the company out of about $30 because he was so excited.

Within a couple of years, Donnie began to take over the electronic side of the business. At the time, there were separate stores selling TVs and stereos and he combined audio and video in one place.

Brian, 37, started delivering for his father when he was 14, but when he went to college he wasn’t planning on joining the family business. He studied business management and wanted to go into sales for an appliance manufacturer.

But Brian saw his older brother successful in taking over Don’s electric side of the business and thought, “Why am I going to dedicate my time and energy in the same industry but not help my own family business?” That’s when he decided he wanted to take over the appliance part of Don’s. When he was 20, he started full-time to learn the sales and management aspect of the company.

Donnie said they believe Don’s will always be a place where the customers are treated like family.

Don’s is one of the only businesses in East Texas that service the merchandise after they sell it, Don said. They have 10 technicians and a full support staff to take care of customer’s products.

“We want to continue to offer the level of service we have for 35 years,” he said.

Donnie said they plan to continue to grow the business, but TVs and appliances are still their “bread and butter.”

“We have plans to update the inside and outside of the store,” he said. “We all have to continue to change with the times.”

 

WORKING FAMILY

“It’s been great” to work with his sons every day, Don said. “Knowing you’ve got someone there working and covering your back with the same ideas and philosophies as you do.”

Don serves as president of the business, Donnie as vice president and Brian as secretary and treasurer. The sons run the day-to-day operations while Don keeps a close eye on the financials. They discuss business decisions and ideas as a team.

“I keep trying to move out; they say you have to stay,” he said.

Although he has slowed his pace, Don has no plans to retire. In 2009, he entered into an agreement to sell the business to his sons and they are equal owners.

Pam is proud her sons are successful in the business, but she is not surprised. They have watched their father, whom they have a lot of respect for, be successful, she said.

Donnie and Brian weren’t expected or pressured to join the family business.

“They had to find their own way. … They made the choice themselves,” she said.

Donnie tries to treat family and business separately, although he works alongside his brother and father every day.

“Generally, it’s pretty much all business up here,” he said.

Although he doesn’t call him dad at work — he calls him Don — “he’s still our dad,” Donnie said, adding that they value his opinion.

Pam believes the customers and the employees are the backbone of the business.

“Don, Donnie and Brian are the heart of this business,” she said.