Lexington / Kentucky / United States
ABOUT WILLIS KLEIN Trusted as a leader in the locksmith business for more than 45 years, Willis Klein now has four different divisions serving homes and businesses throughout Kentuckiana. In addition to being the largest residential and commercial lock and security specialist in the region, we also have three showrooms - two in Louisville and one in Lexington - offering the latest in decorative kitchen and bath plumbing and hardware for homes and offices. Our commercial division provides hardware and fixtures for new businesses and institutions, and our after-market sales and service department provides doors, frames and hardware to existing businesses. No matter which division of our company you do business with, youll find the same integrity, professionalism and dedication to service that was the hallmark of our founder, Willis J. Klein who started the company in the early 1960s. Our family tradition in the locksmith business dates back to the l930s when our grandfather began Klein Brothers in Louisville. Willis Klein is currently owned and operated by Larry R. Klein, Willis son. His two children, Andrew and Trish, are now in the business as well. Andrew works in commercial sales; Trish, in the showroom business. Larry recalls first working for his father the summer he was 12, sweeping floors and cutting keys. A few years later, he learned personally the lesson in service that he has taken to heart ever since. He was awakened three times between midnight and 3 A.M. to handle locksmith emergencies, driving down to the store and then out to the location each time. "Thats how I learned the Nordstrom concept of service above and beyond, " he recalls. "And thats how weve grown the company. " When Larry became president in 1978 the company had one division (locksmiths) and eight employees. Today there are four divisions and about 80 employees. In the early l980s, Larry began noticing that customers were going to Williamsburg, Va., to purchase reproduction Colonial rim locks and coming to him for installation. "I figured, why not offer the locks too and thats how we developed the decorative hardware business. We were unique in that we would install what we sold." That led to designer and European hardware and coordinating bath accessories. From there the business grew to offer decorative plumbing so that decorators and designers no longer needed to go to Chicago or New York for the newest, one-of-a-kind items. Builders, meanwhile, came in for safes and began using Willis Klein as a source of door hardware because the company could expertly install. And that helped expand to other decorative hardware.
