About this episode
Jeremy and Curtis met in fire class. Firefighter pay meant both of them worked side jobs, including door to door sales, and that is where they first saw a folding bookcase door with no real system behind it. With a small investment from a trusted mentor for a trade show booth, they set out to sell hidden door hardware.
The early company had no office. Meetings happened at a Starbucks near Curtis's fire station, the warehouse was a taped off square rented in a fire captain's building, and orders were taken from fire trucks and ambulances with sirens in the background. Customers kept asking for complete doors, so they found a cabinet shop in Idaho to build carcasses, then took a magazine editor's advice to build storage into the front of the door.
The second half is about growth and cost. A freight back charge pushed them to open in Kentucky. A fire chief's lesson about rocks and a wife's calendar of hours away from home pushed both men out of the fire service in 2016. They close with the way they run the company now: trust early, share the profit, and put employees and vendors first so customers get the best of both.
Key takeaways
- It started in fire class 2:20
Jeremy's wife met Curtis first and told Jeremy he had to meet him. The two became friends in fire training and partners soon after. - Firefighter pay forces side jobs 3:54
Most firefighters work 240 hour months and still take second and third jobs. Both men did construction, sales, and part time shifts to cover bills. - The cost at home is real 7:49
Curtis describes coming home to a family that had learned to live without him, and why the moment a kid runs to the door matters more than the extra shift. - A bad version of a good idea 9:27
They saw a folding bookcase door sold as one off custom work. The opportunity was a system that could be produced in volume. - Start with a test 11:04
Their first money paid for a trade show booth to see if anyone wanted the product. The investor received equity in steps tied to progress, not a guess at value. - The office was a Starbucks 14:15
Meetings happened at a coffee shop on days off, and the first warehouse was a taped off square rented from a fire captain's company. - Orders from the fire truck 15:51
For years they took customer calls on duty and called back after the alarm. They told customers the truth: this was a side business run by firefighters. - Customers asked for the whole door 19:00
Buyers liked the hardware but did not want to build a door. A neighbor's connection led to Merrill cabinets in Idaho building the first carcasses. - Storage in front of the door 20:35
An Architectural Digest editor told them most people need storage more than a secret passage. They redesigned around what sits in front of the door, and sales grew fast. - Do not fake it 22:10
Jeremy rejects fake it till you make it when it means a car or a story you cannot back up. People hire you because they trust you. - Give vendors bad news in person 24:36
When they could not pay a bill on time, they called or showed up, said what they could pay, and paid it. Most of their early vendors are still with them. - Trust first 30:54
Making people earn trust slowly holds the company back. Their first manager got authority to make customer decisions, and that let the owners build a business instead of a job. - Then empower, set expectations, and hold people to them 34:00
Trust comes first, then letting people use their skills, then clear expectations and accountability. Scale comes only after those are in place. - A freight bill moved the company east 37:12
A surprise freight back charge sent Jeremy to Kentucky that week. Lexington puts about half the US population within 600 miles. - The three rocks 41:54
Jeremy's fire chief set out three rocks: family, Murphy Door, and the fire department. The smallest one was making every decision. Jeremy's last full time day was June 16, 2016. - Curtis went first 45:47
Curtis left the fire department in January 2016, months before Jeremy, because he wanted to stop being a stranger in his own house. - Bring the public service benefits along 47:25
They built toward the benefits that drew them to public service: vacation, sick leave, health care, retirement, tuition help, and a share of the profit split evenly across every role. - Employees first, vendors second, customers third 59:25
Happy employees and well treated vendors are how customers get the best product. Paying vendors fast meant they never lost a day to material shortages. - Change is the hard part of growth 1:05:45
Crews resisted conveyors, a paint line, and new machines until they saw the gains. New equipment added jobs instead of cutting them. - From six doors a day to one every six minutes 1:08:53
In 2016 a great day was six to ten doors. By the 2021 recording, the Utah and Kentucky plants together were finishing a door about every six minutes, chasing a three day production goal. - You do not need a giant raise 1:17:35
Murphy Door started with one small investment and a credit card. Jeremy's point is that you can start on a firefighter wage if you have the drive. - Kill bad ideas fast 1:23:46
Pitch it, then try hard to kill it. If you cannot kill it, build it, and ask people whose judgment you trust.
In their words
“the best thing in the world is when you come home from a long day and your kid comes and runs to you and jumps in your arms.”
“People have to trust you to give you the work.”
“our employees are first, our vendors are second, and customers are third.”
“You can still do it on fire wage.”
Quotes are taken from the episode audio and lightly trimmed for filler words.
Chapters
- 0:48 Welcome Curtis Leishman
- 2:20 Meeting in fire class
- 3:54 Life on firefighter pay
- 7:49 What the hours cost at home
- 9:27 The folding bookcase idea
- 11:04 The first investment and the equity plan
- 14:15 An office at Starbucks
- 15:51 Taking orders from the fire truck
- 19:00 Building the first doors
- 20:35 Storage in front of the door
- 22:10 Fake it till you make it
- 24:36 Keeping commitments to vendors
- 30:54 Trust, empowerment, and expectations
- 37:12 The freight bill and the move to Kentucky
- 40:24 The cost at home and the three rocks
- 45:47 Leaving the fire department
- 47:25 Benefits and profit sharing
- 50:38 Hiring the right people
- 59:25 Employees first, vendors second, customers third
- 1:05:45 Growth and change
- 1:08:53 Six doors a day to one every six minutes
- 1:17:35 Starting without big money
- 1:23:46 Killing bad ideas
Also on the channel
Bring this conversation to your stage
Jeremy tells the Murphy Door story live for founders, firefighters, and leadership teams: building on a public service paycheck, growing fast without outside money, and keeping your people first. If that is the talk your group needs, start with the speaking page.