L&S Carpets in Spalding are celebrating the opening of their second store in town

Family ties are the key for a popular business as they begin life at a second store.

L&S Carpets & Flooring first started up in Spalding in 2018 under the management of married couple Louise and Simon Wright.

When their son Craig and daughter Nicole joined their ranks, they decided it was time to broaden their reach - and they officially opened their new Wygate Park store on Saturday, November 13.

It will offer a more personal sit-down service, and features a large showroom.

After a meet-and-greet afternoon during which they met with customers and had soft drinks and cupcakes on offer, it was down to business for the Wright family.

Louise, who is managing director at L&S and has lived in Spalding all her life, is delighted with how things have gone.

“It’s been very stressful, but it’s not too bad now we’re open!” she joked.

“It’s going very well, and the second one has already started off with the best foot forward.

“Basically, we just wanted to expand.”

L&S supply a wide range of floorings, with carpets, vinyl and tiles amongst their specialities.

All fittings are done by Simon himself, who entered the fitting industry as soon as he left school.

“It was just Simon and I to start up with, so we launched it and started up for the first year,” said Louise.

“Then our kids started coming along and helping out a little at the weekend, and after our second year they came on full-time because the shop was very busy.

“They were more than happy to come on board with the family and eventually, obviously when the time comes, they’ll be taking over.”

Craig (31) was trained up on the carpet-fitting side of things by Simon, but now tends to be involved with a lot of intense negotiations in the commercial sector.

Nicole (21) has been put in charge of running L&S’ first store at the Stumps Lane business park in Spalding.

“Both of them play a really big part in the business,” Louise said.

After the early success following the opening of their new store, Louise says there are no plans to expand any further than that.

“There’s only so far you can spread yourself,” she said.

“We’re a family-run business with our son and daughter on board, so we’d like to keep the family in the business and offer it down as the next generations come forward.

“We work as a team. It works for us, and our main aim is to offer a good service to the public.

“Simon and I are very proud of our children for joining the company.”

The team of four pride themselves on building strong relationships both with their customers and within the community.

“I know as a woman going into a store, when you buy something you want good customer service. I don’t think you get that a lot nowadays,” Louise added.

“We pride ourselves on good customer service and giving the right information.”