BY ERIC CHRISTIANSEN
Small Business Spotlight
Leffel Growing As Clearview Windows & More Owner
K
yle Leffel takes satisfaction in taking something dirty and making it clean – in the case of his business, it’s glass. The North Manchester native started working for Dennis Unger at Clearview Windows & More in 2010 and took over the business in January 2019. “I saw it as a great opportunity to continue an already successful business that so many people in the area count on year after year,” Leffel said. Leffel and Unger have been family for over a decade as Leffel and Unger’s daughter, Amy, live in North Manchester with their children Ayla, 8, and Lennon, 2. Dennis Unger was a custodian at Thomas Marshall Elementary School from 1978 to 1988 before he got into the glass cleaning business. “When Manchester Elementary School opened in August (1988) I knew I would be placed on second shift,” he said. Unger bought Sunshine Cleaning, a maid service in the North Manchester area, when the previous owner was set to retire. Unger kept the existing clients who asked if
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he would wash their windows, leading him to expand into residential and commercial window cleaning. He sold the maid service in 1988 to focus solely on window cleaning. “In the early days I would do one house a day solo,” Unger said. As the business grew he would hire three to four employees, mostly local high school and college students during the busiest windowcleaning season from April to September, according to Unger. Enter Leffel. A 2007 Manchester High School and 2012 Manchester College (University) graduate, Leffel jumped on board at Clearview Windows & More in 2010 while he finished his education but had his eye on a career in the restaurant business. “I would work with Dennis each summer as much as I could while also working in area restaurants,” Leffel said. “I worked at Main View (North Manchester), Cerulean (Winona Lake), Joseph Ducuis (Roanoke), and The Golden (Fort Wayne). I decided to come on fulltime as a window cleaner after leaving The Golden in spring of 2017.” Leffel said after working two
seasons full-time alongside Unger, learning the finer points of running the business, he was ready to take over ownership of Clearview Windows & More. Leffel comes from a line of small business on both sides of his family. His grandmother and uncle own Manchester Floor Covering and his great-great grandfather owned Lautzenhizer Meat Market. “I figured it is in my blood to own and operate [a business] of my own,” he said. “Of course, I thought it would be a restaurant, but as of right now, the window cleaning business is a perfect fit for me and my family. “Owning a business is hard work and I have learned a lot so far,” Leffel added. “The flexibility of the seasonal schedule is what I enjoy most. Having some downtime in the harder winter months is great for spending more time with my family.” Clearview Windows & More is more than just a North Manchester business, with clients in Warsaw, Syracuse, Fort Wayne, Rochester, Wabash and around the lakes of Kosciusko County. While residential and commercial window cleaning is the main focus of the business, Leffel said they also
WABASH BUSINESS JOURNAL / SUMMER 2020
