Daily Inspiration: Meet Nick Cianchetti

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Cianchetti

Hi Nick, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
The idea of Guys Tile and Flooring all started with our grandfather, Gaetano. He was an Italian immigrant who came over from Italy as a young man and became a very skilled bricklayer in the Akron, Ohio area. He worked very hard to take care of and provide for his family and when my brothers and I were old enough, he began to teach us his trade. Growing up, we were surrounded by all of the amazing masterpieces that he created from building brick houses, garages, and mailboxes, to tiling many different rooms and creating many stone carvings that are still present to this day. Being around him and learning his trade helped to inspire us to want to learn more. We have always been very amazed with the skill that went into his work and loved learning from his wisdom. It was this thought that gave me the idea to start Guys Tile and Flooring in 2018. I started the business and named it after him to show how proud we are of his accomplishments and to thank him for everything he taught us. He passed earlier this year but having this business continue on and grow will continue to keep his spirit alive. Since 2018, we have expanded our knowledge to include many different types of tiling such as custom tile showers and back-splashes, fireplace surrounds, stacked stone, and art-glass panels, as well as other types of flooring.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. The ups and downs have been an emotional roller-coaster! One thing that I have been able to do is lean on the people in my circle that own businesses who feel the same way. It’s nice to know that this is part of being an entrepreneur. My first struggle was proving ourselves to customers. I would go on estimates and people would hit me with questions about how to do certain things (test questions) to make sure I know what I’m talking about. Now that we have reviews and a good reputation, I am no longer getting those questions. It feels great to know that we are trusted.
Another struggle has been trying to grow the company. We had a great helper and I tried to bring her up into a full-time installer position this year. Unfortunately, the economy has not been great and I couldn’t get enough work for two crews so I had to lay her off. We will continue to try and grow, but under better conditions.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I consider tile an art. There are so many different sizes, styles, colors, materials, etc. It is no longer square tile in 4, 6, 8, or 12 inches. It takes a better skilled installer to give the customer what they have created in their mind, come to life. We install tile floors, back-splashes, custom tile showers, stacked-stone, and art-glass panels. We recently went to Dallas, TX to get certified in SICIS Vetrite Art-Glass panels. If you’re unfamiliar, check them out; They are something unique and very stunning!

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
The tiles are getting larger and more unique. Since we have been in business, I’ve seen tile go from 12″x24″ to 24″x48″ and even bigger. The Art-Glass panels that we got certified on are 4’x9′. They now have porcelain slabs that are the same size. I’ve seen tile made from recycled glass to tiles made by hand that have no perfect edge or height to them (Zellige). I can see mosaics and custom pieces of tile art being big in the next 5 years.