Meet Myra: Lynnwood Window Specialist
Spring is nearly here, which means it's time to consider replacing or repairing your windows over the warmer months. Today, we're profiling one of our window specialists, Myra. For 20 years, Myra has been part of the Dunn Lumber family. Now, she’s bringing two decades of expertise into her new role at Dunn Lumber's Lynnwood location, where she helps walk Dunn Lumber customers through the entire window shopping experience, from ideation to installation.
Myra knows Dunn Lumber. Two decades ago, she walked into her local Seattle store for a stocking job. Her dad worked in the Shoreline yard before moving into sales, and, after a car accident left Myra unable to continue her previous career as a cosmetologist, he suggested she follow in his footsteps. She did, eventually transferring to Dunn Lumber Lynnwood to be closer to home (and her two kids). There, she moved from stocking to the general sales counter. “Basically, everything you need to build a house that Dunn Lumber carries, [I needed] to know a little bit about,” she says. So, she familiarized herself with everything on the floor, from windows and doors to decks and railings, asking co-workers and suppliers questions and talking to customers, trying to figure out exactly what they needed to get their job done.
Now, she’s the window specialist at Dunn Lumber Lynnwood, where, since July 2017, she helps customers find the right windows for their homes from manufacturers such as Marvin and Milgard. “It’s
fun,” says Myra. “The people are good—the customers are great.” For the uninitiated, ordering windows can feel overwhelming. That’s why Dunn Lumber’s window showrooms and specialists like Myra are so important—they help ensure customers understand the ordering process and have what they need to succeed. Myra’s expertise starts with the project at hand. She opens the conversation with the customer with a question: What kind of windows do you think you’d like?, offering options ranging from vinyl to wood. If the customer has a style in mind, the next steps are easy. If not, she walks them through the showroom, where they can see each option in the context of a display with walls. Based on their budget, Myra guides them to the option that will work best for their style and needs.
Complete this worksheet and bring it in to your local Dunn Lumber Window Showroom to get help with your window project.
Next, it’s on to measurements, which are important for customers to gather properly—that’s the only way Myra can give them an estimate for the cost of their project. Accurately measuring the space, she says, is one of the trickiest things for homeowners to do, which is why most big window projects are measured by window contractors after the homeowner chooses a window style. The measuring process varies by window brand and style. For homeowners and contractors alike, it's critical to have a detailed conversation with a window specialist about the measuring process so the new windows fit nicely into the existing openings of the home.
From there, customers decide whether and how a window might open and close: single-hung, double-hung, or horizontal slider, to name just a few. Since every window is built to order, it will take between two and six weeks for windows to arrive after placing an order. As the industry evolves, Myra does as well, staying up to date on everything from new and discontinued product lines to building codes to energy values. (For example: Myra explains that because of industry standards constantly improving, any window you put in your house now will naturally be more efficient than what was available 10 years ago.)
What’s the benefit of visiting one of Dunn Lumber’s window showrooms? “Simply that you can come in and look at the different options available—the different qualities, the different colors,” she says. And, to chat with a specialist. “Hopefully I can answer all their questions quickly, and at a level they can understand.”
The key for a successful transaction, says Myra, is to listen . At the end of the day, the optimal end result comes by understanding what the customer wants. “Trust,” she says, “is about building the relationship.”
