Lizard Heights Glass going strong after 10 years

A former U.S. Marine married to a former U.S. Navy electronics tech, John Turcott is a small-business owner with a special perspective of serving the public.

The Turcotts own Lizard Heights Glass, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary in August.

“Back in the ‘80s I was working construction,” Turcott recalls. “I was framing houses. I was 20-something making $20 an hour, living off the hog, partying like a rock star, not putting anything away. And the bottom dropped out of it, just like it did now.”

He ended up getting work in a Mesa glass shop at $6 an hour to get by. The personal economic change was “brutal,” but he grew his talents installing glass. Over the years, he worked at various shops before landing at Harmon Autoglass.

He worked his way up through the ranks to become a district manager over three states. The auto glass division of the company was sold, and Turcott’s job disappeared. Carrying around a non-compete clause, he ended up working with a friend in Casa Grande at a glass-tempering plant.

“Then we started building insulated units you put in a house window,” he says. “So it was pretty cool. I got to see the whole aspect of that part actually done.”

Again, new management came in, and Turcott quit.

In August 2005, Turcott and his wife Julie struck out on their own, opening Lizard Heights Glass in Maricopa.

“I love it out here,” he says. “When I worked for another glass company, I drove out to Thunderbird Farms to install glass for a customer. I sat in my van and loved how quiet it was. It was dead silent. It reminded me of living in the sticks in Michigan. I thought, ‘OK, I’m moving here.’”

In 10 years, Lizard Heights has never had a negative month, Turcott says. Julie works customer relations, talking with customers on the phone, and Turcott is meticulous in his work – “I can’t do anything halfway; it drives me nuts,” he says. “I’ll keep working on it until I get it right.”

Julie Turcott was the maintenance manager for a glass-tempering facility in California when they met. She also had a background in electronics in the Navy. She had no experience in customer relations.

Turcott told her how they trained at other companies he worked. “She just got the down-and-dirty, and off she went and figured it out,” he says. “Just talk to people like you’ve known them forever.”

Lizard Heights Glass is a mobile service, and Turcott has everything on his van.

“We do everything from fixing a broken window to replacing a window,” he says. There are usually less expensive options than buying a new window, he says, “but companies that just sell you windows won’t tell you that.”

Broken windows, cracked windshields, “failed insulated units” (double-panes in which the adhesive has broken down) and custom showers are among the most common calls. He gives free estimates.

When they started Lizard Heights Glass, there were 60 glass companies listed in the Phoenix metro area, so the Turcotts were prepared for competition. But the work has always been steady.

Turcott said they expected a drop-off with the housing slump, but they discovered people were remodeling what they had because they could not sell. And they needed a glass expert.

“Our customers are super loyal, and we go out of our way to make it right,” he says. “People have been coming back to us since the day we opened.”

LizardHg.com
520-868-6180

John Turcott
Owner
Lizard Heights Glass

Personal
Age: 47
Hometown: Kalamazoo, Michigan
Residence: Thunderbird Farms
Education: High school
Family: Wife, daughter and son
Pets: Dogs, goats and chickens
Pet peeves: Gun-free zones
Hobbies: Competitive shooting
Currently reading: “5000 Year Leap”
I wish I was … a better singer

Business
First job: New home construction
Favorite job: U.S. Marine
Why this business: Good at it
Greatest challenge: Getting enough sleep
Greatest opportunity: Starting our own business
Best business advice you ever received: Start my own company

Favorites
Food: All
Musician: Brad Paisley
TV show: “Deadliest Catch”
Athlete: Walter Payton
Sport: NASCAR
Sports team: Stewart Haas Racing
Charity: Wounded Warrior Foundation, USO
Travel destination: North to the mountains
Book: “Inside the Red Circle” by Brandon Webb
Quote: "When government fears the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny." – Thomas Jefferson