With hosts David Holt and Sandy Goff
By Bonita Wilborn
RAINSVILLE- On the November Rainsville Chamber Chat, which can be viewed in its entirety on the Mountain Valley News Facebook page, David and Sandy talked about some exciting things that are going on in Rainsville.
November’s Business Spotlight was S&S Wholesale with owners Linda Samples and her grandson Jacob Henderson.
Linda and her husband Daryl have two children, seven grandchildren, one great-grandchild, and a second on the way.
Linda worked in the banking industry for 28 years before opening S&S Wholesale, a plumbing and electrical store located at 2743 Marshall Rd, in Rainsville.
Daryl retired to open the business with Linda, but after his health failed him, Linda continued to run the business for almost 25 years.
Linda recalled, “The biggest change was when Covid hit, and the distribution of products came to a halt. There are still a lot today.”
When asked by host David Holt if she had faced obstacles being a female owning a plumbing and electrical business, Linda answered, “It’s not been easy. I didn’t know one thing about plumbing and electrical. My customers helped me learn. They would come in and ask for the materials they needed.
I guess I looked like a deer in the headlights. They would go with me in the back and explain what it was used for. So that’s how I learned the plumbing and electrical business. Now, I’ve forgotten more than I learned. I still have most of the customers that started with me 25 years ago. I’d like to thank all my customers for sticking with me through thick and thin.”
Holt responded, “I think that is a testament to Rainsville and the surrounding community.
They want to see you flourish and do well, and they want a place they can shop local as well. It helps everybody in the community, and that’s what makes Rainsville such a great place to live.”
Linda has reached the point where she is ready to retire. She stated, “Jacob is the only one of my grandchildren that showed any interest in the business. He’s been working with me for three and a half years now, and he’s done a wonderful job. He really has the authority to run the business, but he still likes for me to come in just as a ‘sounding board’. I’m ready to step down when he is comfortable enough to say, ‘OK, you can go.’ I’ll just sail away into the sunset.”
Jacob, a Plainview High School graduate, grew up in the store, but he really began working with his grandmother about his sophomore year of school. Jacob stated, “I’ll never stop learning from Nana. It’s been a challenge, but I’m excited and looking forward to what’s to come.”
In reflection about what he’s learned, Jacob stated, “Nana has always told me that to compete with the big-box stores, we have to have that certain competitive advantage. Ours is service and knowledge. All of our staff are plumbers, but they have knowledge of electrical, HVAC, septic, etc. They’re great. They make managing the store easy.”
Jacob has begun implementing some expansion ideas for the business with the expectation of continuing the great service provided by S&S Wholesale for so many years.
Holt and Goff also talked about some upcoming events in Rainsville. First up was the Holiday Open House event that took place on Friday and Saturday, November 10 and 11. As always, Sandy stated, “Shop Local/Shop Rainsville.”
Next was the Rainsville Christmas Parade scheduled for Thursday, November 30, at 6:00 PM. It will be a night parade, so all entries need to light up. In addition to having the hometown Plainview Band, we are honored to have one half of the Jacksonville State Southerns Marching Band. We’re very excited to have them,” Goff stated.
Be watching for the next edition of Rainsville Chamber Chat coming in December, where another business will be highlighted.