Published November 2003

Customer service keeps clock shop ticking

By Kimberly Hilden
SCBJ Assistant Editor

In an industry that revolves around time, A House of Clocks in Lynnwood has reached a temporal milestone of its own, marking 40 years in business this year.

That’s 21,024,000 movements of the minute hand, 350,400 hourly chimes — longevity President Susie Hennig attributes to the family-owned company’s reputation for quality retail and repair as well as its dedication to customer service.

Snohomish County Business Journal/ KIMBERLY HILDEN “Clocks become a part of your life, a part of your rhythm,” said Don Larson, who has been selling clocks at A House of Clocks in Lynnwood for 15 years. The company’s retail operation offers everything from simple wall clocks to ornate grandfather clocks.

“It’s being aware of what the customer wants,” said Hennig, whose father, Dale Nofziger, began building that reputation in 1963, when he bought a red, chalet-style gas station/gift store on Highway 99 and turned it into A House of Clocks.

“Originally, it started with repair work, but as customers started asking about buying clocks, and as business started to grow, we began selling them, too,” Hennig said.

The chance to manufacture them followed in 1969, when Nofziger acquired the trademark rights to the Ansonia Clock Co., which had been one of the largest clock manufacturers in the United States during the late 1800s and early 1900s before going out of business in 1930.

By 1971, Nofziger’s business, which had grown to include sons David and Steven and daughter Hennig, was turning out a line of its own clocks under the Ansonia name in manufacturing space at Paine Field.

“We were fortunate to get the rights to the name and have worked to keep up the high standards associated with it,” said Hennig, whose father retired in 1995, leaving ownership of the business to his children and a son-in-law, Curt Webb.

Today, the Ansonia line is manufactured in a Monroe facility and includes mantel and wall-hanging clocks — either keywind or battery-operated quartz — in solid oak or cherry woods, with beveled glass accents and chimes. There are also quartz, battery-operated marble desk clocks.

Sold in clock and furniture stores across the country, the Ansonia brand has found a niche in the corporate award and appreciation market, helping employers mark employee anniversaries and retirements with quality timepieces, Hennig said.

Locally, Ansonia can be found at A House of Clocks, whose retail offerings have grown over the years to match just about every price range and need, from heirloom-quality grandfather clocks to bedside alarm clocks, Hennig said.

The retail showroom, which has been expanded over time, is a testament to that. Dozens of mantel clocks sit atop display tables; KitCat clocks, their eyes and tails ticking off the seconds, watch customers walk by.

There are cuckoo clocks, too. Those happen to be “bigger than ever,” said salesman Don Larson, who has been with A House of Clocks for 15 years and a part of the clock industry for 25.

And then there are the grandfather clocks, stately Howard Millers and Slighs, their solid oak and cherry wood gleaming, standing sentinel against the walls.

“You just wind them once a week and enjoy them,” Hennig said, adding that the towering timepieces should run for eight to 10 years before needing to be serviced — something A House of Clocks’ repair division handles along with in-home services.

“Many of the younger generation want the quartz (battery-operated) clocks, but there are others who really appreciate the tradition of passing a fine piece of furniture, as well as a clock, on to the next generation,” Hennig said.

“In a high-tech world, it’s nice to have something traditional,” she added.

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