Top Family-Owned Business in NH: (#68) Fimbel Garage Doors Celebrates 100 Years in Business

From left: Jon, Carl and Andy Fimbel (Photo Courtesy of Fimbel Garage Doors)

One hundred years ago, the Model T car was being mass produced and America decided their cars deserved their own part of the home with a new style of door for those garages—upward acting, or overhead, doors. Edward Fimbel Sr. struck a deal with the inventor of that door to manufacture for them and his family continues that tradition.

Fimbel has a long history that includes family members spinning off 10 different companies from that original manufacturer. The Fimbel family opened a second manufacturing plant in Nashua in the early 1950s. While that plant closed decades later, the NH branch of the family, brothers Carl and Mike Fimbel, launched Fimbel Garage Doors, to focus on sales, says Jon Fimbel, general manager.

Jon and his brother Andy grew up in and worked in the family business and by 2014, when their uncle retired from the company, Carl, Jon’s father, invited his sons to become co-owners. Jon says his father always gave them chances to learn and to lead and told them, “Being the owner’s kid, you have to work twice as hard to earn anyone’s respect.”

The brothers have worked hard to grow the business, which services clients in Southern NH, Maine and Northern Massachusetts. This year Fimbel Garage Doors opened a new modern showroom in Merrimack with 14 styles of garage doors on tracks
so customers can easily compare them.

The pandemic proved lucrative for the company as people were stuck at home and spending money on home improvements. The orders kept rolling in, creating a backlog, and due to supply chain issues, manufacturers kept raising prices, forcing price increases at Fimbel. That led to significant revenue growth in 2021 and 2022 before the market corrected in 2023.

“The charm of Fimbel Garage Doors is our attention to detail and our customer service. We don’t want to get too big. We want to grow, but on our terms,” says Jon, pointing out the company was founded the same year as the Boston Bruins. “I have a lot of pride in what the family has done. We built something that has lasted 100 years.”