Doors to success

POST FALLS — Continental Door Company president and founder Norm Morse admits overhead doors were not his first foray into the business world.

"I'm not a door guy," he said.

He was in high tech for 30 years, designing and developing new products and patents and working with companies such as IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Microsoft.

"I touched a lot of the leading-edge technologies at the time and I loved it," he said April 2.

Morse retired from his role as a director of new product design and development 21 years ago, but his business acumen would serve him in his next chapter as he opened the Continental Door Company in 2002 in the Spokane Valley. About two years after that, he brought his sons Derik and Marc into the fold to help with the family business. Derik oversees the residential division while Marc handles the commercial side.

“They have been a huge part of our success,” Norm Morse said. “I’ll put these two guys up against anybody, bar none.”

The Continental Door Company provides residential and commercial garage door work for customers around the Inland Northwest and beyond. It is celebrating its first year of its second location being open at 3869 W. Riverbend Ave. in Post Falls, where customers have the ability to view inventory and speak with representatives as they make big aesthetic and functionality garage door decisions for their homes and livelihoods.

“A lot of places in the industry, they don’t display the products," Derik Morse said. "By being able to come into our showrooms and touch, feel and see what you want to purchase, you are the guide of the experience."

This is in lieu of a traditional garage door purchase where a salesman might come out in a truck, hand clients a brochure and have them pick something off the menu, Derik Morse said, which could result in expectations not being met upon installation.

“Because garages are so forward-facing and the entryway to your home, picking a beautiful door can set the whole stage,” he said. "Our goal isn’t to sell our clients more than they need, just more than they are used to."

Continental Door guests have numerous options from which to choose as they consider material, size, style and more. Much of the inventory is made by Clopay brand doors and electric openers and other accessories are crafted by LiftMaster.

“We’ve been blessed and lucky at the same time that the trade partners we work with are also the ones that are very forward-thinking, very customer-focused on keeping ahead of the trends and also setting the trends," Marc Morse said.

The Morses are eager to expand Continental's presence in North Idaho, where the company has been used in countless projects over the past two decades. Notably, Continental has filled needs of higher-end markets including Spokane River properties and Gozzer Ranch. While the team could not disclose what celebrities Continental has provided goods and services for at Gozzer, they were happy to share experiences working with the late Duane Hagadone on his residence and boat storage projects.

"Our goal isn’t to just sell beautiful doors," Derik Morse said. "It’s to sell an accessory to your beautiful home,"

Recently completed commercial projects include Windmill Storage, Golden Rule Brake and the Post Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant, as well as Hagadone Marine in Coeur d'Alene.

The Continental Door Company that started in a basement 20 years ago, with Norm Morse and his dog and little else, brought in $16 million in 2023, Norm Morse said.

"We have never had a down year," he said. "We’re competitive, we’re opportunistic, we’ve been very successful."

The team hopes to follow the growth in North Idaho and expand further into the residential market. Continental is expecting to construct another brick-and-mortar site in the Tri-Cities in Washington, where it already enjoys a robust commercial market.

“We knew we needed to do something with North Idaho because that was important to our sales and the community over here,” Marc Morse said.

“We want to be the full-service overhead door company that’s top of mind here,” Norm Morse said. “We want to cover every market segment here and serve this community well."

Info: continentaldoorco.com

    Residential business unit manager Derik Morse, left, and brother Marc Morse, commercial business unit manager, are seen with a Continental Door Company vehicle fondly called "The Pride of the Fleet." Continental Door has expanded into Post Falls with a brick-and-mortar showroom to strengthen customer relationships in North Idaho.
  

    Residential business unit manager Derik Morse showcases the smooth operation of a Clopay VertiStack Clear door at the Continental Door Company location in Post Falls. "Our goal isn’t to sell our clients more than they need, just more than they are used to," Morse said.