In a state where work in coal mines and construction zones has traditionally been dominated by men, women working in heavy trades might seem few and far between.
Business owners are not required to identify themselves as woman-owned or to identify with the business code when registering their businesses or filing their annual reports. But according to the NAICS code listing, at least 1,812 woman-owned businesses are registered in Charleston. Of those, 33 are in construction-related fields. At least 288 woman-owned businesses are registered in Hurricane, eight of which are in construction-related fields.
Here人妖色情片檚 a closer look at three woman-owned construction-related businesses in the Kanawha Valley. This trio is changing the blueprint one paint stroke and design plan at a time.
Building bridges
Carrie Dunmire, 49, is the third generation of her family to own and operate a highway construction business. Her grandfather began in construction as a laborer for the West Virginia Turnpike in the 1950s. In 1972, Dunmire人妖色情片檚 father and grandfather started a construction business together called Haynes Concrete Construction.
人妖色情片淚 always knew that人妖色情片檚 what I wanted to do, but [my father] wouldn人妖色情片檛 hire me,人妖色情片 Dunmire said. 人妖色情片淗e told me to go to college and get a degree.人妖色情片
So, she went to West Virginia Wesleyan College, graduated with a degree in accounting and then came back to work for her father人妖色情片檚 construction company in Ivydale, Clay County.
人妖色情片淗e still wouldn人妖色情片檛 hire me, and wanted me go work for someone else,人妖色情片 Dunmire said.
In 1996, Dunmire purchased a construction company. In 1999, at 23 years old and with a loan from her father, she began taking on projects and renamed it in 2011. The company人妖色情片檚 name comes from the first letter of each of her children人妖色情片檚 and stepchildren人妖色情片檚 names, Alexis, Caitlin, Cameron, Allison and David.
Dunmire recalled receiving letters in the late 1990s from the West Virginia Division of Highways that addressed her as 人妖色情片渟ir人妖色情片 because, she said, construction is a male-dominated industry.
人妖色情片淚t was very challenging 人妖色情片 especially in my early 20s 人妖色情片 to have veteran workers much older than me want to listen to any direction I gave them,人妖色情片 Dunmire said. 人妖色情片淚 was seen as a young girl.人妖色情片
That did not discourage Dunmire, and her company is now in its 31st year. Specializing in highway construction and bridges, ACCAD is the only West Virginia-based company that owns and operates a specialized roadway deck-grooving machine.
人妖色情片淭here人妖色情片檚 an element of pride,人妖色情片 Dunmire said. 人妖色情片淲e went back to look at the bridges that I had built, and people were walking and driving across it 10-20 years later.人妖色情片
Designing her own path
Jill Watkins, 55, has spent over 30 years in the interior design field and owns and operates a one-woman company, , in Charleston. She handles everything from initial consultation to construction oversight.
Watkins started her company in 2014. Her clients were primarily architects who did not have interior designers on staff.
人妖色情片淥ver the years, many of them have hired designers,人妖色情片 Watkins said. 人妖色情片淪o, while I still work with a handful of architects around the state, I人妖色情片檝e gotten more into working with end users.人妖色情片
In recent years, Watkins advocates for her clients人妖色情片 design plans while working with architects, engineers and contractors.
Even though the field of interior design is female-dominated, Watkins said most of the architects and engineers she works with are men.
人妖色情片淪ometimes, clients and architects want to pigeonhole me into more of a decorator type of person on the project team,人妖色情片 Watkins said. 人妖色情片淚 feel like I can bring a lot more than just selecting colors, I really get more into interior details and functionality, the technical side of things.人妖色情片
She said that includes sustainability planning and federal procurement processes. Watkins is certified with the National Council for Interior Design Qualification, meaning she has gone through multiple tests to be a professional interior designer and is registered on federal government purchasing websites.
人妖色情片淢any of those federal projects want interior designers to have that certification,人妖色情片 Watkins said. 人妖色情片淏eing a small business is also beneficial for working on those projects.人妖色情片
Watkins works with a variety of clients, including health care facilities, state parks, corporate offices and government projects. Currently, she人妖色情片檚 designing Ursus Brew Works, a new brewery on Hale Street, in downtown Charleston, that was announced in March.
Even though there isn人妖色情片檛 a large market for her work in West Virginia, Watkins still pursued her passion.
人妖色情片淧eople should not tailor their business strategy or their skills to what they think other people expect,人妖色情片 Watkins said. 人妖色情片淏ring your skills and passion to your work or to your business and the work will follow.人妖色情片
人妖色情片榃omen have a better eye for detail人妖色情片
Sandra Cline, 49, stumbled into the commercial and residential painting business by accident, after the restaurant she worked at closed down. The restaurant owner人妖色情片檚 nephew worked for a construction company and got her a job.
人妖色情片淚 basically just started sweeping up the trash, and I watched the guy that was doing all the ordering and scheduling,人妖色情片 Cline said. 人妖色情片淚 just kind of slipped [into] his place when he slipped out.人妖色情片
When that job was over, Cline began to work for the company painting the apartment complex she helped build. Then, she worked for two other painting companies before opening her own painting business, 304 Painting, in November 2020.
Cline primarily does work in the Kanawha Valley and gets referrals from local paint stores or 人妖色情片渏ust plain word of mouth.人妖色情片
Her team is currently painting the new 304 at Valley Pointe Apartments in Hurricane. The first building they painted took the team four months to complete, because the clubhouse rooms needing different colors and wallpaper. The entire project consists of three buildings with 304 units.
Cline人妖色情片檚 team consists of eight people, six of which are women. They specialize in larger complexes and new construction.
人妖色情片淚t人妖色情片檚 been really hard to get men to work for me,人妖色情片 Cline said. 人妖色情片淭hey don人妖色情片檛 always like a woman telling them what to do, is what I人妖色情片檝e gathered over these five years.人妖色情片
Cline said women excel at commercial painting.
人妖色情片淚 think women have a better eye for detail,人妖色情片 she said. 人妖色情片淚 think they care more.人妖色情片
Women at work
These three women represent a broader shift in West Virginia人妖色情片檚 business landscape, contributing to the growth of woman-owned businesses.
As company presidents, entrepreneurs and business owners, these women are proving that, with some determination, women not only can enter male-dominated fields, but they can lead them, too.
人妖色情片淚 want to take over the world,人妖色情片 Cline said. 人妖色情片淚 want to take it all.人妖色情片
