AK Carpets and More

AK Carpets and More in downtown Albany is a father-daughter owned carpet and flooring company started by Ken Burling and Andrea Hampl in April of 2000.

The idea for the business started when Hampl moved back to Albany after getting her accounting degree from Eldorado College in San Diego, California. Her brother had a major surgery so she didn't want to work a lot. The divorced mother of two got a job doing book keeping at a floor-covering store, The Carpet Warehouse, and when their books got up to date she realized that she loved selling. "I love Andrea. She worked very hard for me at a very difficult time and she stuck with me," said Reeni Henley, her former employer. After that, Hampl and her father decided to open their own store since the business she was working for was having problems and struggling.

They sale all sorts of flooring like carpet, vinyl, laminate, hardwood, and ceramic tile. The two are actually talking about expanding their business. "My father came from a furniture business and so he knows that area very well, so we are thinking about expanding into furniture," said Hampl. Andrea has about 12 years of experience and her father, Ken has about 17 years of experience in retail in the furniture business.

When asked what it's like working with her father, Hampl smiled and replied "It was a little difficult at the beginning because the first 3 years of being open he was actually working his other job because we wanted to make sure that our business would succeed. Being an older man, if he quit and it didn't succeed he would have a hard time finding a job. So yeah, now that he's on full time it's easy. It's actually kind of fun."

Originally the business was suppose to open in a different location, but when the building they're in now became available they decided to move there instead. It suited them perfectly because it's size. Hampl added, "We needed a larger space. Downtown Albany was struggling and we didn't think it would do what we needed it to do but it ended up working very well for us."

The busiest times of the year are right before the holidays and right after tax season. They also have three major sales, during the fall, their anniversary sale which is in April, and their spring sale. AK Carpet and More also offers installation and all their contractors are licensed. "I know a lot of people besides Adam, my son, who work for Andrea and Ken. Several of the installers that worked for Bill & I continue to work for Andrea, so I know they're good workers," included Henley.

"I am very satisfied with the business as a whole," said Burling. Both are happy with the way the store is going and they are hoping for more years of success in the future.


At A Glance:
AK Carpet and More
140 1st S.E.
Albany, OR 97321
Phone: 541-928-0755
Fax: 541-926-7465


For more information, about:
AK Carpet & More
Downtown Albany
List of Carpet Stores in Albany, Oregon