Thank You, Frontier Lumber!
Before GAPCAP™ had a track record, a patent, or a single retail partner, Jeff at Frontier Lumber made room on his shelves for it anyway.
Every product has a first. A first customer. A first sale. A first person who looked at something brand new and decided to bet on it. For GAPCAP™, that first was Jeff, owner of Frontier Lumber in Erie, PA.
Before GAPCAP™ had a track record, a patent, or a single retail partner, it had a problem it was trying to solve: the gaps that open up at deck board corners as composite decking expands and contracts with the seasons. Doug Bierer had the idea. Andrea was building the business alongside him. But an idea only becomes a product when someone is willing to put it in front of customers — and that's a much harder ask than it sounds.
Independently owned lumber yards don't have unlimited shelf space, and they don't make room for unproven products lightly. Every inch of shelf is already spoken for by brands with track records, marketing budgets, and years of trust behind them. A brand-new accessory from a local inventor is, by definition, a risk.
Jeff took that risk anyway.
A Decision, Not a Pitch
When Doug and Andrea brought GAPCAP™ to Frontier Lumber, Jeff didn't need convincing committees or a sales pitch full of projections. He looked at the product, understood the problem it solved, and made a decision: he'd carry it. He made physical room on his shelves for a product with no sales history and no name recognition — just an idea he believed solved a real problem for real customers.
Jeff didn't just stock a product. He vouched for it, at a moment when there was nothing yet to vouch for beyond a conversation with a local inventor and his wife. That's what independent retail can do that big-box distribution can't: an owner can make a judgment call, take a chance on a neighbor with a good idea, and open doors just because he believes it's worth doing.
A Simple Thank You
GAPCAP™ has grown a lot since that first shelf at Frontier Lumber — new product lines, new distribution partners, a growing footprint across the country. None of it changes where it started.
So this one's simple: thank you, Jeff. For seeing it first. For making room. For introducing us around. Frontier Lumber will always be the place where GAPCAP™'s retail story began.
If you're in the Erie, PA area, stop by Frontier Lumber and tell Jeff GAPCAP™ sent you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frontier Lumber in Erie, PA, was GAPCAP™'s first retail partner. Owner Jeff made room on his shelves for GAPCAP™ before it had a sales history, a patent, or any name recognition.
Frontier Lumber is an independently owned lumber yard in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Yes. If you're in the Erie, PA area, Frontier Lumber still carries GAPCAP™ — stop by and tell Jeff GAPCAP™ sent you.
