“People have stopped in and shared fond memories of this building,” says Sharon Hicks, co-owner of Carriage House Custom Homes & Interiors along with her husband Waine Hicks. “Fun memories of getting groceries here and eating baloney sandwiches with their parents.”
The building Sharon is referring to is their Carriage House showroom, located at 1974 Wilson Pike in Franklin, and former home of Franklin gas station and store Jamison Market and Deli. This market was a thriving local business for many years before becoming the permanent location for Carriage House Custom Homes & Interiors.
Sharon and Waine’s journey to opening Carriage House was anything but ordinary. Sharon, born in New Jersey, was 13 years old when her family moved to Sarasota, Florida. She explains, “My brother had bad allergies and Florida was suggested as a good place to move. I remember thinking, ‘You’re kidding - we’re moving to Florida?’ But it ended up working out fine and my brother’s allergies got a lot better.”
Waine was raised on a tobacco farm in Southern Virginia and attended Frostburg State University in Frostburg, Maryland. “My baseball team played in the NAIA World Series, now NCAA Division III, and our team still celebrates every year with a reunion, usually centered around a baseball activity,” he says.
He became a partner in a roofing and siding business in Virginia after graduating from college, and eventually moved to Sarasota to be closer to his mom. A mutual friend introduced him to Sharon, and after tying the knot Waine formed his own company W.P. Hicks Construction, and Sharon worked in banking. After several years, they folded W.P. Hicks Construction into their new business, Cabinets Extraordinaire.
They decided to move to Tennessee 10 years ago. “Tennessee was considerably closer to our family here and in Virginia,” says Sharon. “We were able to sell our business in Florida rather quickly and never looked back. The business continues to thrive in that area, which makes us very proud.”
Waine and Sharon are the happy keepers of three horses, two Boston terriers and one donkey. A picture of their donkey, Clyde, was shown on "Late Night with Seth Meyers" a few years ago. “I have a friend who works for NBC at Rockefeller Center and he created a video of Clyde to play before commercial breaks,” explains Sharon. “In the video, he sounds like he’s saying, ‘We’ll be right back.’”
Notes Waine, “We started Carriage House in an office space with a few displays on Downs Boulevard, then moved to a retail space on Columbia Avenue which gave us some great exposure. Breaking into the local market wasn’t easy, but persistence paid off.” “We were driving by the old Jamison Market building one day and noticed it was for sale,” adds Sharon. “Waine asked, ‘How about moving to this building?’ I give him a lot of credit for having the
vision to see the big picture.”
“We moved to Wilson Pike last year and it has proven to be a great location with lots of local and residential traffic. We love being in Franklin,” says Waine.
Waine is a member of the local National Association of Home Builders, has several certifications, and has
previously served on its national Board of Directors. Sharon is certified by the National Kitchen and Bath Association and is an Allied ASID (American Association of Interior Designers) member. They both volunteer for the Boys and Girls Clubs and are members of St. Philip Catholic Church in Franklin.
“We’re very dedicated to our team,” adds Sharon. “We’re always trying to learn and grow, and do better – both for our team and our customers. We’re not striving to be the largest kitchen and bath remodeler in Franklin, just the best.”
Having a knack for seeing the big picture has definitely paid off. CarriageHouseCustomHomes.com
Detail 1 - Removed multiple load bearing walls
Detail 2 - Reoriented and expanded the entire kitchen area
Detail 3 - New custom cabinetry, quartz countertops, appliances and backsplash
Detail 4 - All new white oak hardwood flooring throughout the main floor of the home
Detail 5 - Added and upgraded LED lighting to include under cabinet and interior cabinetry lighting