As a long-standing business on San Antonio's Southside, the owners of Luna Glass Works said they know what makes a successful business model.
“We operate as a debt-free business,” said Charles Luna, whose dad opened the business in 1946. “We always have. It comes from not spending more than you bring in.”
This simple advice, he said, has served his family well, making it through the recession in the 1980s and coming through the current economic recession unscathed.
“I started with a broom in the shop,” he said. “If we didn't have a dust pan, we used cardboard. After I was drafted at 19, I served and then came back at 22 because my dad was getting ill with prostate cancer. There was no treatment back then.”
Luna Glass Works, located at 1806 S. St. Mary's St., has long been known for its custom auto glass jobs.
Luna said in his early 20s he himself became proficient at doing the work, and his sons now do much of the manual labor.
“We do a lot of big rigs,” said Elizabeth Luna, Charles Luna's daughter-in-law, who does the marketing for the company. “We cut all our own glass on site and do a lot of the work here.”
Elizabeth's husband, Renee Luna, is the current vice president of the company and does most of the glass work.
“They're here every day,” Elizabeth Luna said. “Even though Charles is retired, he's still here. And Renee does a lot of off-site work, too. They do work for lots of vendors.”
Current customers include UPS, Bill Miller Bar-B-Q restaurants and several school districts.
“Not very many people around here have our years of experience,” Elizabeth Luna said.
Charles Luna said they routinely get referrals from other local glass companies who don't know how to help their customers and Luna finds solutions.
“Collectively, we have about 142 years of experience here,” Elizabeth Luna said.
Elizabeth said her husband has been well-trained in the glass business.
“He can do anything,” she said of Renee Luna. “I call him my McGyver. He's very handy to have around the house. He can even replace the glass in a Model-T.”
“It's no more difficult than brushing your teeth when you know how to do it,” said Charles Luna, who has replaced glass in cars dating back to 1927.
In addition to preparing big rigs for show, she said, Luna also does classic car jobs dating back to the original models. In addition, they travel as far north as San Angelo and Waco and as far south as Brownsville.
In addition to helping run the business, Elizabeth Luna said her husband is very involved in the community, serving as vice president of the East Pyron / Symphony Lane Neighborhood Association.
The Luna's are also involved in the Southside Alliance.
“I have great pride,” said Renee Luna, of his family's business. “Especially being the third generation. I've grown up in it. I hope it shows tradition and endurance of a family business.”
Renee Luna said he wants people to know that they can be successful business owners on San Antonio's South Side.
“My family started out working out of a home,” he said. “And now we're very successful. I hope when we have children, they'll want to take over for us.”
Charles Luna said over the years he's learned a lot from running a family business.
“I've learned you have to be self-sufficient,” he said. “You have to learn to improvise and you can't reject any ideas.”
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