Giving Back: Dan Willits Balances Business and Volunteering
Dan Willits is a 2nd generation family owner and president of Direct Sales Floors Carpet One and a Castro Valley native.
By day, Dan Willits runs his family-owned flooring and carpet business in Castro Valley. But this weekend, he’ll be the one with the clipboard and walkie-talkie helping check people in and making sure the Light Parade on Castro Valley Boulevard runs smoothly from the beginning.
“I’ll be the guy calling the grandstand to let them know which floats and parade participants are coming up. I’ll also make sure that there is the appropriate amount of space between each entry,” Willits says.
Helping out at the Light Parade is just one of many volunteering opportunities Willits is involved in. He’s also a member of the Castro Valley Rotary (of which he’ll be serving as its president next year), he pitches in for multiple Chamber of Commerce events, he helps with the Castro Valley High School Water Polo teams, and he and his wife spend their Sundays at First Presbyterian Church of Hayward on Grove Way helping feed the unhoused.
“A lot of the people that are there are from the community—within a two or three-mile radius of Castro Valley and so it’s about helping the people that can't help themselves in many cases. It brings me joy to help. I really enjoy it. I enjoy interacting with people. You know they have good days and bad days,” Willits told the Forum.
Willits says his love of volunteering stems from his love of Castro Valley. Born at Eden Hospital, he attended Clifton Elementary before it transitioned to Redwood High School. He then enrolled at Chabot Elementary before transitioning to Canyon Middle School. Willits then graduated from Castro Valley High School, where he met Kristy, his wife of 23 years. The Willits also just graduated two sons from Castro Valley Schools. He says he’s happy to give back to the community that gave so much to him.
“It’s been hard coded since I was pretty young just to help other people,” Willits says. When we went to church as kids, we would help people move all the time or whatever anybody needs to move; just help them do that. At some point as you mature, you realize that helping other people is actually pretty fun to do, and it's very rewarding to do, and it's way more rewarding than going and buying yourself something.”
Willits says his business, Direct Sales Floors and Carpet One Floor & Home at the corner of Castro Valley Boulevard and Nunes Avenue, is another place where the community comes together. Originally started by Mike Blevins in 1978, he was quickly joined by Randy Ribira and Jim Willits (Dan’s father), who helped build the company and incorporate it in 1981. The business expanded to its current footprint in 1986 and began hosting two other companies: XOtek Windows and Cabinets Etc. Dan and his brother Joe are co-owners of the second-generation business with more than 18 employees.
“We’re kind of a home improvement mini-box store,” Willits says. “It’s mutually beneficial for all of us. Each company does its own marketing, but when customers come in, they stumble into the other two.”
Willits is also grateful that he could keep all his employees on the payroll during the 2019 COVID pandemic.
“We were identified as an essential business for insurance companies helping customers with properties that were recovering from fire or flooding,” Willits said. “It was 25 percent of our business before the pandemic, and so that helped us a lot. We also got federal help from the payroll protection program, and we were able to keep all our staff.”
Currently, Direct Sales Floors and Carpet One Floor & Home has the Castro Valley and Danville showrooms and a warehouse in San Leandro where it stages its installation services.
For more information, check out their website at dsfcarpetonecastrovalley.com