Pearland resident Alex Trukhin is not unlike many aspiring area entrepreneurs. He has owned his own Coverall franchise for the past 12 years, establishing more than 35 accounts and employing six people. What makes Trukhin a little different is that he is deaf, as are all of his employees.
When Trukhin was only six months old, he went through an illness. As a result, he became profoundly deaf. That hasn’t stopped him from achieving his dreams, however.
“In 2002, I saw an advertisement sign on Coverall truck. I had been thinking about starting my own business, so I inquired about the franchise and if it was possible with my disability. It was, which encouraged me to get started. About a year later, I started my own Coverall franchised business,” Truhkin said.
According to the website, “Coverall is a national leader in the commercial cleaning services franchise industry. Over the years we’ve learned that there’s more to cleaning than just appearance. Today the Coverall System leads the industry in cleaning at a deeper level to help reduce the spread of illness-causing germs.”
Coverall also has a mission to, “Promote economic growth and independence for a diverse group of business owners by providing franchise ownership opportunities.”
Trukhin has to make some modifications to accommodate his disability at Coverall. “I encountered many barriers when communicating with my customers, but I was able to overcome them with the many convenient means of communication such as emailing, texting and the video-phone.
“Being that all of my employees are deaf, I have had to make certain adjustments to ensure the best and most conductive work environment. It is essential to have all means of communication available for my employees and myself. Some of those include videophone, Facetime, text messaging and communicating through American Sign Language (ASL),” Truhkin explained.
As a successful franchised business owner, Truhkin wanted to give back to the Deaf community, which has always been supportive of him and his efforts.
“All six of my employees are deaf. I believe that giving back to the Deaf community is important because without their support, I would not be in the position I am in today – the owner of a successful business. I’ve found that many members of the Deaf community struggle to find employment, so I wanted to make sure I was helping in any way I could,” he said.
The deaf community is not Truhkin’s only support system. “My friends and family are extremely supportive of my businesses. They think it’s unique and amazing that I am able to successfully run my own company as Deaf-owned franchisee. My son also helps interpret should there be any kind of a communication barrier,” he said.
Coverall has also been instrumental in Trukhin’s success. “When I purchased the Coverall franchise, I attended their specific training program, which helped me develop the skills and know-how I needed to start my business. Plus, I had prior janitorial cleaning experience,” he stated.
Trukhin says that the Pearland community has been wonderful. “My company, Tru-Globe, LLC, has been accepted and embraced not only by the Pearland community, but by the Greater Houston community as a whole. I now have at least 30 customer accounts throughout the area.”
When he’s not running his business, Trukhin is still running. “I personally love running, and actually wanted to be a running coach when I was growing up. I participate in marathon-running events in the Houston area.
“I ran the Chevron marathon in 2014, along with many other races. I enjoy running and competing with other athletes and am always happy to join because of the many contributions these races give to the community. I currently participate in Kenyan Way running training,” he said.
To learn more about Coverall, visit CoverallOfHouston.com. To contact Alex directly, call his videophone at (281) 552-8264 or (281) 978-4368.
