Although Happy Windshield is a relatively new concept, my origins go back a very long way. My creator, Eddie, is a second-generation auto glass expert. His father owned an auto glass shop in Juarez, Mexico before he was even born (around 50 years ago), so he grew up around windshields. Even in the backyard of his house, he frequently had to maneuver around them to retrieve a ball or toy that had fallen in between them.

He was able to master the trade from a young age because he used to work at his dad's shop during his school breaks. He started working there as an auto glass installer in 1991 when he was 17 years old, and a year later he was hired to work in El Paso, Texas, for a national auto glass chain that runs TV commercials (I'm sure you can hear the company's jingle in your head:)).

Eddie moved to Carrizo Springs, a small oil town in south Texas, in 2012 to pursue a new profession in the oilfield. There, he found comfort in the friendliness of the locals and his newly discovered trade.

However, his roots in auto glass were too deep to just uproot and replace them, so after just a year he went back to it and opened a one-man business in Carrizo Springs, which he named Windshields Etc, dedicated to the repair and replacement of broken windshields, mainly for oilfield companies.

Business was booming! By 2014, his son Dorian had joined him in the business, and the two of them were able to meet the local market's need for windshields.

However, the oil sector is erratic, with sharp peaks and valleys, and 2015 saw a sharp decline in the price of oil, which led to the closure of many companies in the industry. Those who weathered the storm were compelled to move west, to the Permian Basin. Windshields Etc followed their lead.

The first 'Windshields Etc' sign with bright yellow letters emerged in front of a tiny shop in Odessa in October of 2015. Aleika, Eddie's fiancée, joined the company the same year, and thanks to the implementation of digital systems that streamlined every aspect of the business, her computer skills were put to good use. With Eddie’s son, Dorian, as a new member, Windshields Etc established a Limited Liability Company (LLC) in 2018. In 2022, Aleika and Eddie's son Aaron also became members. Currently, Windshields Etc. operates three stores in three different cities, and it aspires to expand further.  

In 2022, I, Happy Windshield, was born in the mind of my creator, Eddie. In the same year, Windshields Etc, LLC started Doing Business As (DBA): Happy Windshield. I feel very fortunate to be part of this family, and for the opportunity to help so many people in making their windshields happy again!  

Tue story 🙂

There is a text that was written around 3,500 years ago, that all humans and societies have in some way wrestled with: “In the beginning God created…”. It is completely irrational to conclude otherwise (that a supreme intelligence is not responsible for the existence of everything). If this is accurate, it raises the question, for what?

While we cannot have a universal agreement on the answer, surely, we must all agree that no one makes anything without a purpose, even if that purpose is simply to release stress, or to express a feeling or emotion.

Following this reasoning, those who wrote the Declaration of Independence wisely began by stating that "...all men are created equal..." They did this in order to set the tone for the entire document and create the ideals that would make the United States of America into a nation of equal people with a moral value given by God, not men.

While equality is currently a work-in-progress, the act of just putting this universal moral truth in writing opened the door for its eventual realization.  

That is powerful! So powerful that it compels me to build this company on the same principles.

Windshields Etc is a structure supported by three pillars, each made up of many individuals. This includes those of us who strive every day to provide top-notch services to our clients, those working in the background—our vendors and distributors—on whom we rely so heavily, and, of course, our consumers, on whom we focus. Remove any of these pillars and everything will collapse!

And if we are a unit of individuals who are different from one another but equal in the eyes of the Creator, should we not see and treat each other by that standard, with a higher degree of respect and dignity? Should we not apply the ‘Golden Rule’— “Treat others as you would have them treat you”—every day?

It is my hope that seeing these thoughts on paper will motivate us to also etch them into our hearts and minds. That thinking in this way will compel us to value others, regardless of who they are, as we value ourselves, and lead to nothing less than harmony, collaboration, and team success.

Eddie Posselt

Founder and General Manager of Windshields Etc