Brothers Plumbing, Heating & Electric was founded by two brothers in 1980. A year into the partnership they parted ways and Marvin Kansteiner continued the operations as a residential service company. Kansteiner’s four children grew up playing with boxes in the warehouse and each child held various jobs within the business during their adolescent years. Lynn Tomasek is the second oldest of the four children and always knew she wanted to take over the business for her father.
She held various roles, working in the summer as a dispatcher and client care representative in addition to helping in the warehouse, detailing trucks and performing yard maintenance. Tomasek began full-time at the company in roles including HR manager, marketing manager and office manager.
By 2015, Tomasek and her siblings purchased the then $8.5 million business from their father, and she became the president. By 2021, the business had outgrown its office location and moved into a newly renovated location, and by 2023, the firm had more than doubled in size, closing the year with $22.5 million in revenue.
Brothers Plumbing, Heating & Electric is first and foremost a people business, providing residential repair and replacement work in the areas of plumbing, drain clearing, heating, air conditioning and electrical.
Under Tomasek’s leadership, the company celebrated 44 years in business and Tomasek’s 24th official anniversary with the company. Brothers also won the BBB Torch Award for marketplace trust twice and was recognized as a Top Workplace seven years in a row.
“Lynn Tomasek is a titan in her industry because she is paving a path in an industry dominated by men,” said her staff. “She inspires others, but in particular, young women, to pursue entrepreneurial goals and to break through the proverbial glass ceiling.”
Tomasek not only leads the firm but also opens her door to others, even local competitors for tours of the facility. “She loves to share and work together on ideas, and her belief is that if we can help each other be better and grow, more people and the industry will benefit,” said her staff.
As a leader, Tomasek said she believes in a team approach and collaboration in problem-solving. “I learned early on from my dad’s mentoring that seemingly small decisions made by one or a few can unknowingly impact many aspects of the business and departments in the organization,” she said. “By coming together to problem solve, we find that we flush out the best solution for the entire company.”
