When Cheryl Klubnik talks about Hot Tub Liquidators, she doesn’t start with square footage, inventory turns, or even sales. She starts with a question she asked before the interview ever really began:
“How personal should I get?”
Her hesitation isn’t about professionalism. It’s about proximity. Ray Klubnik — her husband, her business partner, and the person who structured nearly all of the framework inside Hot Tub Liquidators — passed away last February, after several years of illness.
His absence is still raw enough that it hasn’t settled into something easy to summarize.
“He really was the driving force of this business,” Cheryl says. “We did it together, but he was definitely the driver.”
That distinction matters. Because Hot Tub Liquidators wasn’t built around a generic business plan. It was built around a person — his instincts, his salesmanship, his appetite for risk, and his belief that “if you stay in neutral, you are in reverse.”
The story of how the business survives now is inseparable from the story of how it was built.
A LEAP WITH NO SAFETY NET
In 2004, Cheryl and Ray left Ohio with their three-month-old baby and a whole lot of faith. “We had a spa manufacturer looking for a dealer in Las Vegas,” Cheryl says, “so we moved to a city where we knew no one to start a business that had yet to find a home.”
Ray had been in the hot tub industry since he was 18, having introduced spas into his family’s business back in Ohio. Cheryl worked for her family business in insurance. Between them, they understood sales, risk, operations and accountability — but none of it softened the reality of what they were doing.
They borrowed money from Ray’s parents and started small, very small. “It was just Ray and I, and one other person,” Cheryl says. “We actually recruited the man who helped move us into our new home. He delivered the spas. We prepped them. Ray handled the sales and marketing, and I handled everything else he didn’t want to.”
From the beginning, the roles were clearly, almost instinctively, divided. “We always used to say that you can’t run a business with two Rays, and you can’t run it with two Cheryls,” says Cheryl. “We balanced each other out.”
Ray wasn’t afraid to take risks. And while he closed the deals, Cheryl built the systems that made it possible — accounting, scheduling, inventory, follow-up.
One without the other wouldn’t have worked. Together, it did.
Hot Tub Liquidators’ Henderson, Nev., destination store houses inventory, refurbishment, service and sales under one roof, supported by a fleet of branded delivery and service vehicles.
SELLING WASN’T THE TRANSACTION, IT WAS THE RELATIONSHIP
Ray wasn’t just great at selling hot tubs. He was great with people. “He was the best salesman I’ve ever known,” Cheryl says. “But not because he pushed people. Customers didn’t just buy from Ray, they became part of our family. He’d hug them after the sale and welcome them into the family.”
Sales presentations took time. Conversations wandered. Personal details surfaced. That wasn’t inefficiency — it was strategy, even if Ray never would have called it that. “Everybody loved him,” says Cheryl. “They wanted to talk with him. And once he sold to them, they stayed with us.”
That philosophy still defines how Hot Tub Liquidators sells today. Customers are greeted immediately. Sales staff ask questions, a lot of them, and listen before recommending anything.
“We don’t sell what we want to sell,” Cheryl says. “We sell what the customer needs.”
Some buyers close on the first visit. Some don’t. That’s expected.
“Our follow-up is where a lot of the sale actually happens,” says Cheryl. “People know in their heart what they want — they just need time. Our sales staff gives them that. No high pressure, just good salespeople.”
Longevity helps. “We’ve been here so long that people trust that we’re not going anywhere,” she says. “We have customers who walk in and say, ‘We’re not even shopping around. We just want to buy from you, a family run business.’”
That trust doesn’t end when the paperwork is signed. At Hot Tub Liquidators, service is treated as part of the sale — not a reaction to a problem.
The company services a significant number of hot tubs long after installation, handling everything from routine maintenance to warranty work and refurbishment. Two full-time field technicians handle service calls in the field, while an in-house technician focuses exclusively on reconditioning pre-owned spas before they ever reach the showroom floor.
“It means a lot to buyers to know we’re not just selling, but also standing by the product,” Cheryl says. “They know who to call. They know we’re accountable.”
A DECISION THAT CARRIES THEM THROUGH
Hot Tub Liquidators is known in Las Vegas not just for new spas, but for pre-owned — a segment that became foundational almost by accident. “We were hauling away old spas during deliveries,” Cheryl explains, “and Ray thought, why not refurbish them and resell them?”
They dabbled early, but the model didn’t fully take off until around 2008.
“When the recession hit, people wanted spas, and they just couldn’t afford new ones,” she says. “Pre-owned helped us then, and it still does.”
Today, the business is one of the most recognized names in the market for refurbished spas, a category that continues to attract first-time buyers and budget-conscious customers alike.
That mix — premium new product (working with Be Well Canada Spa, Platinum Spas and Dynasty Spas) alongside affordable, reconditioned inventory — has helped the business weather economic swings without abandoning its core values.
The company's signature duck mascot appears in parades and promotions, reflecting the fun, family-first culture Ray and Cheryl Klubnik built into the business their daughter, Ava, is preparing to join.
TWO LOCATIONS, BUILT FOR DIFFERENT JOBS
Hot Tub Liquidators now operates two stores, each with a specific purpose. The flagship Henderson location spans 32,000 square feet and functions as far more than a showroom. It houses inventory, prep, refurbishment, spa service and sales under one roof — and makes no attempt to hide its scale.
“We have racks of spas — six rows, four high, 12 to 15 deep,” Cheryl says. “When you walk in, it’s a wow.”
Located across from the Las Vegas Raiders’ headquarters/practice facility, the store has become something of an industry destination. Visiting dealers and manufacturer reps regularly stop by during the International PSP Expo. “They just want to see what we’ve built,” says Cheryl.
The Summerlin location, by contrast, is smaller, about 4,000 square feet, and designed for foot traffic. “That’s more of a walk-in boutique experience,” Cheryl explains. “Henderson is the destination store.”
The business has occupied a few locations over the years, but the current Henderson facility represents its largest footprint, a move driven by post- pandemic demand and Ray’s belief that the showroom should never feel static, that it should move as often as the market did.
“Once again, his concept of if you’re standing still, you’re not moving forward,” Cheryl says. “Ray changed it up constantly.”
That mindset still shapes merchandising decisions today. Layouts are reevaluated every few months. Surroundscapes — built-out backyard environments — help customers visualize installations in real life, not just on paper. Photos of past projects are kept on hand to spark ideas.
“He wanted people to picture the spa in their backyard,” says Cheryl. “Not just see it sitting on the floor.”
And then there’s the duck.
Ray designed the Hot Tub Liquidators logo himself: a sunglasses-wearing duck giving a thumbs-up from a hot tub. For years, a giant inflatable version sat atop the building.
“People would say, ‘Oh, you’re the place with the duck,’” Cheryl says, “and their kids used to beg their parents to stop.”
It was whimsical. It was memorable. And it was unmistakably Ray.
Today, the duck is used in parades, advertising, and promotions, continuing to make the company instantly recognizable.
WHAT IT MEANS TO LEAD AFTER THE DRIVER IS GONE
Cheryl doesn’t pretend the last year has been easy, or even strictly about business. “I don’t want to say it’s been about survival,” she says. “Not necessarily for the business, but for me.”
As Ray’s illness progressed, Cheryl quietly took on more responsibility, safeguarding the systems he built. When he passed, the shift was no longer gradual; it was unavoidable.
“He was such a great marketer,” she says. “He came up with ideas constantly.”
Now, Cheryl is stepping more visibly into that role — improving the website, strengthening social media, committing to consistent advertising, and hosting more in-house events.
“We were so old-fashioned,” she admits. “We didn’t even start using a CRM until 2021. We did everything manually. Everything. Looking back, I can’t believe we were able to do business that way.”
But the foundation is strong — largely because of the people Ray and Cheryl hired along the way. “Our employees are our extended family,” she says. Sometimes literally. Brothers. In- laws. A few long-tenured employees who continue to train the next generation. “They worked so hard this past year.”
And soon, Cheryl and Ray’s daughter, Ava, will be graduating college and joining the business, bringing a degree in sales and marketing back to the place that raised her. “It feels right,” Cheryl says. “It’s not just about business, it never has been.”
CARRYING THE SPARK FORWARD
Ray’s presence is everywhere — in the logo, in the showroom, in the refusal to “settle for less.” But Hot Tub Liquidators isn’t frozen in time. The business is guided by his example, making changes and taking risks, not by standing still but by moving forward. Even when it’s hard.
“We’re still here,” Cheryl says. “We’re still doing what he loved.”
The same business, built on the same values, carried forward by steady hands. And as Cheryl says, “with heart.”
This article first appeared in the March 2026 issue of AQUA Magazine — the top resource for retailers, builders and service pros in the pool and spa industry. Subscriptions to the print magazine are free to all industry professionals. Click here to subscribe.
