Editorial Director and Publisher
Patrick O'Toole posed a
question to the group about the
relationship between remodelers and
supplier and distributor services.
He asks:
Do your suppliers and
distributors give you the
service you deserve?
"NOPE, BUT they try from the higher level to
their staf. The problem with big box stores is
that they cut staf, and the staf say they don't
have the people to pull orders. What they don't
realize is if you pull the orders of contractors
then you could aford more staf, but instead we
go somewhere else." — Michael Laurin
"I AGREE that sometimes we don't get great
service because suppliers are slammed and lack
the personnel. I don't see the service that new
home builders are getting [via the back ofce],
but I assume they are buying in larger volumes
and need less specialized assistance per dollar
spent since they buy all the fxtures for an entire
development in one purchase order with mul-
tiple releases. In contrast, we need to buy the
fxtures for one kitchen or one to two baths at a
time, and often we are needing to match existing
fxtures in the same room or another part of the
house. So that often means we need someone
to help us search to fnd what's still available that
meets our requirements. Lots of service assis-
tance is needed per dollar spent." — Jim Bartlett
"REMODELERS MOST often do not get the cus-
tomized and personalized service they deserve
and require. I started my independent business
10 years ago to ofer clients [homeowners and
remodelers] the services they need — my spe-
cialty is windows, doors and cabinetry. I'm still
in business today when others have closed their
doors because I ofer a service nobody else
does for the remodeler. Time is money, and time
wasted searching for product and waiting for
load-outs is lost money." — Pat Smith
"IN A word, no! Not like they once used to do.
You can blame mainly the onslaught of the big
box home product retailers like Home Depot
and Lowes for one thing. The skilled tradesman
as a whole receives little respect today in our
culture compared to what they used to hold."
— Steve Lackovic
Join the discussion on Qualifed Remodeler 's
LinkedIn group page. http://tinyurl.com/
QRLinkedIn
Qualified
Remodeler posed
the following
question to our Facebook
followers:
As we look ahead to
the New Year, what
are you resolving
to do differently for
your job, company,
clients, etc., and
why? How do you
plan to bring about
that change?
What would your response
be? Follow and participate on
Qualifed Remodeler 's Facebook
page: Facebook.com/
QualifedRemodeler
We take a look
back at the
projects featured
within the pages of
Qualified Remodeler and
Kitchen & Bath Design
News in 2014 with a special
Projects in Review album.
Take a look and fnd your
inspiration by visiting:
Pinterest.com/4respros
Follow your favorite
magazines and
website on Twitter.
Check us out @4ResPros ,
@QualifedRemod and
@KBDN for regular updates
and information.
Photo: Jill Brown Photography
14 December 2014 QR ForResidentialPros.com
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