Selling Fixtures: Start A New Cash Flow?
However, sometimes the fabricator gets involved anyway. Trindco is a dealer for Kohler, Wis.-based Kohler® Co.; Adams says that when there’s been a rare malfunction or manufacturer’s defect, the company has been happy to replace or warrant the product.
“But, the customer is going to turn around and ask you who’s going to disconnect it and reconnect the new unit,” he says. “We work with a plumber who’s not on staff, but is somebody we refer business to. And, because of the volume of business we give him, if we get into trouble in a situation like that, he’ll certainly assist us and modify his rates accordingly.”
Click picture to enlargeAdams adds that Kohler’s reputation for reliability is also one reason Trindco carries that company’s products.
In some markets, still another drawback can be how the move to offer faucets can affect what’s often a three-way relationship between client, fabricator and plumber.
Nottestad notes that some fabricators and installers get job referrals from local plumbers, and the move to faucets can damage that relationship.
“Some plumbers still expect to make a good bit of money on the sale of faucets,” he says. “They want more than just the plumbing bill.”
On the other hand, Price Wills, owner of Montana Tile & Stone Co., in Bozeman, Mont., says not all plumbers are willing to make the investment in showroom space and employee training to properly staff a fixtures showroom.
“The showrooms have gone to the expense of putting together an operation to show various lines of plumbing, both in operation and not, so the customer can evaluate the items far better than just looking through a catalog,” Wills says. “A lot of our plumbers are becoming install entities, versus ones that supply.”
HIGH-END MATTERS
When it comes to selling fixtures and fittings, Wills probably represents the higher end. In terms of faucets alone, he offers lines such as Dornbracht, Lefroy Brooks, Rubinet and Blanco, and his showroom includes toilets and tubs as well as sinks.
He says part of his expansion came five years ago simply because he had the space to build a separate showroom. He also likes the idea of being a one-stop service to his high-end clients, although it goes beyond that.
“A lot of it has to do with relationships and trust with your clients,” Wills says. “It also enables us to keep the level of plumbing equal to the level of our dimensional-tile and -slab work. And, we find that – if someone is purchasing a brand new kitchen – the sink and the faucets, in terms of the style, the size and the material, matter quite a bit.”
At this level of sales, Wills adds that it requires having not only the right space for the showroom, but also the right people to work in it. He estimates it took a full year to build and fine-tune the showroom so it had the right components and was user-friendly, as well as staffing it with people both knowledgeable and excited about selling these components.