Customers Are Key for Sundek's Joe Primavera

For over two decades, Joe Primavera has been involved in decorative concrete with Sundek. It all started with a summer job when he was 17 years old, working for a local Sundek contractor for two summers, where he mixed material and carried buckets for the crews.

After attending college at the University of North Texas, in Denton, and continuing working for the contractor all the while, Primavera moved into the office, putting his computer skills to good use.

"I took what might have been Microsoft's first database program, Nutshell, and used it to help manage the business," he recalls. "A group of us then began working with an independent programmer to customize it further, and it eventually became the SunData program that Sundek dealers across the country use today for everything from lead tracking to job costing."

Eventually, Primavera also started selling.

"My mentor, Charlie Plunk, sent me to look at jobs that were in need of repairs, and I was able to grasp the failures and figure out how to fix them," he explains. "The best way to learn how to sell anything is to get out there and understand the challenges to produce or install it correctly. I was then given a geographic territory to sell in and develop as my own."

It was this experience that led to becoming the sales manager for the Dallas contractor and their five sales reps.

Next, Sundeck Products, USA, the manufacturer of Sundek, asked Primavera to be their regional coordinator, and today, he's their director of marketing.

From the start, Primavera saw the need for better contractors.

"The future of the industry is not so much about the product as it is about customer service," he explains. "You have to have a unique selling position...We're trying to make contractors better contractors, to take less contractors and make them better, thus, product sales will naturally follow."

Not that Sundek hasn't had the opportunity to sell more product, what with the explosive growth the industry has seen in the past two decades.

Primavera says Sundek was the first to come out with a cementitious product on top of concrete in 1970, and that stamped overlays have since taken off and created a whole new market segment, for Sundek as well. He adds that products such as concrete countertops and acid staining have also helped make decorative concrete more of a commodity rather than luxury item now.

But, as Primavera says, "It's not about product, it's about being a better business person."

To that end, Sundek created a customer service center, so that when customers call their local contractor's phone number, it rings at headquarters in Texas.

"We take leads and schedule appointments for the guys, coordinate with their crews, etc.," Primavera explains. "We've taken over the burden of administration—we do payroll, schedule leads, send marketing programs, provide group health insurance—you name it."

Primavera says the customer service center came about after pinpointing where contractors struggle and start and fail.

"It started in Orlando, because we were helping them with a couple of issues and we needed to have a schedule board here to coordinate with them—then we decided we could do it from here," explains Primavera.

Not only does the center control quality assurance, help drive sales and help with communication with the customer, but it also alleviates another issue.

"When you are a small contractor, you become reliant on the one person you might have in your office. What happens when that person is sick, has to take leave or quits in May?...the owner gets pulled back into that role and then can't get to the sales and installations," Primavera notes. "With the center, we have enough people who are trained to provide the same service, regardless of location, and can support any one of our conbtractors."

"It's not just administrative, it's also a sales support function for all the things that tend to fall through the cracks when contractors get busy or try to do everything solo," he adds.

"We manage their trade shows and marketing efforts. We also have a commercial division and are able to solicit work at a higher level, such as at La Quinta Inns and Best Westerns. A local contractor might never get to that level. But this way, the dealer can participate (or not), or we can send a crew to support them."

Orlando is on board, doing really well, and starting to reap the benefits of doing things this way.

Primavera explains that most contractors stumble when dealing with the financial aspects of their company, such as cash flow. But by focusing on customer service, Sundek stays on top of everything, even so much as spreading crews around so no one's feast or famine.

"A successful contractor is really open to change, and they don't get stuck in the way things have always been done in the past," Primavera observes. "They want to be part of a team with a clear vision."

Primavera says his greatest enjoyment lies in the relationships he has with contractors and other people in the industry.

"They're real and down to earth, and there's a sense of community about it," he explains of the decorative concrete industry. "They all care a great deal for their employees and the people they work with. It is an extended family."

Sundek has also implemented a program encouraging installers to move up the ladder.

"This way, they have a career path versus just a job,"

Primavera observes. "We prefer our installers know that they can stay with us—there are even relocating opportunities."

In the end, he says they get the benefits of working for a mom and pop, plus the experience and support of a large corporation.

Primavera credits the wisdom of Sundek president Mark Stambaugh, who's been at Sundek since the 70s, and CEO Plunk, who's been with the company since 1982.

"They've seen it all and been there and done that, so they have that knowledge and our people trust them," Primavera comments. "I get inspiration from Charlie and Mark. They're why I'm where I'm at."

In the end, both Sundek and Primavera thrive on taking care of their customers.

"Our customers are our dealers and their customers, and that mindset breeds success," Primavera concludes. "There was a time when we thought about only selling product, but we knew our strength was developing systems and people. Identify and stick with what you're good at, and success will follow."