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Jeesh, just about every bid we have done since our home and garden show, a dozen full kitchens or so, the people have been going with granite tops. Heard that one of my competitors is down to one job a week, fills the rest of the time with granite work.
Got one customer thinking cove splashes, so the good stuff for that one, but one out of twelve? How is everybody else doing selling solid surface?
Try this. Make a countertop quotation form that includes Corian, Another solid surface brand, Granite and a quartz product.
When you work up a price, give them a price for all. They can easily compare all products and will quickly see that solid surface may just be a great choice. Usually the price for solid surface is less so it makes a big impact.
We have an Excel spreadsheet that does the quote for us but you can still do one by hand.
People need to be educated on the pros and cons of all the products. It is amazing how many people come in for quartz or granite and leave after putting a deposit down for solid surface and all we do is educate them. We are selling alot of quartz right now but far less than our laminate or solid surface. I think what Andy said helps alot as well, we always give alternate prices in our other products and it really helps the customer to make an educated decision.
Shane
By the way, I am not saying cheap is better. I am just saying that solid surface has real value at its price point.
Here in Oklahoma granite starts at less than 30.00 dollars a sq ft. But they get the cheap stuff 2 cm. Al I feel your pain.
Bill Flesher
Creative Countertops
Broken Arrow, Ok
Bill, we have the $29.00 per sq ft .com guy in our backyard. Not to be out done, we have the $25.00 per sq ft guy that competes against him with 4 choices in color, all Chinese import crap. We’ve had numerous solid surface shops in this market with major lay offs.Many factors to attribute this to.
The good news for SS fabricators is that cheapy granite dude is summarily pissing off a heck of a lot of their customers with complete lack of quality. It’s coming back to haunt them and I’m seeing a lot of shops implode.
FEDSAWDAVE wrote
Bill, we have the $29.00 per sq ft .com guy in our backyard. Not to be out done, we have the $25.00 per sq ft guy that competes against him with 4 choices in color, all Chinese import crap. We’ve had numerous solid surface shops in this market with major lay offs.Many factors to attribute this to.
The good news for SS fabricators is that cheapy granite dude is summarily pissing off a heck of a lot of their customers with complete lack of quality. It’s coming back to haunt them and I’m seeing a lot of shops implode.
You are so right about that Dave! Not only that, but as soon as you talk to your customers about quality, craftsmanship and value for their money, you begin to put doubt in their minds about the old “you get what you pay for” adage.
I have been starting out by telling my customers that the granite trend is dieing down because so many homeowners have put granite in their kitchen that now they are telling friends and relatives how much maintenance it is (sealing, staining, hard water deposits, chipping, etc) and people are going back solid surface and considering quartz. Then they ask me what I have in my kitchen, and when I tell them solid surface AND add that I can’t wait to tear out the granite top I put in my master bath to replace it with solid surface, it’s a done deal.So continue to educate those homeowners!!
Val
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