Hello all,
I am a small remodeling contractor in the SW Ohio area, focusing mainly on kitchens, basements, and bathrooms, as well as some built-ins and carpentry work. I have been building my business the last few years while also working for an employer. I have reached a point where my projects are starting to conflict with my employment, and I feel that I need to completely “go out on my own”. I was thinking of trying to get invloved with the big box stores as a cabinet installer, to fill in some of the gaps in my schedule. Has anyone else tried working for them? How did you get invloved?
Thanks in advance for the info,
Matt
Replies
use the search function here and go looking for BB installs / installers...
I belive you will change yur mind about considering them...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
I think the path as a big box installer is flawed and it will eat you up.
Rethink your plan, or at least go to another locality and talk to a current big box installer and learn how things really are.
blue
"...
keep looking for customers who want to hire YOU.. all the rest are looking for commodities.. are you a commodity ?... if you get sucked into "free estimates" and "soliciting bids"... then you are a commodity... if your operation is set up to compete as a commodity, then have at it..... but be prepared to keep your margins low and your overhead high...."
From the best of TauntonU.
first two replied lay it out ...
after researching more ...
I'd look stronger into subing for kitchen abd bath dealers ..
not Lowes and/or Home Depot.
but ... be warned ... that's a whole 'nother set of problems.
But I'd consider them "easier to solve" problems than dealing witht eh bigbox.
then again ... there's people here that do the bigbox gig and seem to be happy with it. "Search" it ....
Jeff
Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
I know a couple of guys who do a lot of sub cabinet installs, but not for big box stores. They work for cabinet dealers/showrooms, like Jeff says, or for custom cabinet shops. If you want to set boxes I would contact every good cabinet shop within a hundred miles and give them your pitch. At the big box level you will be competing with the bottom of the barrel, which you probably do not want.