It happened again the other day. One of my regular plumbers came in because they were unable to install some components of a custom high flow shower system for their homeowner. This sometimes happen, regardless of the product manufacturers or plumbing applications. But why?
The main part of the narrative breaks down to this: the homeowner bought their own materials with no consultation. They just simply relied on a search engine like Google or looking up products on a website like Amazon. It is possible that they even worked with a big box store like Lowe’s or Home Depot. The outcome is still the same; they bought the wrong item.
I’ve been working in this plumbing showroom world since 1990, and sometimes it can be difficult to put a custom high flow shower system together. That's why at Falk Plumbing Supply, we have monthly trainings from our main vendors. Our Delta, Brizo, Kohler, Newport, Blanco, Elkay, Barclay and other sales reps see us on a regular basis and help make sure we are thoroughly trained on new products.
On top of that, I may ask my team to be sure they are well versed in a particular item. The main idea is we train and study constantly on the plumbing selections we sell. It is our job to be the experts in the plumbing showroom field.
Our ultimate goal is for you to have the right product, at the right price and at the right time. You can get the right price from other sources. You can get the right time from other sources. However, those are not the problem area. It is having the right product that makes all the difference.
Think about my plumber above. The homeowner got the product fast enough. I’m assuming they obtained it at a good price, probably enough to think they got a good savings. But the most important part failed. It was not the right product.
So now the plumber has spent time chatting with me and sending me pictures. Then they ended up actually coming into the showroom to see if we could positively identify the problem. It ends up the homeowner ordered the correct valve, however, all the trim pieces from the handle to the spout were not the right product.
Now the homeowner needs to obtain the correct model numbers and see if the wrong material is returnable – well over $500 worth of trim. In the end, they do not have the right price. They do not have the right time. Most importantly, they do not have the right product.
At Falk Supply we do not want a customer to experience this level of frustration. We do this every day and will sit down with you and get you the right produdcts for your project. We want satisfied customers with some really cool plumbing without breaking the bank. Visit one of our showrooms and let us be your experts!
Written by: Alan Donahue, Showroom Manager