“If you are not taking care of your customer, your competitor will.”
Design firm owners who are not remodeling complete bathrooms are missing out on a pot of gold. Don’t let what others skip deter you from getting the full spectrum of revenue streams open for your remodeling business.
Now’s the time to capitalize on bathroom remodeling. Whether or not you’ve already incorporated bathroom remodels into your project portfolio, a quick read of this advisory will help you determine if you’re getting the highest possible return for your efforts.
The upsides outweigh the downsides
Few people outside the business have the imagination and sophistication that bathroom remodeling projects warrant. That includes plumbers, chuck-in-the truck remodelers, and plumbing wholesalers.
Two commonly held disadvantages are that labor-intensive bathrooms (1) don’t generate as high a selling price because there isn’t as much material as in kitchens, and (2) they take just as long to plan and install as kitchens.
Let’s square away why bathroom remodeling is so valuable to the independent firm:
- There is less competition in bathroom remodeling than in kitchen remodeling.
- It’s common for experienced dealers to earn 5-10% more in gross profit margins than in their kitchen projects.
- The average home has 2.5 bathrooms; this presents an excellent opportunity for doing repeat business for a kitchen client who already knows the value of your work.
- You’re a SEN member, so you have easy access to all the materials needed for bathroom remodeling jobs through our vendor partners, earning deeper discounts and rebates.
Bigger jobs from repeat clientele
Great success in remodeling comes from being an authority in the field. Invest in your prospects and clientele. Make sure your showroom displays have all of the benefits that come from remodeling bathrooms:
- Correct faulty features of outdated products
- Add modern or new luxurious product features- like a large overhead “rain showerhead”
- Beautify the display space with up-to-date aesthetics
- Make bathrooms eco-friendly
- Improve the use of space or add space; for example, featuring an open plan bedroom and master bathroom
- Make them more functional and easier to clean – such as one-piece panel shower walls
All of these points contribute to a home’s equity. Clients can expect to:
- Save money from new products’ efficiency
- Enhance their home’s appeal to buyers
- Increase the return on their investment
Build your auxiliary target markets
So your client has shown you their bathroom and wants it redesigned. Ask politely to look at their bedroom closet while you are there.
Could there be a better use of space if you knock down a wall and combine the bathroom with the adjacent closet? I’ve seen 30% to 50% more storage space available through innovative remodeling jobs.
When you have a great idea, people are willing to make significant changes to their homes.
If they don’t present the concept to you themselves, pick the right time to gently point out differences they could make that would add natural light, increase usable space, and add value to their home.
Remodeling bathrooms are only one market area where firms can broaden their portfolios.
When design firm owners service the auxiliary target market, they exponentially increase their authority in the remodeling field.
Expand minds to expand markets
It’s about being the one-stop shopping source for all home remodeling needs.
In many cases, after talking with homeowners, people may very well want more space. Consider how many people work from home nowadays. The pandemic created a boom in the kitchen and bath remodeling industry. Do you think the “new normal” has made a significant opportunity for home office building or remodeling?
It sure has. We are already starting to see how advances in communication technologies are growing a population who work from home permanently.
There are so many areas of people’s homes they would love to remodel if given the incentive— from laundry rooms, bedrooms, family rooms, dens, dining rooms, hobby rooms, media rooms, rec rooms, etc.
So be bold with your display concepts and let your showroom host design possibilities in the imaginations of your prospects and clientele. It’s certainly a good time to display a warm, inviting, and functional home office space.
Designers may perform so well that doctors and executives whose kitchen or bathrooms they have residentially remodeled will invite them to remodel their commercial offices and exam rooms.
By offering more services in your field of expertise, you’ll close more projects – and your next hurdle will be hiring quality subcontractors to do all the extra jobs you have been awarded.
SEN University bathroom course in 2022
SEN is launching an online bathroom remodeling course taught by certified master plumber Tom Blau. You’ll get the basics of plumbing and learn how to capitalize on the lucrative bathroom remodeling market.
- Learn how to maximize the remodeling potential for each prospect
- Know plumbing basics, so you are comfortable talking about it
- Get deeper discounts on plumbing fixtures that beat your local plumbing distributor’s prices
Save time by learning online! Click here for the curriculum.
—The SEN Leadership Team
