Hello, this is The ProSource Podcast.
I'm Kevin Devine,
Director of Digital
Marketing Content
for ProSource Wholesale.
In this series
will focus on home remodeling,
especially kitchens and bathrooms.
You'll hear from those in the know,
including our corporate merchandizers
showroom team members
and the trade professionals
who ultimately make it happen.
We're glad you've joined us.
Enjoy.
In today's episode of The ProSource
Podcast, we're joined by Mark Allen,
who's an account manager
with ProSource Wholesale.
Mark, thanks for joining us here today.
Glad to be here.
And I appreciate you getting the
attire memo that we be so matching there.
That's nice.
So let's start with an easy question.
Once you tell us who you are
and specifically what you do
for ProSource in that role.
So I'm Mark Allen.
I'm here in the ProSource
showroom here in Saint Louis
and as account manager.
So account
as account manager,
we work with members and members clients
and their selection of the remodel
products were anywhere
from your flooring products to
kitchen and bath. Okay.
How long you've been doing this
now for ProSource.
So I've been here.
On my fourth year here at ProSource.
Been in ProSource for four years.
How long have you been in the home
remodeling industry as a whole?
In the whole 15 years.
Okay.
In and out of the industry.
But yes, 15 years is where I've been.
The you and I were talking about earlier
that you were actually in construction
before it and before that. Correct.
So from the framing side.
Going into
on the commercial supply side also
and then doing the residential
supply chain.
So in those four years in this role
coming from where you did,
what have you learned in that time
frame about account management?
So what you learn.
You know, every particular inside
products,
exterior products, interior products,
they all are different.
So you got timelines that are different.
The start of the project
started different times.
A lot of times in the interior products,
they are the last to be utilized for more
and more of the finished products
of versus say, the exterior products,
which is more of the start
of the projects. Okay.
So when we talk about the project,
every homeowner, they're different.
Their project is different.
The trade pro members that you deal with,
they have different projects.
When you're looking at those
early steps in the process.
What what questions
you like to ask
to probe about that project, to know
where to start and where,
where to guide people toward.
In the process.
What I like to do is to get,
especially if it's a remodeling product
project
or even a new construction
project, is
find out what their inspiration is
because that's going to be the key.
Find out what their budget is,
because you can have
the same look within different budgets.
And that's the key to
a successful project,
is to find out
what their inspiration
is, to get that look
and to find out also what the budget is.
When you ask about their inspiration,
do you look to try to
maybe get photos of that or is it more
what's in their mind?
Both. Okay.
Every individual is different.
So some will bring
pages and pages of different stuff.
Some will just use a phone
that they've saved
and everyone is different.
So every process.
So you got to look at, you know,
sometimes it's
they have no idea what they want.
And you start pulling sections
from things that they talk
and then it might go
completely an opposite way
because it may be something that they see
in the showroom that they like better.
That wasn't even
on their radar
of doing that look, particular look.
So we talked about how
people are different.
Projects are certainly different too.
So when you start to look at that,
what are some of the common problems
that you've seen people run into
and how do you maybe help
help them
address those problems,
especially if they are
going through a massive
remodel, multiple rooms
that they may be dealing with
or even in the entire house,
if that's the case?
So you look at each individual room
to really fit what they're wanting.
So it may be
that you have to create
a flow between room to room, but
at the same time, they may have
one style,
one particular room,
and then a completely different style
and another.
So you have to kind of balance those.
So they work
and in the home
and it's not just one room here
and one room here and in the home.
So you definitely have to get a flow
for styles and colors
to get what they want.
But you know,
some people
they want particular looks in their room
and it may not flow with another one,
but that is what they want.
Do you find that happening a lot?
I can see different colors in
from room to room.
Do you find
different styles
trending from one room
to the next in projects.
You do sometimes,
but you get a lot of homes
now that are open concept.
So with that open concept.
Most of the time they're going to flow.
But when you get into
the primary suite,
when you get into there,
into the bathroom area,
it's kind of its own space.
So you can create that
space that can be different
than another space that say, the kitchen
great room or the flooring
that's in those other rooms.
You create that space for them.
How do you go about identifying
the lifestyle within the home?
Meaning are there pets? Are there kids?
Is there a work from home situation?
And how might that influence
any products that you then suggest?
So that's one of the first questions
you do ask,
especially in the flooring side,
to find out,
you know, how the floors
are going to be used.
So then that will kind of drive you
to the correct material
to be in the selection process.
Okay.
So just a thought that occurred to me
here.
As I've talked to other account managers,
sometimes they find that
a lot of the projects they do
sit toward a sort of slant
toward a particular product category.
More often than not,
they end up doing a lot more hardwood
or a lot more tile projects.
Has that been the case with you
or is it
pretty much spanned all flooring
product categories?
It spans through all of them.
I think the biggest
the hottest item that is out there is
and it's marketed is the 100%.
We want waterproof floors.
We want something that's durable.
So that goes into the LVT, LV plank
lines, but it doesn't mean that
that can't be used,
and hardwood.
So you just
kind of look and drive and see,
but you kind of want a feel
for what their concern is
and then drive that product to them.
What then, you know,
make that selection
based on the selections that I give them.
But actually you have to steer them
to the correct product based on that.
So how much may color that if a
whether it be the homeowner
or the trade
pro has a certain color mind,
how much does that
preference come into the equation
when when you're
going through that product selection,
does that
come into play a lot
or does it come into play
with its particular products,
like maybe more on the tile
and carpet side of things, or?
It's all about color and color, and then
not just the color.
I mean,
you're going to get a lot of
rustic looks,
especially when you're in the woods,
the tile not so much, but more stone
look.
Even though there's wood or wood tile,
but the drive comes to
what physically look, do they want?
Is it going to be contemporary?
Is it going to be rustic?
They're color palette.
What color walls?
What color of furniture?
So that's going to kind of drive
your color range and it can fluctuate
just a little bit of
a little gray in a wood,
a little bit
more warm wood can drive if you're
if you're in the wood.
And that can really
make a big difference.
And then homes
in the selection process.
So we've talked a little bit
about about this interaction
between the trade pro member
and the homeowner.
How do you balance that interaction
from your perspective?
And then sort of a follow up
question to that is,
which is I know
sort of a gimme question here, but
how important, how critical
is the communication
in that sort of triangle
that we have here?
I'd say
the biggest communication
is going to be what type of materials
selected so
that member knows, hey,
we have to do this type of prep
for that type of installation.
So there's going to be variables there
from that aspect and it's timeline.
So when it's product
is going to be available
to be an install.
So it may be that
this is the product that they like,
but it doesn't fit that that timeline.
So then we have to do a re selection
to make the timeline
that they're wanting to do.
Do you find that happening a lot
from a timeline perspective?
Lately it's been pretty good,
timelines have been good with product.
You know, two years ago, kind of during
the midst of COVID,
you had a lot of struggles
with timelines,
but a lot of people adapted to that.
And actually made me
think of something else in that regard,
and I don't remember what it was.
So we'll come back to that.
We'll just put a pin in that
the thought that I had there.
So one of the advantages
from being being a member
or homeowner who works with ProSource
is the dedicated account manager. You.
So what does it mean
when we use that terminology?
We refer to a dedicated account manager,
but what do we mean by that?
So what that means is
they have that one contact
that they come in every single time.
You, you build that relationship.
And that's very important
in the way ProSource works.
They come in, then we know as a
as an account manager how each individual
contractor works
because they all work differently.
And we focus, you know, their style
with their clients.
Their clients
have selected them for a reason
and they've selected us
for the reason that we're here
to help them
and make their projects
go a lot smoother. So
especially on the member
side of things, on the trade
pro side of things,
you're
that's a lot of repeat business
because they're constantly
coming back to you.
So do you find yourself
really personalizing
your service specific to them
because you know how they operate
and what their expectation levels are?
No, not necessarily
because you're going to
have that expectation
that the client that their client has
and you're going to.
So it gets influence on the other side.
Absolutely it does. Absolutely.
So all around
you, you know, ProSource is dedicated
to have that design,
not just design, but
a lot of choices to select
from in our showrooms.
And that does give them a lot of options.
And I thought of my question.
So now we're going to pull the pin out.
I thought of the earlier question
in which you just said helped me
realize that
when it comes to the product selection,
do the does the trade pro
and the homeowner, when they come
in, do they really have an idea
of what direction they want to go in?
Therefore, you're just maybe helping them
pick the specific product?
Or is there a lot of,
well, we could go
this way, could go that way,
and you sort of guide them
or maybe you want to specifically go
over it
or you want to go ty
or you want to go carpet,
which I know
that's a lot of variation there.
It's probably more in the hard
surface side.
Do you guide them
in toward a particular category
or do they have more of an idea in mind
and you're just maybe helping
fine tune that a little bit? Both.
So sometimes they come in specifically
for that,
that particular category of material,
and then
sometimes you're
there kind of teeter
in between different products.
And then
so you have to show them
and tell them the pluses
and minuses of the products.
And even inside each category,
you're going to have pluses
and minuses to what they're expecting.
And and it may be that there may be a
or particular product that they think
will perform a certain way.
And once they learn
more about the product,
how it the actual products made,
how it performs.
A lot of times
that will change the direction
that they're going on
just by learning
about the products themselves.
How difficult is it for you
to stay on top of all these changes
that occur with products
and to be able to guide them
that way, to say,
here are the pros and the cons of that.
It's a
lot of it's going to be just
product knowledge.
You know,
you learn in-depth
about each particular product,
the locations that can be used,
because there's some products
that can be used in three season rooms
and there's some vinyl products
that can't be
so dependent on how those rooms are.
Really on how it's being used is really
going to drive
projects to go using certain products
in there.
But overall,
most of like the LVT products
they they're going to perform
very similar.
There's obviously different between
product to product,
but they're going to perform in a 100%
or a waterproof situation
that their client's
coming in and asking for. All right.
So we talked a little bit
earlier about timeline.
So how do timelines from product delivery
to the project projection
from that standpoint?
What's sort of that impact on
both a customer service aspect
as well as the homeowner expectations
when it comes to the overall timelines,
both both with the product
and how that impacts the project
as a whole.
So what I try to do is when
selections are made earlier
looking at different options
and selections.
So what I try to do is to check
the availability
of those particular products
to make sure that, hey,
this will
fit your timeline of your
product because it can it can
affect the
the timeline because in certain products,
if it's a tile
and there's certain
cabinets on top of tile,
so now you're flooring
and tile is going to hold up
other parts of that project.
So that's really important to
kind of find out.
And if they need make re selection,
do it as early as possible.
That way
they know the expectations of, hey,
it's going to meet the timeline versus
you place your order
and they're expecting a timeline
that said tile is going to be in and
two weeks and all of a sudden now
it's been pushed out to four weeks.
So now I give you a chance
to maybe brag a little bit here, but
how does effective customer
service impact
the final result of the project?
I think it
makes a big impact because
if you're meeting the deadlines that they
that they're wanting, you're
guiding them with the right products
to meet that.
So that kind of gives you that
that expectation is as high.
Then
once you do that, then you're
definitely going
to get a lot of referral business
from that.
And that's important
as an account manager.
So this may be a bit of
an unfair question
from a comparison standpoint,
but when you're coming in
to ProSource Wholesale
private showroom
for trade pros
and their homeowner clients
is do you find that there
maybe is a higher expectation
level from from a customer service
standpoint because you're able to offer
that dedicated service?
I think so.
But I think right off the bat,
the way we operate as a company,
ProSource really takes care
of their clients
that come in, the members that come in,
and we dedicate ourselves
to helping them straight
up, right upfront,
guide them to the right product,
guide them to what product
they're looking for when they come in
and steer them
to where this is the product
that really fits their project,
their needs
on the
on the use on how products
are going to be used in the home. Okay.
So my next
question is a little bit longer,
so I'm actually going to read it here.
So that's fine.
You could take a break
for a moment there,
but so ProSource offers
a variety of products.
We're talking, you know, flooring.
You've got
hardwood, laminate, carpet, tile,
luxury vinyl.
You got bathroom products,
tubs, toilets, vanities, showers
and, of course, kitchen cabinets,
countertops, faucet, sinks, All of this
we talked
mostly here in this discussion
about the flooring side of things,
how involved
you get on all of the product
sections,
especially in the realm of the kitchen
and the bathroom products that we offer.
So in our showroom,
we were kind of unique.
So I know
some showrooms will
when you get into that kitchen
and bath design,
the kitchen of bath designers
do a lot of the work. In our showroom
we work still hands on
hands with the selection
process
of cabinets, plumbing, countertops,
and we balance all of that
with the flooring,
the tile, especially if it's a bathroom.
You're going to have tile,
maybe in the shower on the floor.
Those all products have to tie together.
So when in the selection process,
we go through all that, we lay it out.
So they actually see what it's going
to look like from that.
And then we turn all of that information
over to the designers
and they layout the bathroom cabinets,
the kitchen cabinets, the design
that fits that particular
cabinet line
that the homeowner
or contractor has selected.
So it's almost like you're
putting together a little mini
design board
with all these different products
so they can kind of
see how they would all interact.
And that sense of the space
in the kitchen
bath designer step in
and could show the layout, correct?
Absolutely.
And then you know,
we introduce the designer at that point
and then they might have questions
or selections
or or suggestions in the selection
process saying, hey,
you might want to look at this
because of the particular layout.
So right off the bat
with that introduction,
we might be able to
take one step out
and that particular line
may not offer a cabinet.
So then, you know,
you're again,
you're offering a different selection
for them to look at immediately.
So it's it's
not a item
or that you're having to select
later on down the road.
It's at the beginning of that process.
And because of how you position
that this is not
just how you operate within the showroom,
this is how all account managers,
this is how the showroom operates.
Other showrooms
may operate a little bit differently,
but here at the showroom,
that's the service you can expect for
and the approach
from all account managers.
Absolutely. Absolutely.
We work in our showroom as a team.
We really do.
Even though each account
manager has you know, you work
with your clients and particular members,
but we actually act,
we work as a team in a whole
and that really makes a good flow.
And when members come in
or the clients come in,
they're comfortable that, hey,
that we all can step in and help.
We everybody knows everybody
and it has a great feeling.
And yeah.
So now let's pick one particular project.
Think of one and one in your mind,
is there a particular project
you've done that stands out in your mind?
And it was like the most fun
or at least one of the more fun projects
that you've done. So why?
So there's one that I did,
and it was actually the client
that was this was her home
that she grew up in.
And so she actually they tore it
down to the foundation
and left the main home because.
The home she grew up and they. Left.
They tore down but left the
foundation, okay. And built
the home off of that foundation.
And a couple different wings
and the uniqueness and the style.
So there was a designer
involved and going through
and doing the selection
process of each room was unique,
but they all flowed together.
And
so you kind of walked into more
of a kind of a grand entrance,
and then you had kind of a East wing
and a West
Wing with a herringbone floor
been installed, really unique.
And then
it just
everything flowed well
and it was neat to see that process.
And
from the original,
the story of this home, you know,
it was a home that she grew up in
and she still,
you know,
brought it to life again,
you know, and a completely different
aspect for,
you know, generations to come.
And, you know, so it's kind of
neat process in.
The foundation of that house
was still there, at least.
So really that was it literal from that
you were saying
that's from the ground up, right, from
from where that project went right.
Okay, great.
So let's go the other way.
What was one of the projects
you worked on
that was the most challenging
and how did you overcome
some of those obstacles
that you might have faced?
Well, you know,
you have a lot of a lot of projects
are really challenging
because there's so many different aspects
or variables.
And in those projects,
I really don’t have one
that just doesn't
stand out the most that is like that.
But every one has a challenge
because you have
the variables of timelines,
you have the variables
of product selection,
or it may
be a product that
really shouldn't be used in that aspect,
but that's what they want
and they do it and so that's, you know,
some of the things that
and all you can do
is steer them to the correct product.
But there's times
that that particular product
may not be the best product for that use,
but it occasionally does happen.
Okay.
So now last question. I’m going to elevate
you here a bit, okay.
You've got your
finger on the pulse of what's
going out there with flooring,
kitchen and bath.
Give us the inside scoop.
What does the future hold
for the products
and across those categories,
where do you see things going?
I think they're going
to stay pretty similar
to where they're at now. Okay.
You're
going to have color changes,
but I think most of them are going to be
kind of in the neutral colors.
So I don't think anything
is going to be really extreme.
You will have those that do
kind of I'm going to say
that outside the normal box
of of selection,
and that's every individual's choice
that would do that.
But I you know, I think
where the market is now and I think,
you know,
the last few years have really made
a big change in our industry.
I think some products
have been streamlined because they saw,
you know,
when a high demand comes available
or is a need for products
and they can't supply it,
I think that you saw products
kind of go away.
They streamline the products.
And I think that's where
we'll still have some changes
and products.
I think performance wise,
especially in the flooring,
I think it's it's really good right now.
I don't think there's going to be
a whole lot more changes
and maybe just styles.
Improving on what we have. Yeah.
So they've really the products
that we have
are superior from just say,
five, ten years ago
and the different lines. Okay.
I appreciate that.
That was Mark Allen, everyone.
Thanks for joining us here today.
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