Like any hardwood flooring business owner, Tim Schmidt has had to make difficult decisions due to the tough economy,
Log in to view the full article
Like any hardwood flooring business owner, Tim Schmidt has had to make difficult decisions due to the tough economy,
but the president of Waukesha, Wis.-based Schmidt Custom Floors Inc. isn't dwelling on them. Instead, he comes to work each day confident his company will be in an even better position when the sawdust settles, controlling an even bigger share of the flooring market in a metropolitan area of about 1.6 million people.
Schmidt was kind enough to let Hardwood Floors follow him recently during what began as a rainy, overcast August workday. But, just as prospects for the wood flooring industry will inevitably brighten, the sun worked its way from behind the clouds and it became a good day for growing a business.
6:30 a.m.
Schmidt arrives at his warehouse and showroom, a 25,000-square-foot building in an industrial park just off I-94, a mere 15 miles west of downtown Milwaukee and well-situated to reach the city's growing suburbs.
He first heads to the rear of his shop to assist his production manager, Paul McGeary, in readying crews for the day. Schmidt calls this "management by walking around." To increase efficiency, the company recently re-evaluated its management structure, so McGeary now oversees both Schmidt's residential and commercial work. Schmidt also takes a minute to chat with his tool manager, Eric Crnkovich, who spends the first 30 to 45 minutes of each day tracking which crews take what tools from the shop.
Installers, sanders and finishers trickle in, each one punching in and taking a sheet of paper found in his time card slot; this sheet is part of a timesaving initiative at Schmidt Custom Floors. GPS units installed in the company's field vans track time and movements, and a computer at the shop generates a daily report for each van. These reports list van stops of more than 10 minutes from the previous day, and workers are responsible for detailing what was accomplished at each stop. The computer also monitors performance by allotting a certain amount of time for the type of work performed at each job. Every two months, Schmidt awards bonuses to workers who met or exceeded performance goals. Schmidt says his employees were on board with the adoption of the GPS systems and performance monitoring from the start, but it "had to be sold properly." He adds, "the employees who are goofing off are taking money from everyone else. At first, we were just trying it out, so not every van had it, but eventually everyone was asking when their van would be outfitted." Information on the GPS service provider, Network Fleet, can be found at www.networkcar.com.
Schmidt then takes a few minutes to listen to installer Bryan Schneeweis, who is frustrated with a finish product he's using at his recently purchased home. Schneeweis is moving in within a week and is hurrying to finish his red oak bedroom floors, but even after nearly three days of drying, the floors still feel tacky. Schmidt suggests using denatured alcohol to flash the floor, but first he reminds Schneeweis to contact the finish manufacturer for assistance.
7:50 a.m.
After seeing the last of the work vans out the door and briefly stopping to answer e-mails in his office, Schmidt goes to the front of his store to greet Chemque Inc.'s Mark Long, who has stopped in to meet with Schmidt to discuss adhesives. Schmidt is in the market for an easy-to-use, all-purpose adhesive for which he doesn't have to constantly check manufacturer specifications—and the adhesive needs to be cost-effective, too. The two exchange pleasantries and Long relates stories about how his home state of Mississippi is handling tornado season. After a chat, Schmidt leads Long on a tour of his shop.
First, Long is shown the front room where solid flooring shines. On the walls hang laser-cut border offerings and gradated finish examples, in custom-built dressers sit more than 44 solid flooring samples, and spanning the entire floor of the room is a grid of even more flooring and finish options. Schmidt and Long then move toward the distressed flooring showroom, first passing through a walkway in which photos from company-hosted NWFA flooring schools hang. Schmidt is enthusiastic about his employees attaining NWFA certification. He believes certification instills continuity of job site practices, and he uses it as a marketing point, so his customers know his workers didn't just "come on the job last week."
After discussing different options for distressed and character-grade flooring, Long and Schmidt move to the upstairs showroom, which holds mostly prefinished flooring. There are multiple mock rooms set up, each with a completely unique décor and floor. There are installations of glue-down flooring, floating, distressed, character-grade, bamboo, cork, and parquet, among others. The two continue into an open room offering cork options and Schmidt relates how, amid the green flooring phenomenon, much more interest has been expressed for cork flooring than bamboo. Adjacent to the cork options sit more engineered samples arranged around a large inlay; next to that rests a large gym flooring installation. "You get Johnny's mom in here, and she starts thinking, 'Johnny needs a basketball court at home,'" Schmidt says.
8:30 a.m.
Even though Schmidt's market is primarily focused on nail-down flooring, he sits down with Long to discuss the new adhesive. The conversation ebbs and flows from the adhesive's capabilities to stories of putting kids through college, the wildlife and geography of Arkansas, bow hunting, and the fact that nearly every business transaction today is paid for with credit. Schmidt is interested in Long's product, and the two agree Long will forward exact pricing numbers soon.
Long departs and Schmidt relates some of his reasoning for expressing interest in Long's product. First, he likes Long himself. "I like Mark, and I've known him for years," he says. "Some products are repped through multiple sources, so I'm definitely going to buy it from someone I enjoy talking to, no question about that." Second, as he has always done before inviting a salesman to his store, he has talked with several flooring industry peers, and they've been satisfied with Long's product. Last, Schmidt offers manufacturer service as a good reason to buy or stay away from a product, and he's confident Long's company will help him when needed.
9:54 a.m.
Schmidt readies for a job site inspection in Muskego, Wis., a Milwaukee suburb 20 minutes southeast of Waukesha, but he first takes a minute to confer with Vice President Jeff Satterfield, who is on his way out the door to see about a repair job where a homeowner unfortunately dragged a piano across a floor. For Schmidt, every day at work is actually a day spent with family—Satterfield is his brother-in-law. Schmidt's father, Robert, started the company in 1968 and retired in 2004. Later in the day, Schmidt's wife Andrea will come to work as a design consultant, and his 19-year-old son, Austin, has been working in the field for the past few summers.
Schmidt heads outside to his truck, and by this time, it looks as if the sun is desperately trying to break the clouds, but it's still too early to say whether it could shape up to be a nice day. On his way to the job site, while dodging wayward suburban drag racers, Schmidt calls Schneeweis, the installer, for directions, and then he fields a few office calls on his cell phone, his ringtone intermittently sending Joplin's "The Entertainer" through the air. He also passes a few new homes being built by Victory Homes of Wisconsin Inc., a prominent Milwaukee-area homebuilder with which he has a business luncheon scheduled later in the day.
In a down economy, Schmidt's dreams of winning Victory's business are only intensified; "We don't do work for them," he says, "but we're hoping to change that today." Through the downturn, Schmidt has picked up more commercial work, which has sustained the company and made downsizing slightly less painful (however, it didn't stop him from having to furlough his son, Austin, a recent homeowner). Ultimately, though, Schmidt views the downturn as a cleansing agent that will help strong companies pick up ground in the long run. "There will be fewer people in the business," he says, "so we'll increase market share, which is hopefully what we'll do today when we talk with Victory Homes."
After arriving at the job site, everything appears to be in order; installation of the 800 square feet of ¾-by-3-inch Brazilian cherry is going smoothly, save two large ribbons that were not factored into Schneeweis's job time. Schneeweis then gives Schmidt an update on his flooring woes at home: He called the finish manufacturer, but worthwhile assistance was not forthcoming. Unfortunately for the manufacturer of the finish in question, Schmidt actually distributes that product, so he's decided to whittle his stock down and cease promoting it; but he'll still carry some for those who specifically request it. He sums up his decision by saying, "If you're not going to help us, you're out."
11:30 a.m.
After running a few more errands, Schmidt returns to the shop to prepare for his luncheon with Victory Homes. A prominent builder agreeing to tour one's flooring shop doesn't happen every day, and, in this economy, it's even tougher to pin down a busy homebuilder who will drop by one's shop. Schmidt has heard some rumors that Milwaukee home building rates are ticking upward—a personal friend has five starts on the horizon—and he's also heard some tantalizing figures on Victory: They're on track to complete 45 homes this year, 14 of which were recently sold in the past month and a half.
From his office, Schmidt sees Victory's Darrel Prusow and John Stoker enter the shop; radiant sunlight is also now shining through the doors and windows, evidence that the sun is here to stay for the rest of the day. First out to greet the pair is Wayne Lepak, head of Schmidt's project sales. The three introduce themselves and Lepak begins showing them around the front room. Schmidt later joins the group and leads everyone on a tour path identical to what Chemque's Long was shown earlier. Obviously, Lepak and Schmidt aim to impress Prusow and Stoker. Besides the voluminous flooring options all around, the two elaborate on the company's diversified and competent staff. Even though Schmidt Custom Floors offers installation, sand and finish, its workers are certified and always specialize in one area. If a repair is needed, there is a full-time repair guy. If dust is an issue, Bona's Atomic dust containment system can be offered. If design assistance is needed, Schmidt's wife Andrea can help. And, oh yeah, his guys can hand-scrape, too. Because his company is so large, it also has a distributor branch, which allows Schmidt to pay wholesale prices for his products. In turn, this allows him to offer prices lower than it seems Prusow and Stoker are used to hearing for products like distressed engineered flooring. "Customers just don't think this stuff is affordable," Schmidt says. On multiple occasions, his guests' eyes light up as he shows them a flooring sample and rattles off a price. "I will save you money," Schmidt flatly states.
The four men sit down to a lunch of deli sandwiches, cookies and sodas. Victory's Stoker, sensing he is also being assessed, elaborates on why his is a good company to work for: Victory is busy right now, of which Schmidt was already aware, and it has a policy of paying subcontractors in 30 days or less. Now it's Schmidt's eyes that light up. After finishing their meal, Stoker and Prusow depart, leaving Schmidt and Lepak a few minutes to exchange laughs and plenty of smiles—business might be on the upswing.
2:30 p.m.
Schmidt receives a troubleshooting call from a designer friend of his and within ten minutes he is at her doorstep. The wood floor he installed in her basement—a custom micro-beveled white oak—has changed the height of the opening for her sliding screen door, and now the door won't fit. Schmidt says he'll cut the door for her, but she's worried because Schmidt is a "floor guy"; Schmidt reassures her that he can handle it.
3:45 p.m.
Back at the office, Schmidt meets Susan Lang, vice president of Weston, Wis.-based manufacturer From the Forest. To Schmidt and Lepak, she's known as "Susan From the Forest." Today, she drove nearly three hours south to run some new flooring product ideas past Schmidt and Lepak. Schmidt really likes the red maple sample she's brought along.
4:00 p.m.
Even though his shop will remain open for a little while longer, Schmidt decides to head home for the day. Sunlight on his shoulders, business looking better now than in the morning, and after nearly a nine-and-a-half-hour day, he's going home to help Andrea prepare for house guests they'll be entertaining during the weekend.