About Pool Builders
14 Oct About Pool Builders
The Top 5 Reasons Pool Contractors/Builders Go Out of Business
From River Pools
The term Caveat Emptor has never been more applicable then when one is planning an inground swimming pool project. Stories of contractors going out of business, or simply disappearing with client’s money are scary to say the least, and happen way to frequently. This post from River Pools tells us how to avoid these landmines by identifiying the characteristics of swimming pool companies that are most likely to disappear.
Here is an excerpt from the post:
Ahhhh, the New Year is upon us. 2010 has arrived. And for many of our readers, this means it’s time to get serious about finding the right pool from the right company. Buying a swimming pool often times requires great thought and can at times get pretty stressful. One of the benefits I absolutely love about having a blog that is read on an international level is that it helps me share tips that will lead to a great swimming pool buying and ownership experience, which will be the goal of this and my next article. The first will be “5 Reasons Pool Contractors/Builders Go Out of Business” and the second will be “5 Keys to Choosing the Right Pool Contractor”. After reading both articles, it is my hope that many of you will be well prepared to make the right choice for you swimming pool this coming year.
After being in this business for about 10 years now I’ve seen some pretty sad examples of how to run a pool company (some made by yours truly). Believe it or not, more than 75% of the builders I’ve seen start a pool business during this time period are no longer in the business. So what caused them to have such a short lifespan?
#1. Too Cheap:
This may sound self-serving, but it’s the truth. Just like any other business, swimming pool builders must turn a profit to survive. No profit means no business, which is why so many pool companies, and manufacturers for that matter, are unable to weather this current economic storm. Although there are many factors- such as efficiency, labor, mistake-free work, etc that will dictate the profitability of a job, there will always be unpredictables. But one thing that I’m absolutely sure of is this:
Pool companies that price their pools on the ‘high side’ are, as a whole, still in business.