Polishing Pro Class Held at Braxton-Bragg is a Big Success
Karla Hood
Special Contributor
At 8:30 in the morning, ten gentlemen gathered in a brightly-lit classroom at the Braxton-Bragg “campus,” to learn an entirely new way of looking at their stone fabrication business.
Steve Anneker and Tim Parker, the developer and marketer of the Polishing Pro System, have created a new concept for the business-savvy fabricator: Stone Restoration.
In the recent past, tens of thousands of homeowners have either built new homes which included granite or other natural or engineered stone, or have had it installed in their existing residences. With the improved techniques of quarrying and fabricating these materials, stone countertops and other fabricated stone construction have become far more commonplace than ever before.
“Although stone is extremely durable,” said Tim Parker, Business Manager for Polishing Pro Systems, LLC, “These products do become dull and dingy over time. With a small investment (in the Polishing Pro System), you could make your money back on your first restoration job!”
“How much of an investment?”
“For everything you would need to establish your new business (removing small scratches and surface polishing to renew the original shine on natural and engineered stone), less than a thousand bucks!”
“This is a ground-breaking business,” Parker went on to say. “There are many fabrication shops who turn down restoration jobs, because they don’t have the equipment or the training to do it. Think of it this way, the installers who install your carpet, are not the same people who will come back to clean your carpet. The need keeps growing; this is a brand-new market, for those who get in on it now. You can compare this to concrete or marble floor polishing, which is really big–but has quickly become very competitive.”
“So, why the Polishing Pro Systems class?”
“The two products we have developed for the Polishing Pro System (Polishing Pro and Polishing Pro for Engineered Stone) are made to work differently. We decided from the outset that not only was this an essential system for a fabricator, but it could also be a whole new business.”
“Is this class different from the videos you have made?”
“Definitely. The first product, the Polishing Pro System for Natural Stone, is easier to demonstrate and use ‘like a pro’, but for the second, a deeper understanding of quartz is important–that’s harder to get from a video. It deals in the ‘how’; Steve wants to deal with the ‘why’ as well as demonstrating identifying and removing stains, dealing with dyed stone and re-resined stone.”
Parker also wanted to talk to students about the business side of Stone Restoration. The class has been designed to explain that not only can these products be used to repair a fabrication mishap, but fill a need in the current recession, where home and business owners cannot necessarily afford to replace stained or scratched stone. Parker added, “but you will need to make your customers aware of what you can do (for them).
“At this time, homeowners don’t even know that there is a solution for their dull or scratched countertops. We plan on teaching how to do this. We will discuss things like who your potential customers are, how to market to them, and how to price your services, and how to assure your profitability in your new business.”
The students spent two days learning the whys and wherefores of this burgeoning new business, as well as getting their hands dirty learning techniques of polishing different types of natural and engineered stone, as well as working with stain removal. At the end of the second day, ten tired but enthusiastic gentlemen left, equipped with the knowledge and skills to make their mark in this business, by removing the marks left by others!