At the rapidly growing PaintCLE, beautiful projects are born

By Patricia Nugent

With all the major paint companies reporting record sales growth in the pandemic-induced home improvement boom, on the local level, a new family-run specialty store—PaintCLE—is on track for explosive growth, opening three stores within the past year.

In that brief period of time, they have already become the second largest seller of Benjamin Moore paint by the number of gallons in Ohio.

For DIY residential and commercial painters, the store offers the complete lines of Benjamin Moore wall paint, interior and exterior paint, deck stain, pool paint, coatings, paint primers, paint supplies and more. If you have a surface that needs painting, they have the solution.

Here’s a Little Back Story
After extensively researching the climate for business start-ups, the Warren family decided to partner with Benjamin Moore paints.

“We didn’t want to be a franchise, but rather partner with a business model that was established and of the highest quality,” says Dick Warren.

Husband and wife Dick and Anna, and son Matthew, opened the first PaintCLE store in Willoughby Hills in February of 2021, then another in Shaker Heights seven months ago, and a third in Medina in January 2022.

Dick has a background in office furniture sales and Matthew in sales and marketing.

“We’re providing the formula of combining a true family-run business with a product we whole-heartedly stand behind, and the expertise to help our customers with any paint project,” says Matthew. “The seasoned team we’ve put together, led here at the Shaker Heights store by Jacob Hanzel, is unmatched in the area.”

Formulas and Service a Step Above
These paints are in a class by themselves, so it’s only natural they be sold solely through well controlled distributors who are specialists in the product formulations.

“Benjamin Moore’s exclusive Gennex Color Technology is a colorant system infused with resin that has also been colored, fortifying it for richer, brighter colors that last longer, are more durable and easier to apply,” explains Matthew.

Unlike many items you can buy online, picking out paint is best done in person, working with a professional to guide you through the selection process.

“We ask a lot of questions, having people bring in photos of their rooms or projects,” says Matthew. “And we recommend that customers visit our paint wall and take home many different sample chips. Then after narrowing down their choice, we suggest they buy a sample half-pint of paint to see how the actual formula looks on the wall with the particular light in their space.”

The gentlemen report that many people ask them what the newly announced 2022 Color of the Year is, selected by the designers at Benjamin Moore. Drum roll please…it’s a silvery sage green called October Mist.

“In general, many of our customers are going for more earthy, natural and soothing shades for their interiors,” says Matthew. “Whatever the space, our knowledgeable associates are well versed when it comes to advising customers on which colors and finishes work best together.”

Fantastic Customer Service
The Warrens report that about half of their business is local commercial painters who appreciate what the advantage a superior product means for their own customers’ satisfaction.

Tyler Frejofsky is operations manager at Textbook Painting in Lakewood, a company with about 50 painters who do mostly interior work.

“The Benjamin Moore products we use, particularly SKUFF-X, are high performance, great looking and unbelievably durable and long wearing,” says Tyler. “Our clients are happier for longer. We’ve been just as pleased with the fantastic customer service we’ve enjoyed from PaintCLE. These are well educated and technical guys who always go the extra mile, even delivering paint directly to our shop.”

PaintCLE has three convenient locations: Shaker Heights, at 20065 Chagrin Boulevard, 216-478-9008; Willoughby Hills, at 2747 SOM Center Road, 216-415-6454; and Medina, at 3833 Pearl Road, 330-721-0005. Visit PaintCLE.com for more information.