Here’s how The Gutter Boys is handling 2021’s high demand without raising prices or delaying service
By Mimi Vanderhaven
The home improvement sector is going gangbusters right now, to the point that many contractors are booked through the fall. Other companies, however, saw the trend coming and managed to scale up in order to meet the increased demand.
Mimi sat down with The Gutter Boys founder Anthony Alberino to learn how his company has managed the exponential growth without raising prices or asking homeowners to wait months for service.
Mimi: First off, what’s going on right now with home improvement? Why the surge in activity?
Anthony: The growth is largely related to the pandemic. For more than a year now, people have been staying put and investing their vacation money in home improvement instead, doing projects they may have been putting off. Of course, the extra stimulus money has also been a factor, along with the growing stock market. Homeowners look at their 401(k) statements and feel pretty confident spending a little money on their homes right now.
Mimi: We’re hearing from many home improvement companies that they are booked up for the rest of the year. They can’t find labor, materials are on backorder, and they have all the business they can handle. Is The Gutter Boys having this experience?
Anthony: Somewhat. Our business is way, way up, but we saw that coming and planned for it. In late 2019, well before the pandemic, we took a risk and ordered a lot of extra material from Valor, the top-rated gutter guard in the U.S. When the pandemic hit, that risk payed off because we had plenty of inventory to service our clients. Last year, we installed over 60 miles of gutter guards and became Valor’s number one distributor, see? (Anthony shows Mimi an impressive crystal trophy). We did the same thing this year. We bought even more inventory and invested in more trucks. So instead of waiting three or four months for installation, our clients can have theirs installed in one to two weeks. That’s our core strategy. We don’t want a log jam. We don’t want to make people wait.
Mimi: Yes, but inventory is one thing. You have to have workers to meet all that extra demand. Isn’t there a labor shortage?
Anthony: Maybe for some companies, but not for us. Our staff turnover is really low and we’ve had no problem adding and training new gutter specialists this year.
Mimi: Wait, how come?
Anthony: I think it’s about culture and creating a positive place to work. We hire good people, train them well, then give them autonomy. We don’t micromanage. People want to work in gratifying jobs with advancement potential. We’re constantly promoting from within, so our staff knows upward mobility is truly possible here. Plus, we have fun. There’s no drama, and our employees know we treat our customers well, so they can feel proud about what they are doing.
Mimi: Speaking of how customers are treated, isn’t one strategy to handle the higher demand simply to increase your prices? You know, the law of supply and demand?
Anthony: For sure, and a lot of companies are doing just that, but we chose not to. It’s not a good, long-term strategy. We’re in this for the long haul and protecting our reputation is essential to our success. Price gouging may be tempting in the moment, but there will be your own price to pay down the road. Plus, we all want to sleep at night knowing that we are treating people right. In fact, we recently hired a new gutter specialist in the Columbus market who came from a competitor. She’s so happy to be with us now because she was under a lot of stress in her previous job from managers who wanted her to give quotes that were thousands of dollars over what was reasonable just because they could. That’s not us. We don’t have a high-pressure sales culture. Our gutter guards are the best in the industry so they pretty much sell themselves, especially if the homeowner has been given a sky-high quote from another gutter company with an inferior product.
Mimi: That said, tell us about Valor gutter guards. What makes them so special?
Anthony: Well, to keep it simple, it’s really all about water flow. You need a product that will catch the debris but not interfere too much with the flow. Our Valor gutter guards do this best because they’re made of a stainless steel micro-mesh. Debris just can’t get inside the gutter. The mesh also features a raised s-curve, so wet leaves don’t stick to the mesh; they simply blow off. It’s a brilliant design. I wish I’d thought of it. Our gutter guard system also features vertical louvers instead of a flat, horizontal frame. This improves drainage so they can’t become clogged with moss or algae.
Plus, our frames are made of lightweight aluminum so there is no extra weight, and we attach them to the facia, not the shingles, using stainless steel screws that won’t rust.
I can’t tell you how many inferior gutter guard systems we have un-installed from other companies that were completely clogged or collapsed. That doesn’t happen with Valor. That’s why we can offer a fully-transferable, lifetime warranty. Think about what that says. It says the gutter guards will last as long as your house. That’s having confidence in your product, and that confidence helps create trust and pride in our entire company culture. We have the best product, the best service, the best warranty, the best people, and that inspires all of us in everything we do.
The Gutter Boys is headquartered at 1090 West Bagley Road, in Berea. They have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, and are bonded and insured. Call 440-671-7657 to schedule a free on-site consultation and estimate, or visit TheGutterBoys.com for more information. They also offer 12 months same-as-cash financing.