APSP Quarterly - Spring 2008 - (Page 30)

materials,” he says. “Coordinating a pool construction schedule with a half dozen different distributors is difficult to get right.” Not only that, he continues, the number one cost for a pool builder is labor, and a builder must coordinate deliveries from a half dozen distributors on schedules that will permit the most efficient use of labor on a job. “We identified our opportunity here,” Perez de la Mesa says. “As a large publicly-owned distributor, we have virtually no capital limitations, especially when compared to small private distributors. We had the ability to become a one-stop-distributor in an industry with no one-stop-distributors.” Can it be Done? It’s one thing to have an idea and another thing to make it work. Perez de la Mesa’s goal was to make Pool Corporation into a distributor capable of receiving one order for materials to build a pool designed to virtually any specifications, and shipping the entire order on an appropriate schedule. Nothing would go early. Nothing would go late. No mistakes. “To do that, we had to organize people and systems differently,” Perez de la Mesa says. Employees had to buy into the idea, and management began a series of meetings to communicate the new concept. Perez de la Mesa also set about installing the management controls and inventory and shipping technologies required to make the idea work. “We’re still evolving in this,” Perez de la Mesa says. “Suppose that operationally we’re not functioning as well as we want. If we add more products, then we’ll make problems worse. So the fi rst priority is to operate well and then layer in more products.” To date, Pool Corporation has layered in 100,000 stock keeping units (SKUs). Building Stronger Customers Perez de la Mesa’s one-stop-shop goes beyond an innovative distribution concept and extends to providing a host of business services designed to help Pool Corporation customers grow. “We have the wherewithal to help our customers become better business people and better marketers,” he says. “If our customers get bigger and sell more products, we’ll get bigger by selling them more products.” With that in mind, PoolCorp literally markets pool and spa products and services to the customers of its customers – homeowners. The company currently builds and maintains websites on behalf of customers. Between 2,000 and 3,000 companies have taken advantage of that service so far. The websites aren’t really a giveaway. In addition to being a site where a consumer can get information on the merits and benefits of pool ownership, each site also has an area where pool and spa business owners can log in and place orders with PoolCorp. The technology helps pool and spa businesses sell more to their customers, while helping PoolCorp sell more to its customers. “When we started providing websites for our customers seven years ago, they would come back in a few months and tell us that having a website had given them credibility with consumers that they had never had before,” de la Mesa says. “Today, of course, a website is a business requirement.” 366994_Poolvergnuegen.indd 1 3 0 | AQ A P S P Q UA R T E R LY 1/29/08 5:27:03 PM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of APSP Quarterly - Spring 2008

APSP Quarterly - Spring 2008 Contents President's Message Chairman's Message International Awards of Excellence Spotlight Quality and Innovation If You're Still in the Pool Business, You're Leaving Money on the Table Gunslingers for Sale-s Can Pool Builders Hedge a Tough Year With... Hedges? Creating a Shared Vision: An Interview with PoolCorp CEO Manny Perez de la Mesa Grow Boating Initiative Helps Industry Imagine a Better Tomorrow First Ever CBP of the Year Award Presented at Inaugural CBP Recognition Dinner Safety Department News & Resources Advertiser's Index

APSP Quarterly - Spring 2008

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