Housing Giants - June 10, 2008 - (Page 20)

Product was a big challenge because we had no product. You like things you’ve seen forever and you want to start fresh. … There are a lot of proven layouts within certain footprints in our business … but we wanted to spruce those up.” Not having models to sell, especially when the company was founded on the idea of being able to customize product, pushed the team to develop plans early. But in some ways the reputation issue was a larger one to overcome. “You can talk about the years of experience of people involved and use that to build credibility, but our salespeople were still telling us people were telling them, ‘Gosh, you’re a brand new company. I don’t know.’” He continues. “Other companies were exploiting that, which we would have if I were next door. That was one of those unforeseen challenges that I didn’t think about: being a brand new company and convincing the public.” The necessity of getting product out into the marketplace and building a reputation created a palpable sense of urgency at the start of the company that carries through to this day. McClure explains, “You see builders that tried to change and go to different product lines, and that’s not always easy. You even look at automakers — Mercedes, BMW, Lexus — they have a perception about quality of their product because of what they’ve 20 HOUSING GIANTS.6.10.08 done throughout the years.” When they go down in price point, he notes, the reputation still holds. At Wall, they were serving a new market with a reputation built on personal reputations formed at a first-time builder. Those initial difficulties were overcome by sheer effort and clear thought. Wall Homes has now closed more than 1,000 homes in its initial phase. The crowning cap and move that put them over the top was the 2007 acquisition of the Dallas/Fort Worth division of Newmark Homes. That delivered control of more than 3,000 lots and gave them entrée into many of the most coveted neighborhoods in the Dallas/Fort Worth market. Wall Homes market presence jumped from 11 neighborhoods to 33. Three years into the start-up, the reputation of Wall Homes has been established, and a major reason for that is its ability to customize and deliver exactly what the buyer wants. cHAmp’S ROOm Customization is the root of the idea behind Wall Homes — the company tagline even reads “Your Idea of Home.” The ability to change options is a trademarked phrase, “True Blueprint Change,” meaning that if a buyer wants to move a wall, the buyer can move a wall. The company will change the blueprint. Wall is practically a zealot when he talks www.HOUSINGGIANTS.cOm http://www.newmarkhomes.com/ http://www.housinggiants.com

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