From the desk of the painter’s wife

“Can’t you just go to your local 711 or Home Depot, or anywhere really, and recruit someone who works there for cheap?” 

I was on the phone with a dear friend.  I had just finished expressing how difficult it is to find painters during the summer months, when there is more job demand than available skilled house painters.  The above was his response.

Outwardly, I was speechless.  But if he could have heard the boiling thoughts going on in my head at the time, he may have seriously considered calling an exorcist.  As if I could just walk up to anyone and they would happen to be a rock star house painter with years of experience.       

This is when it hit me.  Many people do not view residential and commercial painting as skilled work.  The majority view it as something they could easily do themselves, “just slap some paint on it!”  And if they have the luxury to pay for it, they expect prices to reflect this view.  This sort of thinking can be incredibly expensive, and it’s not the homeowner’s fault.  It’s just that you don’t know until you know. 

And this leads into a little story about a client of ours named Rick.  In our first interaction with Rick, he called Jeremy up one day about a problem with his freshly painted cabinets.  He had just spent $3,700 on them.  He had hired a contractor who gave a cheap estimate and who could start immediately.

And now, Rick was livid.

“Let me send you a picture.”  He said. 

The picture was up close, clearly of something white and bumpy. You would never look at it and think of a cabinet.  “What does that look like to you?”  He asked.

“It looks like a wall.” Jeremy replied. 

“That is my newly painted kitchen cabinet!”  He fumed.  “I paid that guy all that money and he refuses to fix it.  Says if it looks good from 6 feet away, it’s good enough.” 

Poor Rick had spent a considerable sum of money for a whack job.  After an estimate and some conversations with Jeremy, he hired us to make it right for $6000.  We had to take it all apart, sand almost all the paint from the previous “fresh” paint job, use wood filler, prime, and sand some more.  We then cleaned and caulked all joints, seams and panels.  Finally, we sprayed two coats of finish and put it all back together.

The result was smooth and flawless, no matter how close you looked at it.  It is what Rick deserved in the first place.  Instead, he had paid dang near $10,000 for a job that should have been done right the first time for less than the $6000 he paid for us to fix a mess.  Talk about pricey!  We felt so bad for him, we did it for a discounted rate.

We pay our painters well.  Not just because they deserve a fair wage, but because they earn it.  They earn it with their hustle, with their attention to detail.  They know that prep is crazy important.  The prep guarantees the home will not need to be painted again a year from now, not even 10 years from now.  It promises that the paint will not peel and flake prematurely, and leave it looking like it narrowly escaped a typhoon.  And most important, particularly for exteriors here in the Northwest, it assures that the wood beneath that paint job will not rot and lead to very expensive repairs.

Then there’s the application itself.  It can take over a year for a painter to learn how to prep a variety of surfaces, tape, brush and roll to create tight lines.  It can take several more years for a painter to learn how to spray without creating an uneven, expensive mess.  And, it takes even more time to develop a crew leader who knows just what to do in any painting emergency and how to do it in the most efficient way for both the homeowner and the company. 

Special bonus about skilled crews?  When it does come time to paint the home again, it’s cheaper!  Why?  Because the hard part was done the right way on the last round. 

I have about as much chance of winning the lottery or riding a bull without getting knocked on my behind than to walk into a 711 and find someone willing and able to do all of that for next to nothing.  And if I did miraculously find someone like that, my conscience and the values of our company would not allow me to pay them less than a living wage.

Folks, we ain’t cheap.  But we deliver true value, and we stand behind our work.  This is reflected in our numerous 5-star reviews and recommendations.  In our A+ BBB rating, in our 100% satisfaction or your paint is free guarantee. And, in our unbeatable warranties.  In fact, if you can find someone with a higher warranty than ours, we won’t just match it, we’ll top it.

(503)-985-3443