Friday, March 29, 2024

Consolidated Supply

Posted

5 years = 25% growth at local 'waterworks' supplier

Story and photos by Gary Bégin
Consolidated Supply Company opened in Wenatchee in 2013 at 1100 Walla Walla St. after taking over the building from the out of business United Pipe & Supply Company. They provide plumbing and waterworks fixtures to local plumbers and contractors on a wholesale basis. Consolidated Supply Company's motto is that it "takes pride in doing ordinary things extraordinarily well."
According to a company press release, "as a family business, we are invested in our employees. The Wenatchee branch has a combined 125 years of experience in the industry and they’d be able to share a wealth of insights about the importance of wowing customers and community involvement, as well as the future of B2B industries like plumbing."
Local Branch Manager Jeff Burchett, who has a degree in civil engineering from University of Washington (Seattle), is proud to give kudos to his staff and stated, "Two of our employees are prior service, one army National Guard and one a Navy Seabee. One of our salesmen was a circus performer for nine years and continues to be a trainer for the last 12 years for the Wenatchee Youth Circus. Several of our employees are or were recently involved in local hockey, wrestling, baseball, football and basketball playing, coaching or as referee. We also have a few avid hunters and fishermen in our crew."
Burchett himself is retired as a major from the Army National Guard after 22 years and spent most of his time as an infantry officer.
Burchett  said his company’s Scholarship Program (The Karl E. Neupert Memorial Scholarship) donates $2,000 to selected college students that are the children or grandchildren of Consolidated Supply employees.  "This is indicative of the owner’s commitment to education in our industry and communities," he said.
Wenatchee’s Consolidated Supply Co.’s employees are passionate about community involvement and giving back. Their yearly fundraisers have supported local homeless shelters, the humane society and youth circus as well as the American Red Cross and Upper Valley Mend. Some employees have spent more than two decades coaching local youth sports.
Burchett is a proud manager for many reasons including the new "Business Growth Program" and points to the company's "25 percent growth over the last five years even though the margins have stayed tight."
Burchett said that every year, Consolidated treats special customers with an all-expense paid trip to exotic locales like Hawaii based on their monthly points accumulation.
"Next fall we are going to Cancun. The company brought 225 couples on the Hawaii trip in February to thank them for their loyalty and to show them our appreciation for their business. These trips allow us to get to know our customers over a five-six day period with plenty of quality time so we can develop personal relationships," Burchett said.
"Our monthly points program for loyal customers has been very successful," he said.
"People buy from people and personal relationships are vital to our success," Burchett said. Although he has a civil engineering degree, he states that he never actually became a civil engineer.
However, the education does give him special insights into many types of construction projects, whether it be excavating, underground utilities or road building. He said his degree is of "tangental help" when approached by contractors for building solutions.
"We do not give engineering advice, but we can point to many different products that may be better in some projects. We also offer express shipping service with a discount if the customer gives us the whole order, he said.
Burchett's branch services the entire North Central Washington as the nearest other branches are in Spokane and Kennewick.
Burchett was also proud to point out that a new and improved company website is coming online soon that will help guide customers to select the right solutions for their specific projects. "We will be pushing our new 'e-commerce' solutions site as an important internet presence."
Burchett said, "We need to stay relevant in light of the impact of technology on our industry and so we have launched a "consultative selling" program that will help contractors with bidding estimates, billing and solutions to their specific construction needs."
The family company has 17 branches in Oregon and Washington and is headquartered in Tigard, Oregon (south of Portland) and is owned by the Neupert family, headed by Karolyn Neupert. It was founded in 1928.
For more information on your "waterworks" needs call 509-662-7128 or go to consolidatedsupply.com or thefixturegallery.com.

 

Business sales

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here