Wisdom of Ages When asked what advice they had for those who have never been through a downturn, here’s what veteran custom builders said:
“First off, don’t pay for the right to work. It’s a recipe for disaster.”—Scott Hobbs, Hobbs Inc., New Canaan, Conn. “Never take things for granted, and always put your best foot forward.”—Chip Gruver, Gruver–Cooley Corp., Leesburg, Va. “If your reputation is that you’re of value and you’re trustworthy, that’s the most important thing right now. It’s an old thing.”—Lawrence Motta, Matarozzi/Pelsinger Builders, San Francisco “Concentrate like crazy on making sure you’re servicing all the clients you’ve got. We expect our employees to have the Nordstrom attitude—whatever the customer wants. Those are the skills that will get you through this thing.”—Joe McKinstry, Joseph McKinstry Construction Co., Seattle “Remember, don’t think the economy can’t be touched. In a heartbeat it can turn on you. … You can’t have an attitude with your customers. You’re serving them.”—Mark Shramek, Shramek Building Co., Huntington Beach, Calif. “The bad news is, if you weren’t efficient and weren’t providing good quality before a recession, it’s unlikely you’ll survive a recession. But if your quality has always measured high, you’re going to get from here to there. In an economy like this, the most important thing a builder can do is diversify. … Your skills are probably more valuable than you ever imagined.”—Tedd Benson, Bensonwood, Walpole, N.H. “We all have to understand that it always is a cycle. We’re going to see good times and lean times, and you’ve just got to roll with it. The toughest thing is that every crisis is different, so you don’t know what to expect.”—Steve Plath, Plath & Co., San Rafael, Calif. “Make sure you’ve built good relationships with subs and banks.”—Mary Sheppard, Fortress Construction, Marietta, Ga.
