July 2008 Industry Leader

Business is Booming for Kline Construction's Jerry Kline

Kline Construction, Inc Elgin, IL

Jerry Kline, President of Kline Construction Inc., and his business partner Don Henson (Vice President) started their company in 1991 and quickly developed a reputation for quality workmanship, customer satisfaction and the ability to meet a schedule.

Although they didn't start out with decorative concrete, after a driveway project in 2001, they were hooked on the product and excited about the new market area and creative fulfillment it offered. Today, Kline Construction offers a mix of residential and commercial work, and plans to extend into more decorative residential work in the future.

Here's what Kline had to say during our recent interview:

Q: We last spoke in September of 2005—what's been happening for you since then?

A: Well, my business partner talked me into buying a bar! It's called the Varsity Pub and it's in Kingston, Illinois.

As far as concrete goes, we're doing a lot more decorative concrete work now. We still do both commercial and residential. It was different when we started in 1991, but now with the DIY movement and HGTV, consumers are realizing that decorative concrete is inexpensive and a viable alternative they can afford.

Q: What's your work mix like these days?

A: We do 50/50 commercial residential, and we're definitely seeing the shift into decorative work more and more. Last year during June, July and through part of August, we were doing all residential work and no commercial work.

As a company, we enjoy residential work—it's nice to be out of the hands of the general contractor ,because we can control our own fate. There's no middleman. It's a win-win.

Q: What types of marketing do you do?

A: We put almost all of our advertising dollars in the Concrete Network, and we've found that we don't need more than that. Nine out of 10 leads come from the Concrete Network. I just recently received an email from a woman who found my website via the Concrete Network, and she liked my work so much that was hoping I could refer her to one of my peers in North Carolina.

Q: Has business slowed at all due to the economy?

A: We just get busier and busier. We did have a really rough winter with lots of snow, and it seemed that the decorative residential market started out late with estimates, but now my partner is estimating Monday through Saturday doing five to seven estimates per day.

In our area, like a lot of the country, housing was hit hard. Housing contractors have shifted to commercial work, and the commercial market is saturated as a result.

Because we do decorative concrete, we have a residential niche, and we're happy because we're trying to shift more into residential decorative concrete work for longevity's sake.

Q: What are some of the trends in your area?

A: Staining is very popular around here. We had rough storms the last couple of years, and a lot of people's basements flooded. We're doing a lot more residential staining of basement floors.

Overlays are also gaining momentum. We did overlays in our bar on all the floors. We used a T100 overlay in one room, and made a stamped concrete beer garden outside. We also re-did the sidewalks in a cobblestone stamp.

It's definitely piqued interest in decorative concrete in the area. It was a slow area before, but we've picked up work because of it. We refer to the bar as our "casual" showroom.

Q: A few years ago you were offering financing...how has that played out?

A: Well, we still offer it (options include 90 days same as cash or 12 months with no interest), but we're finding that people don't want to finance, they want to pay cash in hand. We're also seeing a lot less credit charges.

Q: Are you still targeting architects?

A: We still hit them two times a year with mailers. We've also teamed up with Ozinga ready mix, and they do an excellent job of marketing. They have a phenomenal liquid color product that saves time, saves money and requires less steps. In the Chicago land area they advertise locally, and they refer clients to us.

Q: Where do you see your business headed?

A: Since 1991, which was the last time the industry slowed down, we've been steadily increasing our business. We're promoting hard, we're professional, we have the marketing materials and showroom, we inform customers (make sure your contractor is licenses and has proper insurance, etc.), we get the proper permits and inspections, and we have a written warranty.

Sometimes people only look at money, and if Joe Blow offers to do the job for $1,000 less, that's great, but a year from now when you have a problem and you call his cell phone and it's disconnected, then what? You get what you pay for.

We also follow through. We return calls quickly, and within seven days of a call we're out on the estimate visit. The estimate goes out via email that same day, followed by a hard copy in the mail.

There's never a job that's too small, and we're never too busy to call people back. Who knows where the next little job can lead.

Kline Construction, Inc.
Jerry Kline
1020 Bluff City Blvd.
Elgin, IL 60120
(847) 931-4000 x221 Office
Send Mail Now - Click Here
http://www.klineconstruction.info

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