MEETING MINUTES
Friday, October 17, 2008
Volume 15; Issue 36

Leads & Comments
22-13, 20-22, 20-42, 06-05, 06-21, 15-56, 18-09, 57-25, 57-17, 58-07, 17-57, 40-20, 40-41, 21-28, 21-13, 25-56, 51-41, 20-28.

Speaker Update
October 24  Gus Dekavallas (Protecting Your Money for Future Security)
November 7 - Mike Whalen (Websites)

Treasurer Report
The quarterly dues billing went out 9/1.  They are now past due.  Please contact Melissa Matthews if you did not receive your e-invoice.

Photographs
Envelopes with the picture proofs were made available this morning.  Members need to choose their favorite shot and give Lynn the number.  You can also purchase discounted picture packages if you like them.

Quiet Please!
Members are asked to not have side discussions during the meetings out of respect for others.  There is plenty of time before and after the meetings for this.

New Brochures
Stu Schindler talked a few minutes about the new brochures.  First, they would like to see a "call to action" in the brochure.  For example,  a call to action to visit the website.  Does anyone else have ideas on how to improve the brochure?  Put your thinking caps on and send your suggestions to someone on the marketing committee (Stuart Schindler, Ralph Cunningham or Lin Schmelzer).  We are going to full-color this time.  New technology is making this financially possible.  The layout needs to be setup from scratch but this is a one-time expense that should not be needed again.  There is the added expense of the photography.  Reg and Jean Batt had saved us a lot!  There are additional costs but they are marginal.

Board Meeting
There is a board meeting next Tuesday the 21st at the Landmark at 5:30pm.  Please contact a board member if you have an issue needs to be addressed.  You are also encouraged to attend if possible.  One of the items to be discussed is created a budget.

Website
Mike Whalen talked to a web designer who took a look at our site.  He can provide some ideas on improvement at a cost of $500 or make the improvements himself but that would cost more. 

Main Speaker - Tim Crout, Crout & Heller Painting

Who needs Joe the Plumber?  MABE has Billy Bob the Painter!

Tim grew up in Jackson, Michigan.  Their claim to fame was having the largest walled prison in the world.  After graduating high school he did a stint at DeVry.  He soon realized that he didn't care for computer work and so he quit and got his first job doing lease land survey work. 

During this time he met his wife of 23 years.  They eloped to South Carolina in 1985 (and then went back to Michigan and got married again!).  By June of 1985 there was no work so Tim opened his owned business...Painting.  It worked but it was seasonal.  His best man moved to Arizona and told him he should come out.  So Tim accepted a job offer in Arizona over phone.

They moved to Arizona at the end of 1985 and settled in.  Then he headed to his new job.  But it wasn't there anymore.  Tim got on the phone and again got a job.  He spent 6 months with this company before it folded.  He stuck with the next company 16 years and moved up the ranks quickly.  Life was simple and happy.  He got all the say-so but didn't have to worry about the bills.  But still wanted more. 

There was another gentlemen that Tim had hired at this company by the name of Bruce Heller.  He put a plan together that helped them make the move from employees to partners in their own company.

They determined from the start that they wanted to be the direct contacts.  It was a plan that worked.  Business immediately took off.  In the first six months they hit $600,000 in sales, 1.5 million by the first year, and it just kept growing from there.  At one point they had 140 employees on the payroll.  But through the years that began to change and Tim found himself stuck in the office more and more.  Crout & Heller lost its personality.

The economic downturn caused them to sit back and notice that they had lost that personal touch.  They reduced their employees down to about 50.  The are very happy at that number.  They are changing and getting back to the basics.  It is a good thing.  They will grow again but they will grow that way they want to this time.

Crout & Heller is full painting company.  They do everything from residential to commercial and new construction.  They are working on  becoming lead certified (green).  They are trying to find different niches to fill.  They are a very diverse company.  There isn't anything out there that we can't put paint on.

They don't stick to one brand of paint.  They use everybody.  There are levels of quality.  It depends on the type of job. 

They can do minor drywall and stucco repairs and have a contact that they use for larger jobs.  They also do a lot of stripping. 

Tim is current president of the PDCA (Painting & Decorating Contractors of America).  He has been involved with this association for many years.  It is similar to MABE in that it is a form of networking.  The goal is to help members grow.  They have a membership drive event coming up on October 29th.  You don't have to be an associate member to have a booth at this event.  All MABE members are welcome to signup. (Flyer attached).