Retailers: Midwest retailers treat their employees well. To find out how they compare with other regions in base salaries and benefits, take a survey results

Pool & Spa News, Nov 7, 2003

Payment Promises

Approximately 55 percent of the Midwest's business owners reported that they provide their sales staff with a base salary of $21,000 or more.

Annual base salaries for salespeople

straight commission   6%

less than $5,000      4%

$6,000-$10,000        6%

$11,000-$20,000      18%

$21,000-$30,000      43%

more than $30,000     12%

Note: Table made from bar graph.

Retailers in the Midwest offering medical benefits to full-time employees

69%

Retailers in the Midwest with point-of-sale systems

37%

Guy Larsen General Manager, All Seasons Pools & Spas Inc., Orland Park, Ill

Do you have a point-of-sale (POS) system? Yes.

"We know exactly what we have and if it's in the store or somebody's service truck. Point of sale tracks customers and what they purchase, so you can use it for marketing purposes. We also know our usage month by month of all our chemicals and equipment."

David Starman Manager, Vaughan Pools & Spas Inc., Columbia, Mo.

What type of commission do you pay your salespeople? Sliding scale.

"If we make more money, they make more money. I think this is the best way to do it. It also keeps them selling at a higher dollar volume."

Quality Commissions

Retailers in the Midwest are closely divided on their methods of payment. A quarter of the region's respondents pay sliding scale, more than 20 percent offer flat commissions and more than 25 percent don't pay any commission at all.

Type of commission retailers pay to salespeople

sliding scale                25%

flat commission              22%

flat commission plus bonus   18%

don't pay commission         27%

Note: Table made from bar graph.

Retail stores in the Midwest owned by the same family for two generations or more

39%

Average number of aboveground pools sold annually by retailers in the Midwest

47

Matt Baiers Owner/General Manager, The Pool Store, Mishawaka, Ind.

Do you sell gazebos and backyard furniture? Yes.

"We started backyard furniture in the last two years. A couple of the distributors started stocking and carrying patio furniture, and it opened a door for us. We didn't have to stock it ourselves to start selling it."

Tina Hughes Vice President, Firemaster Inc., Evansville, Ind.

How many aboveground pools do you sell each year, on average? More than 200.

"We've sold 222 aboveground pools this year. Last year, we sold 160. We've been in business for 23 years, and it's been a remarkable year for us."

Grill Crazy

Retailers nationwide who sell barbecues

Northeast   23%

South       10%

West        24%

Midwest     27%

Note: Table made from bar graph.

Dan Anderson Director of Operations, Turbo Tubs, Naperville and Downers Grove, Ill.

How many portable spas do you sell each year, on average? 220.

"We specialize in spas and spa service. We [buy from] three different manufacturers and have about 35 different models on the floor at all times. The spa market is fabulous right now."

Bruce Holmes CEO, Pools of Fun Inc., Plainfield, Ind.

What is your primary form of advertising/publicity? Word-of-mouth referrals.

"About 86 percent of the pools we sell are referrals, if you put in a good pool, you'll get three referrals. However, if you do a poor job, the average person knows 200 people and that type of news spreads like wildfire."

That's So Money!

The Midwest pulls in top dollars. Nearly 40 percent of the region's retailers were in the million-dollar club when it came to revenue generated last year, and half of those retailers made more than $2 million.

Gross revenue from pool/spa retailing in 2002

less than $250,000          18%

$250,000-$499,000           20%

$500,000-$999,999           18%

$l million-1.5 million       8%

$1.6 million-$2 million     10%

more than $2 million        20%

Note: Table made from bar graph.

Retailers in the Midwest selling backyard furniture

65%

Lou Ferlo President, Pool & Patio Inc., Overland Park, Kan.

Do you sell backyard-living products? Yes, we sell backyard furniture, barbecues and saunas.

"We've increasingly built up the furniture end of the business. A third of our business is furniture, another third is service and the last third is retail chemicals, equipment, supplies and grills7

The Midwest at a Glance

Fastest-growing cities: Romeoville, Ill; St. Michael, Minn.; Johnston, Iowa; Ozark, Mo.

Housing starts (2002): 251,138

Median income: $42,738

Median age: 35.6

Most promising avenues of growth: Inground pool sales, commercial pool and spa market, retailer product diversification and heater sales.

Trends: High-end waterfeatures and pools and spas; customization; favorable financing for consumers; and increased demand for weekly pool and spa service.

Challenges: Keeping up with a slow economy, automation, competing with discount retail chains, better service and affordable insurance premiums.

What Sells Well?

Portable spas or aboveground pools? Retailers in the Midwest are almost equally divided on the question. But, probably because of all those cold winter months, portable spas win by a shiver.

portable spas       31%

aboveground pools   27%

neither             29%

Note: Table made from bar graph.