I haven’t sold a window in weeks! In fact I may have forgotten how to sell windows!
The industry is now moving into it’s quiet phase as the buying public gears down from home improvement work and gears up towards Christmas shopping and everything that entails. Obviously there will be those that leave it to the very last minute and demand that their windows and doors be fitted before Christmas.
All the sales at the moment though seem to be for doors. Seriously, it’s been weeks since I sold a window! Everything I’ve sold these past two or three weeks has been doors. A healthy mix between engineered PVC and composite. Not a single full panel door in sight might I add! I think it’s fair to say that the desire for people to rip holes in their house for new windows at this time of year has well and truly died now.
Doors are manageable for most people as it’s a morning’s work, relatively clean and very little disruption to the daily life. They’re also nice to sell. Both the company and myself make decent margins out of doors. Our fitters prefer fitting them, probably because there’s more money in doors, but they also find them easier! It’s quick and (hopefully) simple work. Sell a few and fit a few and the numbers soon start to stack up.
We did have a period like this last year, but it lasted for most of 2011. Doors seemed to be very popular that year. This spurt of door activity does reinforce the need to sell a high quality door. The cheap and cheerful £500 doors has never been something we have ever looked at. Too many companies do it. The build quality, the workmanship and the styles are just terrible. We have always aimed for the very high end of the PVC market, and especially now with the new range of engineered entrance doors emerging. Our average door is sold for around £1200. We have an immense locking system, security cylinder, very high quality wood grain and colour finishes. Everything is steel reinforced, as are the door panels. The energy that is put in to making our product a quality one means we’re not the cheapest company in the world. But demonstrate that quality to a customer, which we always do, they know that they are getting a lot for £1200 and that the door is going to last a very long time with little or no problems and that it will serve them well.
Let me know if any of you guys have found a sudden increase in the sale of doors, or if it’s just us and we’re selling amazing entrance doors!
No change really… haven’t sold a uPVC door in a long time with a panel! Mostly composite.
When you say engineered PVC door what do you mean dgb?
Anon – engineered doors are like those in the picture above. Doors constructed of reinforced framework. Really go security, strong robust doors!
I was gonna ask the same question as Anon!!
So a Engineered door is a pvc door with 2 flat panels and some fancy glass !?
PS Why do i now, have to fill in my details, EVERYTIME i leave a comment ?
Nige – your description doesn’t quite do the door justice! That’s what John Fredericks call them and that’s what we call them, so deal with it ;-)
As far as the comments thing goes, what browser are you using? Doesn’t it give you the option to remember your details after you’ve entered them?
I thought ‘engineered’ was a term generally only used for hardwood doors or timber? engineered pvc sounds a little odd.
its called a crucifix door better and stronger with welded joints
These amazing doors are standard pvc doors by the way if its fully reinforced how does the letterbox work
Alen – I’d say a standard PVC door is one of those awful moulded panel affairs that have existed since way before I was born. And these ‘amazing’ doors as you put them are certainly better than what Everest is offering. In my opinion of course. The only part of the door that isn’t reinforced is where the letter box goes, but there’s not much anyone can do about having to cut a hole through the door.
Even though doors are our bred and butter we fit and have more enquiries for windows.
The PVC door in the image is probably one of the nicer looking doors as far as entrance doors are concerned aside from composite. Only problem is that the cruciform doors are a bugger to service call if not installed correctly :)
Luckily we have exemplary installers ;)
Rich- How do you get on with Rock doors Hardware? Next to the sea… I struggle with pitting etc and i`m 30 odd miles inland, from you….Have been told that`s still classed as coastal ?? Hmmm…..
GB- I had to fill in my details again….