Add Some Color To Your Glass Business

Business stinks.  The economy is in the toilet.  The only people that walk into your showroom are the sales forces from the metal and glass fabrication folks.  So, what's a boy to do?  Add some color to your life!  Could it be the blue and orange of my NY Mets? Nah.  Could it be the red and white of a candy cane?  That's silly.  Why of course...the answer is for you to add some color to your laminated and float glass sales!

There is some plain vanilla work out there.  But plain vanilla doesn't create big bucks.  You can only sell on price, and that is a sure way to loose money.

Add some color to your work.  A customer who wants to renovate a kitchen or a bathroom, and may be shopping prices, will be super-excited when you show them a red back splash or a sandblasted shower door.  You have to sell color.  Orders won't come to you because the first person to suggest it, usually gets the order.  After all, the customer has gone to three shops, and finally sees something that is special.  They'll reward the glass shop that has the creative stones to be different!

Spiff up your showroom with color.  Call you lami supplier and get samples of Solutia's Vanceva line.  This product can make any color in the rainbow, translucent or opaque, and it has all of the great qualities of lami.  Here is the link:   http://www.saflex.com/en/Vanceva.aspx.  Ask your supplier about Dupont's graphical lami for that special one-up custom piece that you can make a killing on.
Here is that link:  http://www2.dupont.com/SafetyGlass/en_US/products/sentryglas-expressions.html.  A lot of distributors are stocking back painted glass from Gardner Glass' Dreamwalls collection.  This is an easy to use, full color sheet with many applications.  Their link is:  http://dreamwallscolorglass.com/.  ICD creates paints for spandrel and annealed applications that can be used to inexpensively create one-up specail colors on glass.  Their brand name is Opaci-Coat and the link is: http://www.icdcoatings.com/.  Walker Glass has done a great job with their Textures line of acid-etch products.  In our industry, color strongly includes shades of acid etching, and patterns.  Their link is: http://www.walker-glass.com/.

You have to work to sell color.  Every sales quote should have an alternate to improve the design of the job, and color is the key.  Great design will draw customers into your customer's storefront.  Color will improve any kitchen or bathroom.  Now, start selling color.  It makes glass unique in the building trades.  Let every architect and GC know that you think outside the box and can help them to help their customers.  You will make a few bucks more.  And that is what we are here for.

(Full Disclosure--I own a very small amount of shares in Solutia)