Smart Materials and Partners
We work to live.
My work in the design department makes me feel lucky. It is awesome work. But work is not the only thing in my life. I also have a 1200-pound best friend, a horse named Magnum.
Right now, we are working on developing a sitting trot. I discovered full-seat breeches— grippy pants that help one’s butt stay put in the saddle. Less upward motion, more contact. The challenge is finding time to shop and a store where I can try them on. I would have to go to the next county. The purchase of breeches has been relegated to the back burner.
This is not something I can do when helping clients with selecting building products. It cannot be deemed too hard to accomplish, and though it may go to the back burner temporarily it does not stay there for long.
Up pops a Facebook ad one evening with full-seat breeches galore. I feast my eyes, pay the dough, and await the denim, grippy-seated pants to show up in the mail. I will say now, this does not end well. The first clue was the nonsensical message that flashed across my screen then disappeared into the abyss of notifications. They arrived, blue and brown but not denim and NOT grippy. They were slippery polyester. How did I not know this when I clicked the purchase button? No return address on the package, no invoice, no customer care note. I searched my bank account to find a PayPal entry. Then I went to my PayPal account to find an overseas company with a “Care Center” email address. I sent them my problem. I’m waiting to hear back. Time runs out soon for PayPal purchase protection.
Our relationships are everything
It made me think about all the times over the past 17 years I have steered clients away from a path like this when they are looking at plumbing fixtures, shower units, cabinetry, and other important elements.
We have developed relationships with factories, vendors, and subcontractors so that you don’t have to experience unpleasant surprises.
We are a design/build company for a reason. We understand that creating a structure with a multitude of building components requires careful attention from inception to installation. Every product that goes into a house has three to 10 decisions precipitating its arrival on site. Scores of products make up every structure we build.
We deal in creativity, new products, custom designs, and all things high-performance, from heat pump technology and solar readiness to sustainable surfacing and structural integrity. We like leading edge but buy only from people who care about the relationship we have built together. This mostly takes us out of the zone where unpleasant surprises occur, but if we do find ourselves there, the remedy is simple and quick because of the relationships we have in place.
I am crossing my fingers that I receive an email from the overseas company so that I can get a new envelope for mailing, make a trip to the post office to send the pants back and then wait for a refund. I wonder how much time I’ve spent on this pair of pants. At least as long as it would take to drive to the Bony Pony tack store in Skagit County — the store I know with the owner who greets me with a smile when I walk through the door and makes special orders for me.
Clearly, when buying grippy pants, I should have practiced what I preach —and practice— at work. I should have turned to the store that has helped me in the past, and next time I will.