• Home:
• News:
• Fresh Coat:

Fresh Coat Painters Opens Franchise to Serve Durham-Chapel Hill Region of North Carolina

By: Fresh Coat |  1 Shares     96 Reads

Fresh Coat Painters is expanding operations in North Carolina with the opening of Nick Filippides’ franchise to serve Durham, Chapel Hill, Wake Forest and their surrounding communities. 

Cincinnati, Ohio (PRWEB) July 16, 2012 - It wasn't a throw of the dice that encouraged former Las Vegas resident Nick Filippides to launch his Fresh Coat Painters franchise in North Carolina.Filippides was drawn to Fresh Coat because of its commitment to clients. “The major selling factor for me was the structure,” he said. “Having the painters as your employees is a very good idea – much better than using subcontractors. Employers have much greater control.”

After spending more than 10 years as the owner-operator of a moving and storage company in that city, Filippides recently relocated his family to Raleigh. Although they had made the decision to move some time ago, he said he and his wife looked at multiple franchises over the course of nearly a year and a half before making the jump.

“My business was slowing down in Vegas," he said. "My brother-in-law was also in the moving and storage business in Raleigh, and we were ready to move back East anyway. We have three little ones – 4, 7 and 8 – and we’d rather they be raised and educated here. It’s a great place for businesses and for families.”

His Fresh Coat franchise will serve Durham, Chapel Hill, Wake Forest, Burlington, Greensboro, High Point, Winston-Salem and surrounding communities.

“We looked at auto repair, home service, lots of options,” he said. “I knew I wanted to go with a franchise because I know the benefits of that structure through my experience with the moving firm.”

Filippides settled on painting services and already had been approved for a franchise by a Fresh Coat competitor when his wife found Fresh Coat and learned more about its impressive reputation.

“I really checked it out,” Filippides said. “I spoke with at least 15 current franchisees all over the country just trying to find something negative. I didn’t. The major selling factor for me was the structure. Having the painters as your employees is a very good idea – much better than using subcontractors. Employers have much greater control.”

Filippides said he knows the value of having employees who can be trusted.

“In the moving business, I had to weed out a lot of bad employees, and turnover was high,” he said. “It’s all about establishing trust between your company and your clients. You want that background check to ensure you don’t have questionable employees. But it’s more than that. It’s about their behavior, dress code and manners. Ultimately, my company had a very good track record with the Better Business Bureau. I had 15 very good crews, and I could trust them with everything.”

Bernie Brozek, president of Fresh Coat, said the business model does attract professionals like Filippides.

“Our owners understand that the business isn’t just about painting,” he said. “It’s about providing excellent service from the initial phone call throughout the project and into the follow-through. Our owners focus on promoting and growing the business while the client service managers and experienced painters provide quality services on time and on budget. Clients get the best of all involved.”

Filippides said he expects to establish that same type of professionalism with his new business.

“Movers and painters are similar, except for one big difference - painters have skills,” he said. “Movers basically can be taught everything they need to know in a couple of weeks. Painters can spend years learning techniques and improving their art. By focusing on hiring quality painters and paying them an appropriate wage, I think we can hire some of the best people available.”

Brozek said the company’s experience indicates that Filippides is correct.

“The painting industry has a reputation for too many fly-by-night operators,” he said. “Professional painters welcome the chance to work with Fresh Coat because our owners provide them with steady employment all year long. They’re able to settle down, establish credit and live more structured lives. That allows them to do the work they enjoy without having to worry about finding their next job.”

Filippides said being a part of the Fresh Coat system allows him to offer his clients the best of a neighborhood business with the backing of a national operation. The corporate offerings include a 24/7 call center, proprietary EPIC estimating system, Paint Now-Pay Later same-as-cash financing, Automatic Touch-Up for businesses, and fund-raising opportunities for charities.

“The call center is a major thing,” Filippides said. “It’s great that a professional always answers the phone. It’s also great that we have national accounts that give us prices we could not get as a single business. And the EPIC system is a definite plus because we can provide clients with real numbers unlike the typical paint-and-ladder operator who offers estimates based on his best guess.”

To learn more or to schedule a free on-site quote for residential or commercial projects in Durham, Chapel Hill, Wake Forest, Burlington, Greensboro, High Point, Winston-Salem and their surrounding North Carolina communities, call 919-554-9011 or visit http://www.freshcoatdurham.com.

About Fresh Coat Painters

Founded in 2004 in Cincinnati, Ohio, Fresh Coat Painters provides services for residential, commercial and governmental customers in more than 100 major cities across the United States and Canada. Fresh Coat is part of the International Franchise Association, the Small Business Association’s Franchise Registry, VetFran and Minority Fran. For more information, call 866-708-9355 or visit http://www.freshcoatpainters.com.

Contact:

Bernie Brozek
Fresh Coat Painters
www.freshcoatpainters.com
888-214-7917 153

###

Comments:

comments powered by Disqus