“My Coventry Plumber runs itself”. That’s how Martin Coleman describes his plumbers and service industry. I’m sure if you’re reading this it must be a pretty big claim to make. In fact, when I first heard it my first thought was, “How dare they call themselves plumbers”! But Martin has a point; in this region (and in the rest of the UK) plumbing can be a highly specialized skill, which can only really be mastered by working in a professional area such as Coventry.
I live in Coventry and a place like this (unless you own your own building) is hard to beat for a professional plumber. In fact, many people I work with wish they were plumbers! And I feel that’s what this business is about – making people happy. So I asked Martin to take a look at what we do and his advice has helped to transform our company, as well as giving me some extra time to relax.
My job as a plumber in Coventry has seen some dramatic changes over recent years. Up until a few years ago my service was mainly ‘one stop shop’ – I’d cater for clients who needed pipes installed and would collect money for the job. This wasn’t very rewarding for me as it meant that I had to stay open later hours (sometimes all night) to see if work was still available. I didn’t want to get in anyone’s way or hassle them – it was more like waiting in the post office for a parcel.
Luckily, Martin and I decided to up the ante a little bit. Instead of just offering a general plumbing service I now specialise in a specific type of service. So whether you need a blocked drain, leaking pipe or burst pipe we could probably help. I no longer have to worry about whether I can fit someone in at lunchtime – I know I can. And Martin and his team don’t have to wait for an appointment to give me a quotation – they can come to my home at a time of their choosing.
That’s not all we’ve done either. We started a garden centre at Coventry City Centre that offers all sorts of classes, from DIY to acting lessons, from paint-ball to yoga. In addition, Martin now also has a small wine cellar where we both drink our wines and share samples from the local area’s best restaurants.
My Coventry plumber friend Martin has always been honest with me about his business. He hasn’t promoted his services ‘just yet’ but he’s planning on doing so in the near future. We are both quite happy with the results so far – but there’s no way I’ll be able to keep him on my payroll for ever! It’s going to be great when he starts to expand his business because it means he’ll get more clients visiting his offices. He loves helping people with plumbing issues so I’m sure there’s no stopping him in the future.