Risk & Business Magazine Nesbit Agencies Magazine Summer 2019 | Page 4

SCHOENFELDER SPOTLIGHT Renovations Done Right. With Mark Schoenfelder, President Of Schoenfelder Renovations C ompanies, often, are made or shuttered based on the quality of their people, their management and their ability to maintain consistency regardless of the job or market conditions. Schoenfelder Renovations is a company that has been able to thrive, even in less than ideal market conditions, since its founding. How did they accomplish this? For a number of reasons, but they boil down to quality management, choosing the right jobs to work on, working with the best people and maintaining relationships with other companies who can provide them with the best service. Schoenfelder Renovations, like many larger renovation companies, started from humble beginnings. Mark Schoenfelder began running a College Pro Painting franchise in 1991, struck out on his own in 1993 and subsequently incorporated in 1996. In 1998, Steve Kucera was hired as a painter and, throughout the years, has risen to the position of CFO. Likewise, Matt Schoenfelder was hired in 1999 in sales and has risen to be the VP of Project Management. While Schoenfelder’s initially offered only painting services, clients requested additional services like drywall 4 and carpentry. Over time, painting became only a fraction of their business. Working on apartment buildings and townhomes in the mid 1990s (and still doing work for many of them today), the early 2000s saw the company branch out into hotels and student housing. One of those hotels was La Quinta, who hired them for an 18-story hotel painting project in 2006. The general contractor was falling behind significantly, so Schoenfelder Renovations was asked to take over the contract. Their performance led to five more projects on the east coast and then more in Georgia and Florida, etc. In 2010, they began working with Target which led to working with Home Depot, Kohls, Walmart, Lowes, Costco, Menards and others. Over the years, everything hasn’t always been sunshine and rainbows, however. Struggles are always encountered and must be overcome in any business. While initially focused on residential, the company has shifted to commercial work exclusively in order to maintain more consistent clients. When you do a great remodel for a homeowner, they may never need your services again. Professional asset managers, who hire and work with contractors over and over, can be a consistent source of work. Property managers have learned from their past experiences and are better able to evaluate the quality and service they receive. Hiring and working with contractors to care for their assets is what and who they are. Deciding which contractors to partner with is a long-term decision for the property manager. Over the years, the growth has been almost exponential. After leaving the residential market to focus more on the commercial side of things, the company has been able to shift their aim to building relationships for long-term business and have been rewarded with larger and more challenging projects throughout the country. In building those relationships, the key is to find people and companies who are the best at what they do. The best asset managers have lots of properties, maintain them at the highest levels and are growing and taking on more work. They also are well funded and pay when promised. The people around them are treated well and this attracts other high performers.