Ray Goodwin is the General Manager for Benjamin Franklin Plumbing in Ramsey, Minnesota. They have been around since 2019 and now have about 27 technicians. Their early adoption of the Brita PRO® line has been very successful, and they’ve doubled their revenue in two short years.
Success with Brita PRO
Ray and his location sell about 20-25 units of Brita PRO products each month, which equates to roughly $20,000 worth of products.
“We’ve doubled that department in the last two years. It has really helped our revenue. We used to do around $200K – $250K and are now doing closer to $500K – $600k a year right now, and it just keeps growing,” Ray said.
“It has truly been a partnership. Brita and BuyMax want to help us grow and succeed, and you can see the passion in those guys. That bleeds into the room with the techs. They really want to help you grow and get the word out there. It makes it fun! We all have a vision for what we want to do and providing that to customers has been great.”
Why Brita PRO?
Ray decided to become a Brita PRO dealer in the fall of 2022. Their old water products manufacturer was falling flat, and they weren’t having good luck with their products or customer service.
Around that time, the Ramsey location became a BuyMax member. BuyMax has a partnership with Brita, and Ray decided to have Brita come out to give an in-person presentation about their products. The presentation and quality of the Brita products blew them away.
“When they arrived for the presentation, a few of my plumbers decided to listen in to see what they had to offer. They just absolutely blew us away. Their product offerings were great, and their training was unlike anything we had ever experienced,” Ray said.
Top Selling Brita PRO Products
The Minnesota market is heavy on water softeners. Ray said the top products his location sells are the Brita PRO water softeners and the city softs. They have also had success with point-of-use filters and reverse osmosis filters.
If they run into well water, they use iron filters and iron soft products as well.
What Makes Brita PRO Stand Out to Plumbers
Ray said their techs love that their location is an exclusive dealer of the Brita products. “Brita is the name you think of with water filtration. A lot of customers didn’t know Brita had a Pro line, but they understand and recognize the name. It makes it a lot easier of a transition for our techs to be able to bring the products up to homeowners,” Ray said.
His technicians have bought into this product line more than they have with other manufacturers. Knowing how good the products are has allowed Ray’s techs to gain confidence in selling them to customers. Ray said name recognition is key. Since Brita is such a huge name that almost everyone knows, it has been beneficial when selling their products.
“Our techs have gained a lot of confidence knowing how good the products are versus previous companies we have worked with. This is because of how well Brita stands behind their products and how well they are built. This has gotten our techs to buy in a lot more than they would have with other brands,” Ray said.
Secrets to Selling Brita PRO
Ray’s techs always bring a water test kit to their customers' homes. This kit shows customers the quality of their water and what they can do to improve it. Seeing the number of pollutants in their water is eye-opening.
Ray and his team have also had luck with radio ads. When they initially became a Brita PRO dealer, they did a radio ad in which customers would get a free point-of-use (POU) filter with any water softener or other piece of Brita equipment they would buy. This was successful because the POU filters can be installed right to a kitchen faucet, and customers can have nice, clean water on tap.
They also did a radio ad in which they gave away a free year of salt in conjunction with Brita PRO products. “Our phones rang nonstop with that promotion!” Ray said.
Training to Ensure Success
Training is one of the things Ray and his team love most about Brita. They have Brita come out a few times a year to give a refresher on their products and review any new products they have.
They have also done virtual training calls with their Brita PRO reps. Ray said, “If we need something, they are always there for us.”
Advice to Franchise Owners
“The quality of the Brita units, backed by the brand recognition and support is leaps and bounds above what we’ve used before. If something does go wrong, Brita stands behind it,” Ray said. They have hardly had any issues with units they’ve installed and if they have, Brita is right there to help them resolve it.
Ray also has seen that when his techs start believing in the products, they start selling themselves. They have seen such success with the program and get a ton of positive reviews and feedback on it from customers.
If you want to learn more about Brita PRO products or BuyMax, please contact your Regional Account Manager today. If you aren't a member and would like to learn more about how BuyMax can help you boost your bottom line, contact us today.
