What a glorious fall day in Illinois, the sun is coming out and feels warm and the air has that hint of coolness that I love. Our company was just in a home show a few weekends ago. This is our first home show in more than four years. The market was saturated with a home show on every weekend. So if a consumer missed a show on one weekend they could attend a show on the following weekend. We stopped doing them because the shows were no longer producing leads.

It was good to get back to doing home shows; about 75 percent of our sales are directly to the consumer. Some of you are falling out of your chairs saying we’re crazy to sell directly to the consumer, and some of you are saying that it’s genius. We have been extremely successful at it and are really moving toward having our own retail showroom dedicated to nothing but products for countertops.

With that said, here is the point about mentioning the home show, even after being out of the home show game for four years, the questions still remain the same: What’s popular right now?  If I had a dollar (adjusted for inflation and the price of gas in Illinois) for every person who asked this question, I would be retired and sitting on my own private island in a warm climate. I am not a big fan of this question, although it drives sales for all of us. Most people want what’s popular, or rather what’s safe. If it’s popular, then it’s safe. And if it’s safe my house will sell faster than the other guys.

Something I have learned of the years of selling just about every kind of product that can be used for a countertop is that what’s popular or safe is boring, very boring. When we set up our home show booth we use colors that are eye-popping, bold, and attention grabbing. That’s how we get you into our booth vs. our competitors.

I have also heard a million times from customers: “my realtor told me I need to replace my counters with granite to sell my house.”  If one house sold in five minutes just after it was listed and had counters made from recycled tires and plastic bottles then everybody would need counters made from recycled tires and plastic bottles.  At least this is the case in Illinois.

In my blog, I am to provide information and knowledge about countertop products. I love doing this, but in the blog I want to challenge us to step out of that popular zone — that safety zone — and look at something other than what’s popular. No matter what product is used for producing a countertop, if it’s done correctly and fits with the surrounding cabinets, tile, wall color and overall mood of the room it sits in, that counter will be timeless. Timeless is better than what’s popular, in fact it is the next step beyond popular.   Let’s get timeless with our countertop materials and get beyond popular.

Hope you enjoy the fall season; it’s full of crisp colors and cool air.  It’s also timeless, meaning every time fall arrives in Illinois I am always amazed by it.