A1 Garage Door Service

OPENING THE DOOR TO EXPANSION

Operating in 19 states and across 44 locations in the US, A1 Garage Door Service offers premium garage door repair and installation. Luke Martin, COO, shares insight on the company’s recent impressive growth and how its employees are integral to its continued success

Writer: Lily Sawyer | Project Manager: Michael Sommerfield

DOOR

In a conventionally simplistic industry that had previously seen little to no historical change or innovation, A1 Garage Door Service (A1) has seized the opportunity to assert itself as a true giant within the consumer garage doors market, having grown substantially since its inception in 2007.

“The residential garage doors market has in the past been very much fragmented with no real regulation, training, or sophistication. This is something that we have tried to change and, so far, we’ve made great strides,” opens Luke Martin, COO. As the largest privately-owned

national residential garage doors service in North America, operating in 44 locations across 19 states and with around 20,000 monthly clients, A1’s nationwide reach is considerable.

Specializing in retrofit garage doors, A1 leverages its years of expertise in direct-to-customer

sales and its strong relationships with partners and suppliers to offer clients an unparalleled user experience.

This, coupled with a growing 600-strong employee base, truly sets A1 apart from the competition and continues to contribute to the company’s exponential growth.

“With plans to onboard 42 new technicians next month, and an additional 22 in May, our growth plans throughout the rest of the year are aggressive,” he reveals.

As such, progressive initiatives such as A1’s Garage Door Freedom group epitomize the company’s growth mindset. Introduced to promote industry-wide best practices, the group unites other garage door companies across the nation to provide advice on fleet solutions, inventory, sales, and more.

“Essentially, we give away our ‘secret sauce’ in the hope that the entire industry will rise around us, while leveling the playing field for other businesses. It’s a win for everybody,” Martin explains.

Thus, by leveraging advanced technology and strategic thinking, A1 is able to stand out from the crowd as a leading garage door company.

TRAILBLAZING TECHNOLOGY

A recent initiative for the company includes investing in artificial intelligence (AI) to streamline its call center operations, such as implementing automated call flows and virtual agents.

Martin is keen, however, to emphasize how the company-wide adoption of AI will contribute to the expansion and fortification of its staff base, rather than diminishing it.

“Instead of downsizing our workforce, our investment in AI seeks to maximize employee value. We want to continue to grow our organization with great people by allowing them to focus on where they can add value instead of menial, time-consuming tasks,” he details.

In this way, A1 ensures that a human touch remains in its customer-facing roles, whilst various dispatch and call center processes can be optimized and enhanced by AI and associated technologies.

Working in an industry where advanced technologies are not widely utilized, A1 can be considered a trailblazer.

“Compared to garage door companies that may still write out paper receipts, we are fully digital. We pride ourselves on our ability to automate things, whilst the level of data at our fingertips is unreal.

“Through technology, we’re always innovating to discover how we can be better for both customers and employees,” reflects Martin.

Upping the level of sophistication in its data has been a source of pride for A1 over the past 12 to 18 months.

“It’s all about growth and keeping ahead of the trajectory, continuing to pave the way in an industry that still has a lot of change to make,” Martin surmises.

SUPPORTING STAFF

Defined by its passion for and investment in its people, A1 seeks to prioritize employees and curate an environment and work culture where they can thrive.

“If we treat our staff right, they’re going to treat our customers right. Our success is derived from our people,” Martin states simplistically.

As such, A1 offers its employees competitive compensation and recognizes their achievements. For example, A1’s Pinnacle Club rewards the top five percent of performers in the company.

“IT’S ALL ABOUT GROWTH AND KEEPING AHEAD OF THE TRAJECTORY, CONTINUING TO PAVE THE WAY IN AN INDUSTRY THAT STILL HAS A LOT OF CHANGE TO MAKE”

– LUKE MARTIN, COO, A1 GARAGE DOOR SERVICE

NORTH AMERICA OUTLOOK: HOW DID YOU FIRST BECOME INTERESTED IN THE INDUSTRY?

Luke Martin, COO: “When I was in college and bartending, I was very much undecided on what I wanted to do with my life. My close friend’s brother owned a garage door service and repair company at the time and had tried to recruit me several times, so I agreed to give it a try. Having started working in the garage doors market, I finished college and never looked back; I worked for that company for seven years.

“However, a new owner came in with a different viewpoint on the company’s direction, so I ended up starting my own company, which I ran for seven years until it grew to a point where I sold it to A1, where I work now.

“I initially came on board to develop the door sales side of the business. However, I’ve been fortunate enough to continue to grow with the company to this day.

“18 months ago, I had the opportunity to step into the COO role. I’ve learned a lot, and I enjoy that. Today, A1 embraces its garage door roots and is accelerating its strategy and growth.”

“We recently returned from five days in Mexico, where Pinnacle Club winners participated in a competitive volleyball tournament, network with other top performers from across the country, and attended an awards dinner to recognize their successes. This is just one example of how we give back to our staff,” he expands.

The Dream Manager program is another unique element that A1 has introduced. Aimed at promoting staff development outside of the workplace, the six-month program includes group workshops and personal seminars. The program is designed for personal development; common goals include buying a house, becoming a better parent or spouse, or implementing better money habits.

“We want to celebrate big life accomplishments across the company, and make sure everybody has the ability to achieve their dreams,” Martin enthuses.

In addition to its employee reward schemes, A1 also ensures that high-level training is available to all staff. The company’s training facility provides monthly classes to upskill in-house technicians and installers, while constant recruitment drives work to ensure that the workforce is always growing and evolving.

“One of our biggest focuses is making sure we’re developing future leaders for the company, as our continued growth means that new leadership roles are constantly becoming available,” he reveals.

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A1 - FUTURE ENDEAVORS

LOCATIONS LOCATIONS

As a company, A1 is excited about some of the ground it’s breaking. By offering operational excellence and increased value to all its clients, the company sees itself as a remedy to the previous old-school mentality of the garage doors industry.

With plans for additional greenfield expansion and aspirations to acquire new markets, A1 continues to grow. In the year ahead, a target of six to eight acquisitions and a minimum of 30 percent organic growth epitomizes A1’s ambition to always go above and beyond in terms of expansion.

Beyond this, A1 wishes to level-up the newer markets in its portfolio. As a founding location, Phoenix, Arizona, was A1’s first market and is currently responsible for a significant portion of the company’s overall revenue. Thus, a primary focus is taking smaller, newer

markets and ramping up their growth trajectory to rival Phoenix’s success.

In this way, A1 seeks to take start-up locations and significantly increase their earnings in a 12 to 18 month period. A1 recognizes that, to achieve these ambitious targets, its operations, marketing, and recruitment must align to ensure the smooth running of the company.

PROGRESSIVE PARTNERSHIPS

A1 stands out as a company that values its people as significant partners in developing a successful and thriving business.

“We recently updated our mission and vision statement to reflect our ethos of creating a company that enables its employees to dream big and achieve more than they thought possible. This is something that helps drive a lot of core decisions within the company.”

A1 believes that a great business is not always built on what’s best for the ‘bottom dollar’ but on providing a positive experience for the people that ultimately bolster and enliven the company.

“As executives, we like to emphasize that it’s all the people around us that make this place great; we’re just here to support,” Martin says.

“IF WE TREAT OUR STAFF RIGHT, THEY’RE GOING TO TREAT OUR CUSTOMERS RIGHT. OUR SUCCESS IS DERIVED FROM OUR PEOPLE”

– LUKE MARTIN, COO, A1 GARAGE DOOR SERVICE

As a direct-to-consumer garage doors company, A1 does very little new construction. As such, the company’s relationships with vendors and suppliers are equally important.

“We’re always looking at how we can be a great partner to our vendors, and it’s not always about pricing. We treat our business relationships as partnerships and have a constant focus on developing them,” Martin details.

A1’s two main suppliers, Clopay Garage Doors and Amarr Garage Doors, both offer unique product selections, whilst the company also benefits from their just-in-time

inventory services.

“Instead of housing a large warehouse of stock in each of our 44 locations and recruiting associated staff, we are able to focus on what we’re good at. In this way, amongst many others, our partners have been incredibly beneficial,” Martin concludes.

Tel: (844) 214-2724 www.a1garage.com