Sell green and rncrease your margrns

By Greg Stine

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THE building industry grows la.more and more standardized. many products slide more and more into becoming commodities. With a commodity comes more competition. lower prices, and eventually pathetically slim margins. As a marketing professional, one of the challenges I face on behalf of my clients is to help them avoid selling at commodity prices. If you are an independent distributor or retailer and must compete with the big box retailers on price. you are eventually going to lose.

One of the best ways to break from the commodity world is to specialize in something and sell expertise along with your products. One niche that we see emerging as a great specialty niche is green. Around the U.S. to various degrees, green building practices and green products are finding their way into the mainstream.

Here are three examples of building materials manufacturers that have successfully produced a better alternative to products on the market by offering sustainable and durable products that also fit in the green niche.

Trex'l-he recycled route

Trex is manufacturer of the leading brand of alternative deckins lumber in

North America. Made from a unique combination of reclaimed wood and plastic, Trex offers a high-quality lumber alternative to the environmentally conscious consumer, because its product is made primarily with recycled plastic grocery bags, reclaimed pallet wrap and waste wood.

Each year Trex buys about 300 million lbs. of used polyethylene-that's about 5OVo of the recycled grocery bags available on the market. They also purchase an equal amount of hardwood sawdust. Then, utilizing materials that would normally just end up in landfills, Trex avoids selling at commodity prices by producing a green alternative to lumber that embodies the best of both materials.

Because the plastic protects the wood from moisture and insect damage, there's no rotting or splintering. The wood in turn, protects the plastic from UV damage, giving decks made from Trex a solid, natural feel.

By going green, Trex has created a specialized, value-added product for residential or commercial decking that is the only decking of its kind to be code-listed by the nation's three major building code agencies. How successful are they? Trex decking is available at more than 3,300 pro-oriented lumberyards in the U.S. and Canada.

James Hardie * Ilurable siding

For years, homeowners wanted a siding that emulated wood, but didn't want the hassles of the upkeep and the rotting and cracking that come with being exposed to the elements.

Hardie saw the need and introduced Hardiplank, fiber cement siding that looks good and lasts longer. Their formulation includes Portland cement, ground sand, cellulose fiber, safe additives and water. It also reduces the necd for old-growth forest products.

In addition to offering the look of wood, Hardie products also resist damage from fire, termites, rain, hail, snow, salt air and hurricane force winds. Unlike vinyl, it can be painted any color and holds paint three to four times longer than wood.

The response to fiber cement siding has been tremendous. The fiber cement category in siding has jumped from zero to l3%o of all siding placed on homes in the U.S. in the past two decades. Hardie has come out as the leader- manufacturing 90-95Vo of that fiber-cement siding, which now covers more than 3 million homes in the U.S.

Andersen - Reducing waste

Andersen isn't just the largest manufacturer of windows in the U.S.: thev also lead the industry in responsibll manufacturing by building some of the most energy-efficient windows and patio doors available on the market.

Since 1988, Andersen has made dramatic reductions in emissions. It trimmed toxic release inventory emissions by more than 95Vo and reduced releases of volatile organic compounds by 42Vo. In addition, the company slashed landfill deposits by 98Vo.

Their cutting-edge research and production of energy-efficient products helped make Andersen the first manufacturer in the industry to receive certification from Green Seal, the independent environmental labeling organization. Andersen is also one of the first such manufacturers in alliance with the Energy Star program, a public/private initiative spearheaded by the EPA and Department of Energy.

How has going green affected Andersen's profits? Did I mention they're the largest manufacturer of windows in the U.S.?

I believe that the green building trend is just that-not a fad or a flash in the pan. Green building has the potential to stir up markets like nothing else I see today. Some market leaders will lose market share, and other small firms will gain-because of green building trends.

In many western regions, the future is already here. Green building is a viable, industry niche. In other places (like the Midwest), industry change comes more slowly. But it's coming, nonetheless.

I've given you just three examples of how offering an alternative product, while going green, has allowed three very different companies to keep ahead of their competition and avoid lasting longer. selling at low, commodity prices. lropieal Hardwoods fo6* dt6c, fuofr Cenua, Anerlc. Mahogany Machiche Spanish Cedar Amapola Santa Maria Tzalam

The reality of it is, we're just at the beginning of the green movement, so the opportunities for businesses and consumers have never been better.

If you're still unsure about what to do, that light up ahead is green.

- Greg, Stine is founder and president of Polaris, Inc., a branding and marketing firm in Oakridge, Or. Contact Greg at greg@polaris-inc.com or visit www. oolaris-inc.com.

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