You have to be very aggressive with your accounts to grow market share. You have to get more and more competitive with your pricing by buying right, and go beyond 2x4s and plywood to millwork, counters the higher-margin items. That kind of thinking led first to a truss operation. The operation recently added a field-service person dedicated to measuring. And because Hundman's customers do so many kitchens, getting into the countertop business made sense to him, too.
Commercial builders have requirements quite different from a regular lumberyard.
So do remodelers. We started a Remodelers Program which features a kiosk where members who meet our criteria may post their brochures, pictures and business cards. We don't play favorites. When people ask us for a recommendation, we just invite them to take a look. Hundman also hosts meetings for these member contractors to trade notes.