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Member Profile: Surviving Through Sharing Ideas
The latest in a series that profiles members of local NAHB Remodelers who are strengthening their local councils through networking and recruiting new members. The grassroots champions who are being highlighted in this series have collectively recruited more than 400 new members for the NAHB Remodelers to date.
 Rick Hjelm, CGR
Owner, Phase II General Contractor, Inc.
Lakewood, Wash.
Rick Hjelm’s remodeling company, Phase II General Contractor, specializes in whole house and kitchen and bath remodels. With seven full-time employees, six of them in the field, Hjelm is a case study in the benefits of connecting with and learning from colleagues.
When he launched his business in 1978, Hjelm recalls, his timing was perfect: “I was just starting to go after the high-end market, and with some of the leading remodelers in the area retiring at that time, I had a chance to hire a couple of guys who were great at their craft.”
“I not only learned a lot from those remodelers at that time,” he recalls, “I picked up where they left off.”
A New Perspective on Competition
Over time, Hjelm also learned the value of sharing resources, ideas and solutions with other remodelors.
“It used to be that you never shared information with competing remodelers. If something worked for you, you hid it because it gave you an edge,” Hjelm says.
But the longer he was in the industry, the more he realized that when one builder went out of business, the rest of the industry felt the pain because they started getting more calls than they could keep up with.
“In our area, there’s more work than any of us will ever be able to do. We’re not all fighting for the same jobs, and actually, we seldom see each other,” he points out.
For these and other reasons, the close relationships Hjelm has made through the Master Builders Association of Pierce County with other builders and remodelors have been critical to his success. In addition, he notes, “the business changes so fast and the challenges are so great, that the only way to survive is to share ideas and solutions.”
A Natural at Association Recruitment
As one of the winners in NAHB’s “7 in ’07” membership recruitment campaign, Hjelm believes that being involved in a local association will help any industry professional improve their business.
He points out that being actively involved in his local and state HBAs, as well as national, has enabled him to take his business to the next level — so he recruits for his HBA with a passion.
“You’re much more effective when you put your time and energy into something you passionately believe in,” Hjelm says. “Without that, you’re just selling.”
The same goes for participating in HBA meetings, events and activities.
“I always tell people that if you only show up at meetings and don’t say a word, you’re just wasting your money. You need to join a committee, get on a council or help with an event — only then will people start opening up to you,” says Hjelm.
Hjelm is celebrating his 30th year in the remodeling business and admits that this year feels a little strange.
“It’s weird, because one day you wake up and find you’ve been doing what you do for 30 years.”
Hjelm has arranged for his brother to take over his business when he is ready to retire. “I’m making sure that when it’s time, I can leave on my terms and have more time to enjoy life,” he says. “That’s another thing we want to teach our younger colleagues ― don’t do what we did, start planning early.”
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