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36 • NOVEMBER 2011 • WORLD FENCE NEWS Recently, we spoke with Larraine Saylor of Saylor Fence in Davie, Florida, who told us that they are "al- ways busy." Their business mix is 80% resi- dential and 20% commercial, and while they carry a full product line, wood and aluminum have been their biggest movers. We were told that the business has been family owned and operated since 1999, serving Broward County and Palm Beach. On the residential side, they do wood, chain link, PVC and aluminum. On the commercial side, they do vinyl coated chain link, galvanized chain link, vinyl coated aluminum chain link and ornamental aluminum and steel. We then asked Larraine whether FENCER'S FIELD REPORT A monthly column of industry bits & pieces Compiled by contributing editor Jim Lucci and the staff of World Fence News or not rising material costs affected they way they bid. We were told that when necessary, they quoted higher prices and explained to the customer the reason and also told them about the good quality and benefits associated with their products. However, it has not affected their business, in general. We also asked if there were any significant changes in the fence market this year, and Lar- raine told us that aluminum was be- coming tough to find, and that they had to "hunt for it." We further asked if any type of product was increasing or decreasing in popularity, and were told that wood and aluminum are increas- ingly popular in the residential market. Regarding what she thought the outlook was for the fence market in 2011, Larraine told us that she thought it would be a pretty good year. When we followed up with ques- tions regarding the state of the labor market and the availability of workers in her area, she said that it is very dif- ficult finding good people; as far as availability of workers is concerned, we were told that good crews went to Texas and Louisiana where the work is better, according to Larraine. When we discussed the economy in the area, we were told anecdotally that when Larraine and her husband go out, the restaurants are always full. On the residential side, construc- tion is strong, and prices are going up as well. On the commercial side, new building, as well as renovation, is oc- curring. Finally, we asked what strategy the company employed for 2011, and were told that a concerted effort to re- turn phone calls more promptly was occurring, while continuing to provide outstanding customer service. Further, networking through MPI, a network- ing association, provides good leads. Eighty-five percent of the leads are coming from the internet and therefore they are doing little ad work in the Yel- low Pages, she said. We spoke with Mitch Kowal, Sr., SCIW Fence Products Co. Inc., in Mickleton, New Jersey. When we spoke with Mitch, he told us that he has had a pretty decent year. He said their marketing of PVC had strongly attracted new customers, while sales of other products were steady. The company business mix is 70% residential and 30% commercial. Then, Mitch shared some com- pany history: SCIW has been owned and operated by the Kowal family for four generations. SCIW Fence Prod- ucts Co., Inc. was established in 1923 in Camden, New Jersey by Antoni Kowal, who had emigrated from Poland in 1910. A blacksmith by trade, Antoni began the business and over the next 20 years expanded into the manufac- ture and installation of railings, fire es- capes, cellar doors and, eventually, fencing. In 1945, a second generation joined the business and they expanded into welding and fabrication, and four years later, installed their first chain link fence. They then began to establish the long-term relationships with quality manufacturers that they maintain today. In 1959 a major change was brought to the company as they de- cided to discontinue installation and focus purely on the wholesale distri- bution of fencing products. This en- abled them to service their customers without conflict and greatly enhanced their ability to grow as a leader in the industry. As the industry has changed, Mitch said, they have successfully been able to adapt to the changing market and prosper. Mitch continued, saying that they opened a second location in continued on page 38