Top Showrooms: McCray Lumber & Millwork
One doesn’t simply visit the McCray Lumber & Millwork Design Gallery in Kansas City, Kansas. One experiences it.
And the experience begins on the approach, driving into an industrial (make that “industrial chic”) area of the Fairfax District where the Overland Park, Kansas-based 2021 ProDealer of the Year operates a massive door and millwork facility under the same roof.
But once through the doors of the showroom here, the feeling is one of sophistication and luxury.
“Most people are surprised at the quality and the diversity of products in it, especially given the industrial nature and area of our building,” said Luke Reeves, general manager of the facility.
By design, the showroom here greets the customer with an increasingly upscale array of products as he or she walks deeper into the gallery. “It progresses in price point from front to back, with more of the production or starter-home products toward the front. They're concentrated in the same area so that we don't have to walk people by products they can't afford or make them feel like their house isn't their biggest investment, which it always is.”
Things get upscale pretty quickly. For instance, a display of thermally broken steel-windows-and-door system goes for about $500 per square foot, or $35,000 for the entry door on display.
And like the old show tune, everything is up to date in Kansas City. At least that’s the goal. “It's a constant discipline to stay up-to-date on products. So, we thought we were a hundred percent updated, but when we went to [the International Builders’ Show] we saw some products we needed to show.”
And so, the design ideas continue to evolve.
He added: ”What we've found in the estate-home products market is the clientele is very tactile. They want to touch and feel products they're going to spend large dollars on. So, we try to show very high-end products.”
Flexibility and functionality play important roles in the showroom’s success, as well.
A kitchen display plays a central role when hosting customers or entertaining guests. And around the showroom, many displays are portable, allowing for the ability to transport off site when needed at an event or show.
Another critical feature is a conference room with seating for eight that allows the sales staff to consult with customers, develop ideas and close deals.
The conference room is equipped High Definition Multimedia Interface flat screens, and a table big enough to spread out full-size estate home plans.
“What we've found has happened is the design community and the builders will basically book the conference room to do their client meetings and make selections here on our turf,” he said.
Reeves is a big believer in the power of the showroom to promote sales, especially in the high-end market. He described the case of a customer who drove a couple hours all the way from Springfield, Missouri, to be able to touch and feel a steel window product. “We were the only place in the region that had it on display.”
McCray Lumber has been serving the Kansas City building community since 1947 and is a member of both the Greater Kansas City Home Builders Association and the Kansas City National Association of Remodeling Industry (NARI). The company received the Independent ProDealer of the Year award in 2005, and the national ProDealer of the Year award in 2021.
The company builds its reputation on quality and service, and the showroom builds on that reputation.
“It has dynamically impacted the cost per transaction in a positive way for us and a lot of our clients,” Reeves said.
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