The whole package: today's package pools stand on their own against pricier in ground competition - Close Up Package Pools

John Schoeck offers a simple formula for sales success in the upscale vinyl-liner pool market.

"Slides and diving boards are a big no-no," says Schoeck, president of John's Swimming Pools Inc. in Westhampton Beach, N.Y. He has installed more than 2,000 vinyl-liner pools in the tony Long Island community since the early '80s.

Also on his forbidden list: pools that are "too big and white. This tends to cheapen the look we're trying to achieve."

Schoeck says his package-pool formula, which also minimizes patterned liners in favor of solid colors such as light gray or white, creates a subtle sophistication, rivaling the look of any gunite pool.

"The market is gravitating toward a black dress and pearls," Schoeck says. "The simple design reflects beauty without being ostentatious."

Moving beyond its tired rectangle or oval image, vinyl-liner pool designs have made rapid strides in the last few years. Many installers contacted by Pool & Spa News say today's vinyl-liner pool customer demands an assortment of customized touches, which include waterfeatures, freeform shapes, specialty vinyl patterns and accent lighting.

"Modern manufacturing has improved tooling to allow for new shapes and materials," says Ron Aveta, co-owner of Creative Pools in Franklin Lakes, N.J.

"Polymer wall systems and other coordinating features help in matching liners and copings with decking materials, wall stones and landscapes," he adds.

The materials make the difference, say installers. "The pools are definitely more attractive with the availability of all the new liner patterns and deck materials," says Fred von Lewinski, owner of Charlottesville Aquatics Inc. in Charlottesville, Va, who's been in the vinyl-liner pool business since 1977.

"Some of the technology that is available in the marketplace today is making for a more sophisticated pool," von Lewinski adds.

Outdoor oasis

As people spend more money to enhance their backyards, they turn to vinyl-liner pool installers to personalize their outdoor environments. No longer content with a cookie-cutter design to cool them off in the summer, today's savvy consumers want their aquascapes to reflect their lifestyle, say installers.

"I think in today's society, people want to spend more time at home with family and friends," says David Tassin, sales manager at Sabine Pools & Spas in Lake Charles, La. "This, in turn, gives them the desire and justification to have more upscale, fun features beyond a plain vanilla swimming pool."

To keep up with the inground competition, vinyl-liner pool shapes now can simulate the natural contours of lagoons, lakes and ponds. "Any drawing we design can easily be made by the vinyl-liner pool manufacturer," Aveta says. "The client has the sophistication of nonstandard shapes for a more finished look."

As the population ages, consumers also tend to be much more knowledgeable. "In the late '70s and '80s, the size of the pool and basic additions like slides, diving boards and underwater lights were most of the things that customers would ask about," says David Burton, CEO of Burton Pools and Spas in Fort Smith, Ark.

"We now have many second-time buyers of pools in our marketplace," he notes. "They are more concerned about the total backyard concept and making their pools designed specifically for them."

The price is right

Vinyl-liner pools with custom touches offer consumers another advantage: cost. For example, freeform vinyl-liner pools tend to cost approximately $25,000, whereas a comparable gunite pool can push the price up to $45,000, according to Tassin, who has been building vinyl-liner pools for 18 years.

"Custom vinyl-liner pools seem to have a niche between the less expensive vinyl-liner pools and the more expensive gunite pools. It allows the consumer to get a nice-looking, functional swimming pool at a medium price," he says.

The end results speak for themselves, according to Schoeck. "Most homeowners say that neighbors who visit just assume the pool is gunite," he says. "Meanwhile, the homeowner is thrilled, knowing he has saved thousands of dollars over a gunite construction."

Favorable interest rates also play a role in today's vinyl-liner pool market. "Ten years ago, we were selling basic pools," says Artie Edwards, president of Arthur Edwards Pool & Spa Centre in Miller Place, N.Y.

"Now, the packages are loaded," he says. "I think with the low interest rates, people are borrowing more money."

Due to the cost-effective nature of vinyl-liner pools, many installers steer clear of negative-edge designs. Depending on the size of the catch pool and the length of the negative edge, they may add $10,000 to the cost of a project, according to Bob Moore, general manager of Burton Pools and Spas.

Moore, who only installed one negative-edge pool last year, says the procedure also presents time challenges. "The more customized you make the pools, the less control you have on a project," he says. "Negative-edge pool projects can run sometimes as much as five to eight months, depending on retaining walls and any other housing construction that needs to be done."

Aquatic ancillaries

Vinyl-liner pools also may now utilize' different kinds of waterfeatures to enhance visual appeal and boost profits. Cascading rock waterfalls, pool spray fountains and sheet waterfalls create eye-pleasing and soul-satisfying accents, say installers.

"We have an abundance of native stone in our area, so rock waterfalls are common," says Burton, who uses waterfeatures in approximately 25 percent of his vinyl-liner pools.

Faux rockwork also has improved in recent years. "Now we can buy them out of a box, put, them together and you have an instant waterfall," Aveta says. "However, in our opinion, there is nothing like real rock."

Schoeck, on the other hand, gravitates toward a French-inspired, free-flowing clay pot waterfeature. "We love the look of a large clay vessel canted at a pool corner that fills with return water and then flows into the pool," he says.

"This is a simple, elegant waterfeature," Schoeck adds. "We originally got the clay pot idea from pools we've seen on the French side of St. Maarten."

Other installers create innovative, yet inexpensive, ways to showcase free-flowing water. Tassin prefers a spray fountain, which shoots streams of water that are into the pool. "It's a smaller fountain that's mounted to a return line that shoots different patterns of water," he says. "You can adjust the actual volume of water to spray two to 15 feet into the pool."

Stacking the deck

Blending decks into the backyard environment tends to enhance the vinyl-liner pool experience, say installers. It also creates a more natural look, which gives installers a sales advantage, according to von Lewinski.

"We look at each job individually to determine what material will work best around the pool," says von Lewinski, who shies away from broomed concrete patios or clay brick decks.

"Some of the materials we are currently using are Sundek [a concrete coating that simulates clay brick], flagstone, and stamped and exposed aggregate concrete," he adds.

Tassin also uses colored, textured concrete toppings, which are relatively inexpensive. "We use a product called Kool Deck, which is a spray-on finish," he says.

"The most popular finishes are gray and buff, but there is a wide range of colors available," Tassin observes.

For others, the look and feel of paving brick, which is made out of concrete, can't be beat. It gives installers more variety to offer consumers.

For example, paving bricks are available in three textures, according to Edwards, who has been in the vinyl-liner pool business since 1974. "You can get the standard, beveled edge or tumbled brick look, which is the one I like," he says.

"The tumbled brick looks like it was rolled around in a barrel," he adds. "It has a soft edge and an old look to it."

Paving bricks come in a variety of colors, but Edwards says consumers go more for the earth tones.

"Vinyl-liners are excellent pools and shouldn't take a back seat to any other type of construction," von Lewinski says. "You have certain limitations that you have to work around, but vinyl-liner pools should be sold for the benefits they provide to the consumer.

"They should be sold on their own virtues."

Completing the package

Attention to detail creates added value for the consumer and more profits for the vinyl-liner pool installer, in fact, it's the extra touches, or lack thereof, that can persuade or push away potential customers.

"People just want nicer-looking products" says Fred von Lewinski, owner of Charlottesville Aquatics Inc. in Charlottesville, Va. "You're going to look at the pool a lot more than you're going to use it, so it might as well look good."

Here are some ways to make each of your package pools a standout:

COPING

Standard: Coated aluminum tracking with a rounded edge.

Standout:. Poured concrete cantilevered edges with textured coatings grab consumers' attention. Installers use a colored finish to give the appearance of a clay brick deck.

You also don't have the maintenance, use or cost issues you would have if it were real brick, according to yon Lewinski.

LIGHTING

Standard: Conventional lights, which don't attempt to set a mood.

Standout. Fiberoptic lighting, which adds ambiance, including everything from a festive Vegas look to a subtle, romantic environment, says Ron Aveta, co-owner of Creative Pools in Franklin Lakes, NJ.

In addition, color-rotating systems transition from white, green, blue and red. They fit the standard pool light niche and don't require any special electrical wiring, says David Tassin, sales manager of Sabine Pools & Spas in Lake Charles, La.

VINYL PATTERNS

Standard: The faux tile look and patterned liners.

Standout: The new vinyl-liner patterns, which are more three-dimensional, feature a real tile look, according to David Burton, CEO of Burton Pools and Spas in Fort Smith, Ark "`What are the newest patterns in vinyl-liner pools?' seems to be something that the customer asks more these days," he says.

Installers also say the busy patterned liners look too fabricated and defeat the purpose of simulating a marble-dusted surface. "Marble dust is usually white, gray or black, and we can copy those in solid-colored vinyl patterns" says John Schoeck, president of John's Swimming Pools Inc. in Westhampton Beach, New York.

SHAPES

Standard: Rectangular or simple kidney-shaped pools.

Standout: New manufacturing methods allow package-pool installers to offer customers pools in virtually any freeform shape they desire.

"Any drawing we design can easily be made by the vinyl-liner pool manufacturer," Aveta says. "The client has the sophistication of nonstandard shapes for a more finished look."

WATERFEATURES

Standard: Vinyl-liner pools without waterfeatures.

Standout: Waterfeatures ranging from simple spray pool fountains to natural rock waterfalls, formal fountains and even vanishing edges make vinyl-liner pools look like their more expensive gunite counterparts, say installers. Thanks to new manufacturer offerings, these features are easier to install than ever.

DECKS

Standard: Traditional broomed concrete decks.

Standout: Decks that use concrete mixtures such as Sundek and Kool Deck. Also popular are stamped, textured and colored concrete, along with a variety of pavers. Installers are even experimenting with natural stone decks, such as flagstone and slate.

--R.J.W.

COPYRIGHT 2003 Hanley-Wood, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group