Today’s spotlight is on Stuart Wright, one of our sales managers who works out of our Romford Double Glazing and Conservatory Show Centre.

How long have you worked for SEHBAC?

20 years! Prior to this I worked for another Double Glazing company in Enfield. Originally I was based in Palmers Green, but now I work out of the Romford show centre.

How did you get into the industry?

Like Chris, it was by accident really. I met a guy at a wedding, and he suggested that I go and work for him. Initially I did leaflet distribution, then I got trained up to do sales.

Which towns / areas do you cover?

My patch covers North London, Hertfordshire and Essex. Funnily enough I’ve sold double glazing to many customers more than once - we get a lot of repeat business and referrals which is nice. A couple of weeks ago I went to meet a new customer. At the time I thought the address seemed familiar; it turns out I’d sold the previous owner of the property double glazing about 18 years ago!

Which products do you sell?

Windows, Doors, Conservatories and Roofline.

What is Roofline?

Essentially it’s where the roof meets the brickwork of the house. People sometimes refer to roofline as the fascias, soffits and guttering; or sometimes the bargeboards - it’s all the same stuff.

In some properties the fascias are made of wood, which without regular maintenance can decay leaving your home open to the elements. At SEHBAC we offer a full range of PVCU fascias, soffits and guttering which don’t require maintenance - unlike the wooden versions. It’s a pretty popular line - people often get them replaced at the same time as having their windows or conservatories done.

What do you think consumers are most interested in when it comes to purchasing windows and conservatories?

The price! That and how quickly we can get the job done. Quality of product and workmanship is also really important, as naturally people are interested in how the end result is going to look.

Have you seen a trend towards people being more interested in window energy ratings?

Well I think that consumers understand the energy ratings on white goods such as fridges, freezers, washing machines etc, however I think that there’s still a job to be done in terms of raising consumer awareness of the window energy ratings.

The government’s targets to reduce carbon emissions mean that it’s likely that by 2016 all new build homes will need to have A rated windows, and all replacement windows will need to be B rated or higher.

As such, I think it’s important to make consumers aware of the options open to them, so I make sure I explain the window ratings and what they mean in order to help customers make the right choices when they’re replacing their double glazing.

If you weren’t in the double glazing industry, what would you be doing?

I’d be a pro golfer. I beat former Essex Amateur Chris Phillips at the SEHBAC golf day… He claims he was nursing an injury

Who would you get to play you in a film of your life?

Joe Pasquale - people say I look and sound like him.

If you could have lunch with anyone, alive or dead, who would it be?

It would have to be Steven Gerrard as I’ve been a Liverpool fan all my life.

Your house is on fire, you can only save one thing - what would you save?

My girlfriend.

How has the industry changed over the past 20 years?

In many ways it’s stayed the same, as people are still looking for value for money and excellent workmanship. That said, I guess technology has made everyone’s life a lot easier - we’ve got an excellent bit of kit which lets us upload a picture of the customer’s house, and we can show them how various conservatory designs will look. It makes it much easier for customers to choose the right conservatory design.

I think we’re also seeing some changes in the products people are asking for. This tends to change dependent on the area and prevalent architecture style. For example - in Chigwell and Loughton we see lots of requests for Black UPVC windows; whereas in North London the double glazed sash windows are more popular.

What are you most looking forward to in the next six months?

Like Chris I’m also eagerly awaiting a new arrival as my girlfriend’s daughter is expecting a baby later this month, so I’m really looking forward to that.

Now is the ideal time to check your roofline, guttering, soffits and fascia.

The recent high winds and rainfall, combined with the autumn leaf fall may cause blockages within your guttering and drainpipes which, if left unremedied may cause you major problems.

If your drainpipes do become blocked then rainwater cannot drain away and as a result may overflow causing damage to the roofline of your property. This is particularly problematic in properties which still have the original wooden fascias.

Over time the protective coating on the wooden fascias can become chipped or cracked. Once this happens, any rainfall is soaked up by the wood. Over the months as the wood continally soaks up moisture and then dries out it can begin to swell (as the wood takes on moisture) and then warp (as the wood dries out).

This can cause more serious cracks in the wood, and if left untreated the wood may begin to rot.

SEHBAC offer a fantastic range of PVCU roofline, soffits, fascias and guttering products. Unlike their traditional wooden counterparts, our PVCU range do not need to be continually painted and maintained. This means that in the long run, they work out far cheaper than the wooden products.

Plus you’ll be pleased to hear that you don’t need to compromise on style.

SEHBAC has a wide range of style and colours to suit every style of property. To find out more why not speak to one of our friendly advisors by calling 0800 666 444, or drop into one of our show centres.