Master of the Squares
Mowry also installed tile countertops, although he believes the value is better in slab work – in part because of the labor involved in setting the individual tiles and the detail in the edges.
Click photo to enlarge“The cost for the material might be more in the slab, but the savings is in the installation and fabrication labor,” he says. “The functionality of the slab counters is better than the tile, but people still like the tile ones.”
Although he’s installed slab countertops, Mowry adds that he typically refers that part of the job to a local fabricator and then devotes his time to decorative backsplashes.
MAN OF CHARACTER
Perhaps not surprisingly, even today Mowry Tile & Stone isn’t a large company. Having developed the reputation as the guy to call for higher-end jobs, Dennis Mowry says it’s been difficult to find helpers who meet his exacting standards, or even other tile setters to partner on large jobs.
There are exceptions, of course. One long-time friend he shared work lost his life in an accident only recently, but Mowry says people like that are few and far between.
“I never really like to have anybody even clean out my buckets, because they never do it right,” he says. “I like to clean my own buckets and I like to mix my own thinset. There are a lot of guys who want to learn from me, but they’ve had bad habits and didn’t listen, so it didn’t last long.”
Today, he does have a couple experienced tilesetters with whom he works. Rob Heinz has worked together with Mowry now for eight years now and has benefitted from his high expectations.
Mowry says his preference is to work with others, but he’s also definite about the way he wants a job performed.
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“They respect how I want it done, and my approach is still maintained,” he says. “Otherwise, they wouldn’t work for me and I’d just go back to doing the work myself.”
Ultimately, Mowry says his concern is that his name and reputation are on the line. He bases his company on character, craftsmanship and communication, and his goal always is “compliments, not complaints.”
His favorite compliment: You were the best sub on the job.
That’s more than a matter of just being nice, though. First and foremost, Mowry says he has to live with himself, and he isn’t the kind of person to pull what he refers to as “a fast one” when it comes to doing a job.
“Sure, it may be in a shower or the back closet where nobody’s going to know, but for me it’s a matter of whether it’s done right or done wrong,” he says. “I try to have an above- board approach to everyone. If you don’t, I feel that catches up to you and the payback can be pretty short term. I go for the long-term approach and that’s paid off for me.”
However, because he’s committed to having good communication with his clients, that doesn’t mean he just bowls ahead through a job. Early on, he says his approach is to listen to what the customer wants and what suits them best.
That can include a certain amount of education, although he doesn’t try to overload his prospects.
“What it means is we work with the best interest of the client in mind,” Mowry says. “And, we try to think about others working together on the job, and the long-term impacts.”
