Illinois-based Cada Pools and Spas is preparing to celebrate its 45th anniversary next year. It took a few sticks of dynamite to get the Cada family into the business in the 1960s, says A.J. Cada, the company’s store manager. Cada’s grandfather, Al Cada, wanted to add a pool to the hotel he ran in Branson, Missouri, and used explosives to help excavate the bedrock.
Decades later in the ’80s, now a home builder west of Chicago, word got out that Al knew how to build a pool, and he transitioned into the pool building business full time, incorporating in 1981 and selling chemicals and supplies out of his garage.
When A.J. Cada joined his uncles Brian and Tom Cada in the business in 2012, he was interested in growing the company’s retail side, which included hot tubs and grills. Two years later, the company went all-in on retail, moving into a more than 10,000-square-foot showroom.
“It’s four times the size of our other locations,” A.J. Cada says. “It was an old florist, so there’s a brick-and-mortar store and a huge glass greenhouse where you can keep 25, 30, 35 spas. It’s really inviting — customers like it. You get all the natural lighting through that greenhouse.”
The rehabbed flower shop and nursery not only provide an interesting space but also give the company great visibility from a busy road. To stand out to the 25,000-plus cars that drive by every day, the company installed a large LED screen that showcases pictures and videos of everything the business offers: building and rehabbing in-ground pools, pool and hot tub maintenance and repair and, of course, retail.
“We’re a rarity with construction, retail, maintenance and service,” Cada says. “But it’s worked out very well for us. If one area is struggling, we can focus on another area to grow.”
But it isn’t a “jack of all trades, master of none” operation, he adds. “We pride ourselves in making sure that we are the experts,” Cada says. “We specialize in knowing the ins and outs of every single product we’re selling.”
It’s a formula that’s worked, according to customers. “I think we are the crème de la crème of customer service,” Cada says. “Not just because that’s how I feel but because we get a lot of feedback from customers saying how responsive we are, how up to date we are, [how we] follow up and make sure things are done correctly.”
One of the reasons the company can keep up with all its divisions is because of how the family has split up duties. Tom Cada runs the company’s construction division, A.J. Cada handles retail and service and Brian Cada oversees the overall business.
“We all have different viewpoints on things, but once we can figure it out and push everything together, I think that’s where we’re dangerous,” A.J. Cada says.
As the third generation helping to run the business, Cada hopes it continues for another 45 years, “Trends can keep you motivated; keep you excited,” he says. “You want to stay relevant. No one wants to be a dinosaur.”