Sweetwater Pool & Spa
Connie Divelbliss-Ashcraft, Vice President
Q: What is the biggest challenge of selling hot tubs in your area?
One of the biggest challenges, especially when it comes to spa sales, is that we are oversaturated. If there’s a spa out there, it’s represented in Baltimore. So, that to me would be a very large challenge [because you have] to be able to convey to the customer that your product is good, and you have five or six brands that are all good. Then, at that point, the challenge is not necessarily just [selling] your product, it’s [selling] yourself and your company. The advantage would be then our longevity in the industry and Baltimore – what we have to offer once you purchase your spa or once you come in as a customer.
Q: With a saturation of spa retailers, were you surprised more stores haven’t gone under?
You have your several that we did see unfortunately not make it, but a lot of the companies that are like us, that have been around for 30 years, that are family businesses, we’ve been through this all together…and we’re going to stay. We know how to take care of our customers and we also know how to not abuse each other. We support our product without having to down another product. I think that helps make all of us survive. We all know what it takes. Sure we’re all going to have our sales and our specials, we all want our piece of the pie, but we’re respectful of each other and we’re respectful of the market and we do what’s best for the consumer.
