experience of being a topps approved tiler anyone ?

[marke]

Hi,
just wondered if anyone got any opinions on being topps approved ?
I been asked a few times with local shop and am thinking of takin on another tiler hopefully , has anyone been or still are topps approved ?
did you get much work ? is it more trouble than its worth ? or is it decent work ?

Also i dont really see the guys in the shops pushin tanking as an where its required sometimes same for advice on primer etc if they sell the customer the gear and send me to the job , but they not been sold whats required in the first place and/or i have not had any imput upto the point of turning up with the tiles is this just going to be a hassle ?

I do know 'tilers' who do it for topps and there opinion seems to be just do what they send ya to do whether its right or wrong or not following BS , just get in and out .
Might just be over thinking this one but any imput welcomed

Cheers guys

[marke]

sorry if put this in the wrong section guys still finding my way round the site
also how can i et access to the arms ? sorry daft question but cant seem to find anythin cheers

[Ajax123]

Most companies that run approved contractor schemes do so as a means to generate brand loyalty and secure sales. "If I pass you a job as my approved contractor I expect you to use my gear" sort of thing.

You would be less than wise to rely upon this in order generate enough work to keep you going especially when you consider that the approving company may be giving the same lead ot other approved contractors to generate similar loyalty (not sure how Topps work on this score)

Additinally being approved by a supplier is really only worth it if the client requiring the services of the approved contractor values the opinion of the approving company and of course if they have not had bad reports of your own work.

If its available and free then do it because you can always turn the jobs down. If they are looking for a fee as some companies do then you need some assurances of exactly what they will offer you in return so you can weigh up its value to your business.

Far better in my opinion to rely on your own hard work and reputation to bring you work. Your workmanship and expertise is what is important when you do the jobs. Regardless of what Topps advise to the end client it is up to you to do the job correctly. If you do it wrong as a result of the advice given by Topps it will be you who is liable and your reputation that is tarnished.

Approval is useful as it may bring you extra work which you might not otherwise have had access to but it is by absolutely no means essential.

[marke]

Cheers Ajax i appreciate that advise , i have enough of my own work and more but they asked me a few times but i think you kidda just outlined my concerns really , i have a decent and growing reputation that i dont want to spoil so think i might register with them (it is free) and turn down anything not 100% probably mean that they wont pass me a great deal but nothing ventured i suppose,

thanks again

[wacker]

Hi marke
i have been with topps approved fitters for a while now. The work has dropped a bit in recent months. The jobs are normally ok, had a couple of nightmare clients, but don't we all get them. I like your remark about tanking systems. It does not matter how much the client is spending on the bathroom, as soon as you mention tanking they seem to run a mile. The topps in my area do try to sell tanking and bonding, but most customers just see it as more money on the job. I now have photo's of a leaked shower enclouser with before and after shots with hardie boards, tanking and the works. This does seem to help sell the tanking products. As a rule of thumb, the topps approved fitter jobs are better than most. If the customer does not want to spend the money on the right materials for the job, then i wont be doing it. Topps have always stood by me on this. At the end of the day i would rather loose a job than gain a bad rep. Hope this helps. Like you said its free. Why not give it a go???

[david campbell]

http://www.tilersforums.co.uk/tilers...highlight=taff

have a read through these posts,personally i think it depends on how many your local topps is using,if it's say 3/4 you will probably get regular work whereas if it's a branch that has say about a dozen then maybe not so worthwhile