One of the most common questions that we get on the plumbing side is “What’s the difference between what you have and what Lowes or Home Depot have?” The answer isn’t as cut and dry as you would think. Each manufacturer will do some things differently. Some manufacturers like Moen and Delta make completely different products for the home centers shelves. That means that what you can walk in and see, buy, and leave with are specifically made for that retailer. Sometimes the faucets will look similar or even have a similar name to what a wholesaler has. For example, Moen has the Brantberry faucet in Home Depot but has a Brantford faucet in the wholesale line. Home Center faucets are usually inexpensive and targeting a very price-conscious customer. Kohler actually puts the same name of their retail faucets as their wholesale faucets with an extremely close style. However, the model number will include an R at the beginning (R for retail). I have had customers show me Sunday paper ads and accused me of ripping them off because the price was $175.00 less. I assured them the faucet was not the same and explained to them exactly what I am explaining here. They understood and hopefully I was able to gain a lifetime customer. WATERSOURCE or any other wholesale distributor does not have access to any of these products that the home centers sell.
We want to sell quality products that we can stand behind.The typical differences will be the design, construction, and options.The design of the faucet will drive the price for sure.You will commonly see very basic designs with little to know detail, finishes will also be extremely limited. The construction of these faucets are also different than what we offer. A lot of the faucets will have plastic drains, thinner and cheaper finishes, and instead of being a solid brass (if they are even brass) faucet they are usually multiple pieces with visible seams. Cartridges in the shower valves are of lesser quality (not ceramic) and the valves may not have all of the necessary code requirements that are needed. Just last week, a customer came into WATERSOURCE and said they needed shut off stops for their shower valve that they did not purchase from us. Shut off stops come standard on most of our valves and our employees are knowledgeable enough to know that if they do not, we need to make sure we add them on. This homeowner (as most) did not know that in Allegheny County they are a code requirement, nor did he even know what they were. This customer came in while his plumber was on site installing the new fixtures so this means one of two things: the plumber will have to come back or if they ever have a leak in their wall they will have to shut the water off from the mainline and not at the source of the problem. Plumbers charge anywhere from $80-$125 per hour. I know when a plumber comes to my house, I want them in and out as soon as possible at those rates! I also mentioned that the options are very limited in the home centers, finishes like Matte Black, Polished Nickel, and Brushed Gold will not be on the shelves of Home Centers. Specialty finishes are extremely popular nowadays, thanks to Pinterest and HGTV. Watersource carries multiple faucet lines that have over 30 finish options. From time to time, I stop in a home center just to keep tabs on what they are offering. Just recently, I saw that Lowes had two freestanding tub options on display. Freestanding tubs are one of the most popular bathroom trends right now. Everyone wants one! While I was shocked that they did have two options I also noticed that they were hanging from a wall display. This does not allow anyone to sit in them to check for size or to see if it's comfortable for them. WATERSOURCE has seven tubs in multiple sizes from multiple manufacturers to see, touch and sit in. I have yet to walk down any home center aisle and see a body spray or any recessed showerheads. WATERSOURCE has 22 working showerheads, a working steam shower, and many other working products. I have never seen anything “live” at any of the Home Centers.
Lastly, something I want to touch on is knowledge. When I am buying something that I know very little about, I want a knowledgeable sales associate. Walking down the isles at Home Depot is very intimidating and frustrating for me even when I am looking for something as simple as a light bulb. I can’t imagine how a customer feels who’s in the market for much more. I have been in the isles myself and sometimes have never seen a designated expert, the person I asked my light bulb question was the same person that mixed up the stain I needed for my deck. Here at WATERSOURCE, we have a trained staff that is able to answer most questions and concerns and capable of finding out any answers that they do not know. We follow up, we fix problems before they become a problem and before the customer even knew that there was a problem. We feel we give our customers a better experience all around and are always looking for new ideas to ensure our customers have the best possible shopping experience.