If you don't work or do business in Florida, you may not be aware of how much disruption was caused by Hurricane Matthew last October. Along with the loss of life in its wake, Matthew left billions of dollars in property damage, which will take years to repair, and longer to pay for.
Isolated as I am in our Wisconsin offices from the physical effects of the storm, I nevertheless have had the opportunity to see some of the disruption caused in the fence industry by this natural disaster. Contractors accustomed to being busy through the year have found themselves slammed, trying to meet the needs of prior and current customers. Some are up to a year out on non-critical repairs, after doing significant triage to determine who needed what work, and how soon.
I talked with a homeowner a few days after the storm, and he said he couldn't get anyone to come out and fix his gate. His dog couldn't be alone in the yard without it. So he went online and searched out the hinge that broke, and discovered it was one of ours. So he called directly to buy a replacement. As a wholesaler, I cannot sell to a homeowner. Because I have several contractors that I serve in his region, I knew that there was little likelihood of finding someone to run over and install a new hinge for him.
The solution was simple. He didn't need to buy a new hinge, which was good, because I couldn't sell him one. But because every product we make has a lifetime warranty, I was able to send him a replacement hinge at no charge.
It's not often that we hear of one of our products breaking, but when they do, you can be sure of a couple of things.
1. It was probably a natural disaster that broke it.
2. We stand 100% behind what we make.
3. When you buy MFT, you buy it for LIFE.
