Student Painters?

cppowner

I need to set the record straight.

Not ALL college painters are bad. I will admit that there are some that don't do the required work and get burned. The people that do get burned are more likely to go to these types of forums and post their sad news. Just because you see all these terrible stories about summer's gone wrong in "complain about your business"-like forums doesn't mean the company is bad. Those with great stories just don't feel the need to complain to anyone.

I run a franchise for college pro. Those who say we don't have any training aren't always right. it depends. I, for example, was a painter and job site manager for a summer and learned all the skills of the trade before becoming a franchisee. Then, I got hired as a franchisee as a professional painter (#1 in the nation for college pro to be exact). Going into my second year now I honestly feel like I am the best painting contractor in all of Bellingham.

Other contractors give you a price for the job, but dont really care about their customers. My goal is not PROFIT. My goal, as expressed by my mission statement is "to provide an exceptionally positive, exterior paintng experience by consistently exceeding expectations in both workmanship and customer relations." So YES, I really do care about my clients. I'm running a business to put "senior franchise manager" on my resume and build skills... not make 50k, screw my painters on hours or screw my clients on quality.

On safety: I will ADMIT that there are some franchisees that are lax. Every owner runs their OWN business and can do what they want. College Pro goes through a great effort, however, to set the expectation that all OSHA standards are followed.

On Painters: I paid $9 and $11/hr to painters and job site managers respectively. JSMs all sprayed and backrolled. I know some painters/jsms were displeased that their franchisees didn't bid hours correctly. This DEPENDS on your franchisee. I made an average of $18.50/hr even though I was paid 11 because I beat budgets. My painters made roughly 13.50/hr because they weren't as badass. The point here is that if you really pick up the trade you can beat budgets and be really profitable as a painter.

ModernStyle

Maybe someday you could take your sh!tty little fake College Pro painting to the next level and get some illegals instead of the college kids, then you would really make some cash. You make me sick, actually you make every REAL painter sick. So go peddle your weak a55 sales pitch somewhere else because we dont buy it.

Workaholic

Don't hold back, tell us how you really feel.


Old thread.

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Sean

Wolfgang

Over the years, I've lost one job to "College Painters". If that is all the customer is willing to pay to have their house painted, then I would say College Painters fill a niche in the market. Now, also over the years, I've re-done 5 of their jobs...at my price. When the HO asks about the price differences I just point at their house and the fact that I'm there.

I have yet to be convinced in 26 years of doing this that I am going to hire seasonal labor and be able to turn them loose on a job and get professional results. Sure people say anyone can paint, but are they able to take care of any potential problems that may arise?

I have a friend who is also a painting contractor who does hire seasonal labor. He puts them on small one man jobs and then bitches because he's not making enough, if any, money on them. He likes to brag about his dollar volume per year but his net sucks. I asked him if he figured his time for bidding, collecting, checking the job, and mileage were figured into these jobs and he looked at me like he didnt understand what I was talking about.

I tend to view College Painters as I do the painters who paint tract houses: God Bless Them! I know in a few years thats just more potential business for me.

"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper...and the people who consider price only are that man's lawful prey" Attributed to John Ruskin.

Wolfgang

Crap! I just noticed the OP on this was May of 2006. I really hate commenting on these old thread.

"I WILL READ THE OP DATES....I WILL READ THE OP DATES.....I WILL READ THE OP DATES...."

ModernStyle

I have a feeling that the OP and the guy who brought this back today are the same guy. He is just making the rounds trying to sell his load of crap.

ModernStyle

WisePainter wasnt here so I did what I thought he would do.

George Z

as opposed to most that get trained in a ...day?

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painterdude

My first painting work in 1972 was painting with some fellow new college grads in our town. No official deal, just some guys in a small town making 5 or 6 bucks an hour. After teaching school for a year, I grabbed some brushes and have been at it ever since. No I certainly didn't learn everything in a few hours, days, years or decades but I found out that I can do the job, work hard and really aren't any good at working for others. I don't know anything about "college pro painters" but I'd guess it's a scam of some kind..however if someone gets the paint bug then it aint all bad. pd

DRC

You have to be efen kidding me. $18.50/hr is good money my a55. As the owner of the business, if you are not clearing $2000/week after all expenses something is wrong. You are getting screwed and providing the lube.

slickshift

Interestingly enough, in between the time the OP posted and the thread was resurrected (zombie thread...<cue creepy music>), a close friend reveled to me that a few years ago he nearly took a job as a College Pro Painter

However, before signing on the dotted line, while leafing through the manual, he noticed the manual was dedicated to two employees that died...electrocuted while working for the company...

Needless to say (or maybe it is not), he "passed" and now works in another (non-application) area of the business

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Quote:

Originally Posted by ModernStyle I have never used this crap before and I pray to the paint gods that I never have to use it again, I would rather use Behr

slickshift

Uh...I suppose I should also add (just to clarify) that it is a Non-College Pro area...
Just in case you aren't getting that from the post

All right then...carry on

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Quote:

Originally Posted by ModernStyle I have never used this crap before and I pray to the paint gods that I never have to use it again, I would rather use Behr

tribe_fan

I was the original poster - my son took the advice - worked traditional jobs to get (or help me get him) through college, and is now working in sales. Takes after his mother.

He still can't paint worth a sh*t , or do much handy work at all ............ he belongs in sales.

I - on the other hand, actually have helped paint a few houses, so I could never understand how a bunch of kids were going to get trained and turned loose with a weekend of training, and minimal supervision.

Simple things like - see those wires over there ... might not want to put a ladder by them.

I'm convinced this is an Amway type thing (Pyramid) - where the new guy goes through his relatives for customers, then a couple high achievers are able to recruit new people. Most of the others wind up working for less than minimum wage.

It's really not the business model I object to, but the safety and quality of work.

By the way - still no Cleveland championships !!

labourlady

Hey, my name's Sara, and I just got hired by "college pro painters". I've been looking up their cred on the internet, and a lot of people say it's a scam. There's a lot of word out about this contract that they try and make you sign, but from the limited information that I have, I'm not sure if it's directed towards manager staff, or employees. I'm really desperate for a good job, I'm homeless currently, and am a damn hard worker.
Is it worth the risk? Does anyone have advice that I can use?

thom

You said a lot, what you didn't say was what training and experience you have painting. Don't you think it's strange that a company has a policy of hiring people who have no experience, put them to work for a couple months with no real training, then do it again and again.

Obviously painting isn't rocket science but that does not mean there is little to no training needed, yet it seems that is the policy of College Pros.

Good luck if you do the job, hopefully your customers won't hate you when the job is "done."

THINKPAINTING

I went through 4 yrs of apprentice in the 70's even as I ran my own business. There was so much to being a top notch mechanic and I was grateful to the old timers teaching me.

Mixing colors, tinting all our own paints, proper way to paint door & frame in a certain amount of time. How to lay off enamel on woodwork. Glazing widows, mixing our putty to match woodwork. Tint our own varnish, fauxing all types of marble finishes.

How to look at a job and know where to start and finish. I could go on but student painters are student painters.

H

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BC_Painter

The contract problems are with the student business owners only.

Unfortunately most of these comapnies will fail. A very high portion of these do not make it through the summer, or have steady work.

I started with a student paint company and I lucked out working with a returning manager that was able to keep me busy, and train me on anything I did not know. I knew many managers that did not last a month.

Good luck with your job, but if I were you I'd find another one unless you are working with a successful returning manager in the meantime

Gough

I'm curious how the student painters/college pro/etc. are going to deal with the new RRP rule. I haven't seen their company names on the EPA's list of certified firms.

OTOH, I'm still waiting for the EPA to finish processing our application....

cpp

I'm with College Pro Painters and I have owned a Franchise for the last four years. I have had to deal with lead paint in the area's I have painted. I have always followed the OSHA standards for protecting homeowners and painters. With the new regulations that have come up College Pro made it a priority to get third party training and the EPA certifications for the franchise owners who had any houses in their area built 1978 or before.

PS-I went through the training in Feb and got my actual EPA cert in June

Gough

Interesting. The local College Pro outfit repainted the oldest house in my neighborhood earlier this summer, built in the '20. They clearly took NO precautions for LPB (RRP or OSHA), fall protection, or anything else. It was entertaining to drive by. They had a large crew on site, and it was like one of those pictures: "How many things can you see that are wrong with this picture?"