The advent of online retailers simplified the lives of busy buyers, depending on their purchases, but they neglected a factor that is important to display and exhibit builders – direct customer service.
In response to this trend, Damon Delgado brought customer service back to builders on a grass-roots level. In July 2013, he founded Main Place Lighting in Southern California, where he often sees many local customers face-to-face, or he is usually a quick phone call or text message away.
“It’s the age of eBay and Amazon, and there is no true customer service anymore. You can Google display lighting and find hundreds of options, but for display and exhibit builders, they need more attention and direction to plan lighting packages,” Delgado explained. “I can advise them via telephone and text or show up on their door step. It’s proven to be a positive thing, and people are responding well because we can communicate openly with them.”
Service-oriented and hands-on with Delgado behind sales and marketing, Main Place Lighting specializes in LED lighting and provides its clients with products from manufacturers Delgado trusts.
“We distribute products from quality manufacturers that have quality control. These are products I can put my name on and sell to my client knowing they will get a quality-controlled product,” he explained. “Customers don’t have to deal with failures. With display builders, they want their products yesterday.”
Due to its manufacturers continually keeping their stocks filled with products at good price points, according to Delgado, Main Place Lighting quickly delivers products to clients at wholesale prices. He added that this sets him apart from online retailers where prices could be double or triple.
“Service is an added bonus that we provide. [Customers] can email me renderings, and I can put a whole package together for them. If they have special projects or need advice, I’m there for them. There are a lot of display builders out there, and we can price things out for them. We are true wholesalers,” Delgado said.
The projects Main Place Lighting implements for clients varies, with the company delivering everything from cabinet lighting to theatrical or outdoor lighting. Currently a small operation, the company stays competitive by keeping its overhead low. This includes not having a showroom, which Delgado said drives up costs due to the manpower and additional electricity usage involved.
As a family owned business, Main Place Lighting brings together Delgado and his wife who both handle customer service, technical aspects and accounting, among others. In the future, Delgado said he wouldn’t mind expanding the business, but he aims to hire people with the same business mentality of solidifying customer relationships by putting the customer first.
For more information about Main Place Lighting, visit www.mainplacelighting.com.
