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Doorway To Growth
The story of how one business leveled up (with actual doors)
Simon Trask
August 29, 2025
Not all modern marketing campaigns involve digital ads.
This is the story of a custom door manufacturer.
As a family business, the founder passed the mantle to his children. They were ready to bring fresh energy and ideas to the business, beginning with marketing.
For decades, the business had been built entirely on lumber yard relationships.
Homeowners would visit the lumber yard, and pick through their rudimentary catalog to create the perfect door for their custom home.
However, their old catalog was very technical and confusing.
The manufacturer could literally build any door that a homeowner or designer could dream up, and the combinations were nearly infinite. It was simply overwhelming for customers to decide what to buy.
The new sibling management team knew that if the lumber yard sales representatives were taken care of, the customers would be able to make product decisions, and their business would grow.
So, they hired a design agency that completely rebranded their company, keeping the same name and same products, but providing a fresh modern look that welcomed homeowners.
They showed off actual examples of doors rather than merely line drawings (which required an investment in photography).
In all, the new owners now had a fresh look with compelling photos and a brand-new catalog that was reorganized to make design decisions easy, with plenty of real-life examples of their doors. They also took the catalog online, which hadn’t previously been done. The website was built in a similar fashion, with ease-of-use being the number one goal.
All of this effort resulted in an immediate 30% rise in sales that continued on.
They expanded production from two shifts to three, working around the clock.
It turned out that they didn’t need to do any other marketing as long as the lumberyards stayed stocked with catalogs.
This one-time investment paid off repeatedly and maxed out their production.
Who can be a gatekeeper for your business, and how can you arm them with the right tools to help you grow?
 | Onward and upward, (I’m a small business owner, advisor, and advocate – learn more here) |