Having reached two decades in the plumbing business, Jack’s All-American Plumbing has come a long way from its humble beginnings.
Co-owner Jack Bingham got started with a local plumbing company shortly after moving to the area at the age of 17. He met his wife Becky during a service call, they got married, and decided to start a business together in Santa Maria.
“We had a two-and-a-half-year-old and one on the way, so we just started with an old, broken-down van that we scraped up enough money to buy and got started,” Becky recalled. “It’s just kind of grown from there.”
For the first few years, Jack worked by himself while Becky stayed home with the kids and answered calls from their living room. Today, the Binghams have a cozy office and a fleet of service vans.
“It’s had its ups and downs over the 20 years,” Jack said. “Every day is different. You never know what’s going to happen or what you might find.”
Jewelry, false teeth, wedding rings; you name it, and Jack has probably fished them out at one time or another. His strangest call, he said, came from a customer who lost a glass eye down the drain while showering.
“I told him I can come over, but it’s not going to look like an eye when I get done with it,” Jack said. Though he doesn’t do the heavy lifting anymore, Jack still goes out on plumbing calls. His crew of 10 plumbers performs service and repair in residential homes and commercial businesses, as well as cleanup on new construction. After each job, Jack’s makes follow-up calls to make sure customers are satisfied.
“We have a good time and all the employees are treated like part of the family,” Jack said. “Keeping them happy is what it’s all about; then they’ll treat your customers with a better attitude. If they’re not [happy], they’re going to go there with a sour attitude and do a halfway job.”
With all the handymen available around town, it’s hard to stand out. The Binghams said they owe their longevity to providing good customer service and quality work at fair prices, in addition to offering free camera inspections for backed up sewage lines. Jack’s also performs background checks on all their potential employees to ensure the bad rap given to some plumbers doesn’t apply to them.
“Our guys are clean-cut and they take pride in themselves,” Jack said. “I don’t want people to feel like when we’re in their house they have to watch us.”
A perennial people’s choice in the Sun’s Best Of publication, Jack’s is also active in the community, doing service work for the YMCA, Boys and Girls Club, and other organizations.
“The community’s kept us in business all this time, so we’d like to give back as much as we can,” Jack said. “It makes us feel good and it’s fun.”
Jack’s Plumbing is located at 2011 Preisker Lane in Santa Maria.
For more information, call 925-0199 or e-mail jacksplumbing@verizon.net.
Highlights
•Vector Marketing, a company which sells CUTCO Cutlery through in-home demonstrations, recently opened a new sales office in Santa Maria.
The office, run by Vector District Manager Spencer Glenn, will be used for recruitment and training of new sales representatives, as well as for team meetings where additional training and mentorship is provided.
Vector Marketing Corporation is a single-level direct sales firm and wholly owned subsidiary of CUTCO Corporation, headquartered in Olean, NY. It is the exclusive marketer of CUTCO Cutlery and accessories.
The new office is located at 325 E. Plaza Drive, Stes. 5 and 7, in Santa Maria.
For more information, visit vectormarketing.com or call 877-888-0314.
• Women’s Economic Ventures announced the graduation of 12 Santa Maria women from its Self Employment Training and Business Plan Intensive entrepreneurial courses.
Graduates ranged from first-time business owners to those expanding their existing businesses. The latest Santa Maria graduate businesses included an all-in-one insurance, accounting, and notary public family-owned business, a skin care and facial spa, and a childcare business.
For more information, visit wevonline.org.
Biz Spotlight/ Highlights are written and compiled by Staff Writer Jeremy Thomas. Information should be sent to the Sun via fax, e-mail, or mail.
This article appears in May 19-26, 2011.