Creating a Whole New Career Canvas

Originally published in Islip Bulletin, May 1, 2008
By Emily Portoghese

Paul Granite proved it is never too late to follow your dreams when he opened his own CertaPro Painters Franchise at 55 years of age in January; his son, Paul Jr., will join Granite in May as his
“right-hand man” upon graduation from college. Granite’s experiences in corporate America provided him with security, but failed to fill the gap between the positions he held at  Telephonics and Grumman, and what he had always pictured for himself. “The fire was still burning to get out there and do my thing again,” Granite said.

The very first franchise shown to him by a franchise consultant was CertaPro Painters, and although Granite reviewed information on other companies, he knew CertaPro was for him immediately. Granite noted that CertaPro had a business system that could guide him into a business he could actually see himself working in, as he has been his family and friends’ go-to-guy for painting projects all his life. He still thinks that opening a franchise was a better option for him than going at it alone.

CertaPro is the largest painting company in North America, and is the only large-scale, full-time, franchised commercial and residential painting business in the Home Improvement industry. This impressed Granite.

“I know what their name means in terms of the support and resources I have available to me,” he said. “It’s important for me to let customers know they’re not dealing with a guy with a station wagon and a ladder.”

Throughout Long Island there are 10 CertaPro franchises, and only two territories remain open, according to Steve Hearon, vice president of franchise development. Owners hold monthly meetings to discuss concerns and issues. Granite described having the opportunity to meet often with people of his position as invaluable. While communicating with CertaPro headquarters in Oaks, Pennsylvania, Granite realized an East Islip location opened up, and he was glad for the local
opportunity.

“Paul Granite is one of our recent additions to the CertaPro team, and we’re very excited about the professionalism, work ethic and attention to detail Paul brings from his previous life,” Hearon said.

A staff was needed for Granite to actually start getting business. With his eight employees, he manages the business quite well. His painters do light carpentry, molding, and spackling, and the whole team really goes “above and beyond.”

An ironic selling point of the painting business is the current slump in the housing market. Both Granite and his son agree that because of high prices and not many people willing to buy, homeowners are more willing to spend money on fixing up their house rather than trying to sell it during these tough times. Having a company affiliate was important to Paul Jr. He also noted that he likes how being a franchise provides benefits one would not receive if they were doing business on their own.

“I think there’s a lot of opportunity and that’s probably the reason I’m very excited about it,” he said. “I like the area, and it’s a lot of potential business.”

Paul Jr. is eager to go into business with his father. He will receive his bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in finance from Towson University in Maryland come May, and sees this as a career with unlimited positive aspects. Between graduating and starting his first real job at his father’s CertaPro franchise, Paul Jr. has a lot on his plate as a new 22-year-old. “I would like my son to do what I’m doing and really get into the sales,” Granite said. “He’s a real people person.”

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