Kerry Webley founded KSW Developments Warwickshire in 2020 and over the past four years has more than doubled his win rate. Kerry explains some of the reasons behind his winning ways.
Kerry Webley began his building career fresh out of school at 17. After completing his apprenticeship in bricklaying, working for several firms in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire and developing a love of stonework, Kerry set up KSW Buildings & Maintenance at the age of 26 before rebranding as KSW Developments Warwickshire in 2020. From four employees, Kerry now has a team of 25 and growing.
“We’re very established in our local area,” said Kerry, “which has been really key to our growth. We’re fortunate we’re in an affluent area, but word of mouth has been crucial.” Kerry continued. “Another factor is that we employ our own plumbers and electricians, which helps us complete work at pace and have a continuous cycle of projects. Homeowners don’t really want to wait for their project and because we don’t have to wait for other trades, we can complete jobs faster. You’re only as good as your last job too so having our own trades helps us ensure the highest standard of finish.”
Aside from quality of work and speed, service is something Kerry highlights as another key to their success. “Of course quality is important, but service is what sets you apart and is something we focus on all the time with our clients,” Kerry said.
Elaborating on what service means to KSW, Kerry continued: “A lot of it is based on communication with clients. Every week we give the client an update – what’s been done that week, what’s planned for the week ahead, who’ll be at their job and when so they aren’t second-guessing. We’re also fortunate to have Natalie in our team who is in daily contact with clients to answer questions. To us, it’s important there’s always someone to speak to. Clients are spending a lot of money with us. The least we can do is be available and update them on the progress of their work.”
For Kerry, this focus on communication and service isn’t just about the relationship between us and the client. “We need the same commitment from our merchant and service providers like Build Aviator,” Kerry continued.
Kerry and the KSW team have been using Build Aviator since 2019 and to date have used the service for around 120 projects.
“I found out about Build Aviator from our local Jewson and decided to give it a go. We were just getting busier and busier at the time. I’ll be honest – I’m not one for the office. I want to project manage and be on the tools. I’m still on site digging footings but the admin side of things has to be done. We heard about Build Aviator, gave it a go and were very impressed. We used it for a few more jobs and our win ratio went through the roof,” said Kerry.
“What I like about Build Aviator is the detail in their reports – and our clients like it too. Their feedback is phenomenal. They want to see the detail, especially when they’re spending a lot of money, and Build Aviator gives them that,” said Kerry.
Comparing life before Build Aviator, Kerry said. “When I was doing our estimates, they were ok, but they didn’t represent us as a company. The reports we provide now are professional and slick.”
Talking about the difference it makes to their client relationship, Kerry added: “The personal service that Build Aviator gives to us is very, very, very good. If we need changes, they’re done in minutes. Equally, if the client ever has questions on the quote, our estimator Simon will happily join a call with them to explain costings etc – which gives our customers extra confidence in our pricing and the job. Our clients just think…wow! It’s such a departure from figures on the back of a fag packet or scribbles on a piece of A4 paper.”
“They also work closely with us and the client to get the job on budget. If we need to remove some cost, they do that leg work for us and get it to the price we need.”
Professional reports and detailed estimates, combined with the ability to fit a job to the client’s budget, have been instrumental to KSW’s win rate Kerry believes: “Before Build Aviator we were probably about 35% to 40%. In the height of the home improvement boom in 2020/21, we were at 75 to 80% and now about 65%.”
Concluding, Kerry said: “We’ve now grown our business to the extent where next month we’re working on a £2m project and we’re rebranding again to focus on the luxury market. Our company has mainly grown thanks to Build Aviator.”
For more information on Build Aviator visit https://buildaviator.co.uk/our-services/estimate-service/
