My company became members of the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) in 1992. NTCA’s president at that time was Jay Fischer of Fischer Tile & Marble from Sacramento, Calif. Jay and an NTCA representative made a trip to central California and introduced us to the NTCA as we knew nothing about it. We were stuck in our own little bubble in Visalia, Calif.
For the next 20 years we paid our yearly membership fee, focused on what we knew, and continued to stay in our bubble. In 2012, we realized the tile industry was rapidly changing and we needed to be more up to date with products, methods, business relationships and business practices. At a Crossville and Custom Building Products co-op training, Mary Yocum persuaded us to apply to be recognized as an NTCA Five-Star Contractor and become more involved with the NTCA and the tile industry. Since that moment our business began to change.
Up to this point our product knowledge and installation methods were gained through supplier representatives and our own experiences. Because this was the only avenue, the knowledge came slowly and was not always accurate. After becoming more involved, we were at the forefront of the knowledge and sometimes took part in the creation of these new approved methods.
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