INTERVIEW WITH: Gregg Mizerak, President of Randall Brothers
Randall Brothers serves the metro Atlanta and North Georgia markets with construction supplies for virtually any project, including New Castle Steel (NCS) products. Gregg Mizerak, President of Randall Brothers, spoke with us to discuss current trends in decking and why their partnership with NCS has been so advantageous for their customers.
Tell us about yourself and Randall Brothers
I've been in the industry since I was a kid. I helped start PMC Building Materials in 2008 to serve local contractors, homebuilders, remodelers, deck builders, specialty contractors, homeowners, and more throughout Metro Atlanta and Macon. When Luther Randall from Randall Brothers decided to explore new ways to expand their business in 2018, he saw our success with PMC and reached out. They had an excellent reputation in the industry and had been in the Atlanta market for over 135 years. Luther was so impressed by our business model and what it could mean for Randall Brothers' future that he decided to incorporate us into the company. He bought us to change his company, and we are doing just that.
At Randall Brothers, we focus on a traditionally underserved segment of residential marquee deck builders who take pride in their craftsmanship and innovation. We aim to provide superior products and outstanding customer service and look for suppliers with the same mindset. Jason Alloway and his team at New Castle Steel are known for incredible service, quality products, and everything in between. It's a perfect match, and we're thrilled to distribute their products so everyone can benefit from their offer.
What do you see trending in decking and construction right now?
Interest rates are high right now, so people are not motivated to buy new construction. As a result, we've seen a lot of deck replacement projects, new decks, and customers looking to replace old pressure-treated decks with composites and alternatives to wood.
Thanks to what we've learned through our partnership with NCS, more and more of our customers are looking at steel. People are proactively coming in and asking for it. They recognize the long-term benefits, the value, and what steel has to offer: durability, structural soundness, and just overall improvements over wood framing. It's good to see customers drawing the same conclusions about something we've known for some time. But it's not just customers who are becoming more aware of the benefits of steel. Professional deck builders are starting to design with steel framing to avoid callbacks due to the performance of traditional lumber. It's just a better product than wood and maintains its structural integrity. Everyone wins with steel.
Building a new deck or redoing one is a significant investment. I've personally done it twice, and we used steel framing on both. My house would fall before my deck.
What's your relationship with Jason Alloway, Owner of NCS?
Randall Brothers has partnered with Jason Alloway for years. He was a loyal customer when he started his deck-building business and actually built out all of our metro Atlanta showrooms. Now we're partners in this new venture. It's been a mutually beneficial relationship for both of us. He does things the right way and cares about his partners and customers. His expertise in lightweight steel deck framing and his availability to educate and train our staff is one of the reasons we value the partnership so much. When we need a resource, we know we've got it.
What's happening next for Randall Brothers?
We just opened a new state-of-the-art facility in Atlanta with a heavy focus on deck building. That makes three locations for us: Marietta, Lawrenceville, and Atlanta. We also invest heavily in warehousing and racking to be more efficient in servicing customers, whether they're homeowners or professional builders. We invest in our storerooms to help professionals and consumers see their designs come to life. People can come in, sit down in our deck design center, and review their options.
We're also constantly focused on exceeding customers' expectations every day. Every position, from the showroom floor to me as President, is customer-focused, regardless of tenure or experience. That's the Randall Brothers' philosophy.
You also help a different kind of underserved community with your charitable work. Can you explain?
We donate all the building materials to Sunshine on a Ranney Day. They do total home makeovers so children with disabilities can have accessible homes, and they theme it for the kids and families. It's the only charity we donate to, and we do it because it's such a good cause and we want to support these types of things in our community—anything we can provide, we do. We build a lot of ramps and decks so the kids and their families can enjoy the outside. The first house they remodeled was for a 2-year-old injured in Hurricane Sandy who became severely disabled. My daughter was the exact same age as him, and it really tugged at my heartstrings. His family was buying a house so that he could be closer to his doctors, and I reached out to find out who they were working with and how we could participate. And we've been donating and doing this for the last 12 years.
