Spectrum Paint Grows with Family, Tulsa
By ANNE BOYD
Contributing Editor
EARLY STORAGE: Spectrum Paint owner Travis Detter says that his first storage location for his company was at this mini storage on East Admiral in Tulsa.
There are many companies throughout the Tulsa area, and Spectrum Paint has stood out among them since 1986. With the help of family, today the company has expanded and continues to offer unique products and services to area residents.
Owner Travis Detter says, “We offer a wide variety of architectural paints and coatings and powder coatings. We sell most types of paint and coatings except automotive finishes. We can provide everything from the paint on your wall to the coating that goes on the inside of water towers.”
Spectrum Paint is set apart from other stores in a number of ways. “We are an independent dealer versus a company owned store. We buy in such volume that we can be competitive with any of our competition whether they are regional or national paint manufacturers. Being independent, we have the opportunity of truly finding the best product for our customers’ needs without having our hands tied to one product.”
With a smile, Detter says the company first began with a small idea and a small location. “We started in a mini storage on East Admiral and I used a pager and payphone to stay in communication with customers. We got our first true business location a few months later. We started in 1986 and moved and expanded three times before we opened our second location on South Memorial in 1992.”
Through the years, the company has changed greatly. “We now have 34 locations in five states with over 160 employees. The company has changed greatly over the years.”
Most importantly, Spectrum Paint has become a family affair. Detter explains, “My father, John Detter, has overseen the purchasing and operations since 1994. My mother, Kay, helps with all of the important day-to-day details. Our oldest daughter, Gentry, is our advertising and public relations manager. Lee Kroeker, their nephew, is one of the top sales representatives, and their son in law, Kord Hawkins, is following in his footsteps.”
Some of Detter’s most cherished memories with the company involve family. “My favorite part was getting large enough to be able to get my dad involved as a full-time employee instead of just an investor. It is also very rewarding to have created a company that my oldest daughter, other relatives, and a close high school friend have chosen as career opportunities for themselves. I have been fortunate enough to find great employees who have given us the opportunity to grow. It is fun to watch them step in and help create an even stronger company because they care about their careers and their fellow employees,” he says.
Another detail of the company that Detter would never change is that it all began in Tulsa. “Tulsa is a great community because it is large but has a small town friendliness that is essential to helping a small business succeed. Tulsa has a long history of nurturing and supporting business whether it was the oil companies in the middle of the 20th century or the aerospace manufacturers that followed later. I think it helped that we started in a very tough economic time because we had to work hard to survive and it instilled a strong work ethic. We were never able to take anything for granted like some businesses tend to do when they are in the midst of an economic boom.”
Detter hopes that the company will continue to grow and cater to customers’ wishes in the coming years. For more information about Spectrum Paint, visit www.spectrumpaint.com, or call 918-398-2188.
Updated 08-27-2012
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