Business

COUPLE NOT DOING IT ALONE IN RIPE, BUT DIFFICULT MARKET

For Capital Renovations, Alair Homes’ offer came at the right time

By Bethany Erickson

bethany.erickson@peoplenewspapers.com

The first time Alair Homes came knocking on Paul and Sherry Zuch’s door, the construction management network wasn’t successful in attracting the couple’s business.

Paul has owned his home building and renovations company, Capital Renovations Group, since 1999, and Sherry joined the business and became a co-owner in 2012. The company has been building and remodeling homes in the Park Cities, Preston Hollow, Greenway Parks, Bluffview, North Dallas, Richardson, Lakewood, and Northwest Dallas for decades.

A couple of years ago, he said, Alair contacted the couple to see if they would consider joining their network of independently owned custom builders and remodelers.

“At the time, we were not interested and passed on the opportunity,” he said.

But last year, a golf tournament serendipitously reconnected them with a couple of remodelers who had joined Alair a few years before.

“We had lunch with them the following week where they shared their story with us, and we were even more compelled to learn more about this opportunity,” Paul said.

After attending a regional meeting in Naples, Florida, in July, the couple became convinced that joining the network “would be a great strategic move for the future of our business.”

The ability to combine forces with other member builders in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, plus the company culture at Alair, attracted the Zuchs. The fact that they’d still own their business while doing so sealed the deal.

“The residential building and remodeling industry is changing rapidly and is widely driven by what homeowners expect, specifically how they prefer to engage in the building process and the relationship they have with their builder,” Paul said. “Most homeowners want a builder that is a trusted advisor, a client advocate, fully transparent with budgets, actual costs, mark-ups, and plenty of options.”

Even pre-pandemic access to materials, subcontractors, and other vendors could be difficult for an independent builder, and having a larger group’s purchasing and hiring power is advantageous, said Alair DFW regional partner James Hammel.

“It’s about just being more efficient with your back-of-house resources,” he said. “As a builder, I have a lot more going on behind the scenes as you get bigger and bigger, and you do less of what you actually love to do.”

And for Paul and Sherry, the network’s support comes when opportunities are ripe in Dallas, but the ability to execute is more difficult.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more challenging time,” Paul said. “There’s more opportunity right now because the market is so great here, and there’s so much work and projects. But there’s a severe shortage of labor, and the supply chain issues were impacting our business,

Capital Renovations Group owners Paul and Sherry Zuch build and remodel homes in the Park Cities, Preston Hollow, Greenway Parks, Bluffview, North Dallas, Richardson, Lakewood, and Northwest Dallas.

(PHOTOS: COURTESY ALAIR HOMES)

too, and permitting.”

Now that they’re part of the Alair network, they have better buying power and a “much broader bench of potential trade partners,” he said.

“Now, we’re actively doing a lot more volume at work. We’re getting the attention of a lot of suppliers. Major manufacturers want to do business with us.”

Comings and Goings

Teak Tearoom

(PHOTO: COURTESY BECKLEY AT WWW.BECKLEYPHOTO.COM) Heim BBQ (PHOTO: RACHEL SNYDER)

NOW OPEN

Teak Tearoom

Highland Park Village

The lunch spot within the Conservatory on Two, a retail concept by Brian Bolke, serves up a mix of such classics as the tuna melt and chicken tortilla soup plus new favorites like the roast chicken tartine and the Brian Bowl chopped salad.

Wulf Burger

Mockingbird Station

The burger joint known for locally-sourced ingredients and distinct red hamburger buns created using a natural beet extract recently opened a second North Texas location near Rush Bowls.

REOPENED

Heim BBQ

3130 W. Mockingbird Lane

Barbecue fans, rejoice! The popular eatery’s location near Love Field reopened after repairs necessitated by a fire in November.

COMING

360 Brunch House

Mockingbird Station

As one might expect from a brunch menu, the eatery, which opened its first location in Mansfield, offers plenty of omelets, skillets, benedicts, avocado toast, and more.

Hack Shack

Mockingbird Station

The indoor golf simulator bar coming to the shopping center will showcase 10 indoor hitting bays, golf-themed cocktails and bites, and three private suites for events or golf lessons.

Hydrate IV Bar

Mockingbird Station

The collection of spas coming in May provides registered nurse-administered services, ranging from IV Therapy, NAD+ IV Therapy, and injections.

Sandbox VR

Mockingbird Station

The Hong Kong and Silicon Valley-based company, founded by CEO Steve Zhao, created technology to make participants feel like they’re in an action movie. The store will offer immersive virtual reality experiences for groups of up to six participants.

Sekushi

Mockingbird Station

A Japanese eatery with specialty sushi, fresh seafood, happy hour, and more is coming to a corner of the shopping center near Urban Taco.

StretchLab

Mockingbird Station

The wellness concept offers customized one-on-one or group assisted-stretch sessions. The concept combines the Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) approach with dynamic and static stretching to increase range of motion.

– Compiled by Rachel Snyder and Greg Nielsen