Gordon’s Hits Vegas!

Road trip! From February 4th – 6th, Gordon’s Window Décor will be exhibiting at the International Builder’s Show in Las Vegas and will present a proposition that will reshape the way homes are built and financed.

The International Builder’s Show, organized by the National Association of Home Builders, is the largest annual light construction show in the world – a gigantic showcase for the latest and greatest products of residential construction. The event includes over 100 educational sessions ranging from building green to risk and budget management, as well as access to countless exhibits. The show expects more than 75,000 industry professionals from over 100 countries!

Gordon and Kelly, his daughter who now manages the day-to-day activities at Gordon’s Window Décor, will attend the Fabricator Alliance semi-annual meeting prior to the International Builder’s Show. Following the show, they will attend the International Window Coverings Exchange semi-annual meeting. Both organizations include leading members of the window treatment industry in Canada and the U.S. and are committed to sharing best practices for everyone’s benefit.

Gordon’s Window Décor is part of a group of independent window covering fabricators known as the National Window Covering Alliance, offering special programs designed to service home builders. The NWCA has partnered with Somfy – the leader in window automation – to create a booth full of the most exciting window treatments on the market. They will be showing products ranging from the Vision shade to EcoSmart Insulating shades.

During the International Builder’s Show, he and fellow member Nigel Brown of Victoria, BC, will meet with Jerry Howard, Executive Director of the National Association of Home Builders to spark the conversation about a revolutionary opportunity.

Here is the thought – throughout the chaos of building, buying, and furnishing a new home, details such as window treatments tend to be an afterthought. It is often the case that the buyer, exhausted from making so many decisions during the home building process and strapped for cash, but in urgent need of privacy, will settle on window treatments that are ineffective and not aesthetically pleasing or go with no window treatments at all. Settling on window treatments, which can have one of the most dramatic impacts on a living space, is a huge disservice to the buyer who has just spent so much money and time making their new home perfect.

The idea that Gordon and Nigel will share in Las Vegas, then, is to include window treatments as part of the new home’s mortgage. It costs roughly $4,000 to fit a whole home with EcoSmart Shades, but if included in the mortgage, would cost only $15 a month!

For less than a bottle of wine a month, a homeowner can enjoy all the benefits of high quality window treatments every single day. Furthermore, the energy savings gained with our EcoSmart insulating shades can add up to $25 a month, leaving an extra $10 in your client’s pocket.

The builder can set up a program with a reputable window treatment dealer, ensuring top notch service and the best possible pricing and long-term financing. Imagine the ease and appreciation of moving into new home with beautiful custom window treatments, and only having to pay for them as long as they live in the house – typically just 1/7th the total cost.

Similar measures were taken in the 1950’s, when builders and lenders included an allowance for carpeting in every home. With a 30-year mortgage, homeowners paid a mere $7 a month while they lived in the home, and never had to go through the process that accompanies installing a late addition like new carpets.

There is no other element in the home that makes as great an impact as window treatments – they control sound, energy, drafts, and are used every day. When window shades are purchased with little background knowledge, often times there are mistakes. It has been estimated that if all the homes in the US were equipped with effective cellular shades we could save the equivalent of the BP oil spill every year.

“When builders align with window professionals, the client achieves the maximum impact of money spent on such an important element. All the builder has to do is call us and we will deal with all the details” – Gordon Clements

Here’s hoping that all goes well and this brilliant idea can start making the energy-saving process that much easier! Be sure to check out our Facebook for updates on our fabulous Las Vegas adventure!