My Yardsticks: Miguel Pompa
Co-owner, Ideal Lumber Co., Galveston, Texas — (From the October 2008 issue of ProSales Magazine)
Count lumber and hurricanes among the constants in Miguel Pompa’s life. A yard worker’s son from nearby Texas City, Pompa came to this barrier island in 1979, and bought Ideal with partner John Parker in 1990. By September, Ideal had a dozen employees and $5 million to $10 million in sales. Then came Hurricane Ike, which damaged the yard but didn’t destroy it. Now Pompa, photographed at right before Ike, faces an extensive rebuilding effort. Here’s how he scans the horizon.
My Typical Day (pre-Ike). “I get here between 6 and 6:30 a.m. and check our delivery tickets. I order the lumber, so with the tickets I get a feel of what went out and a head start on what we’ll need. I also look for discrepancies in the loading card vs. what’s billed.”
Raising ‘Cane. “When those hurricane [warnings] come, people panic and buy more. At this time of year, I try to stock more than normal. People always look for less costly product when they board up windows: 3/8 CD and 1/2 inch CD, mainly. But I always have a truck and a half of 5/8 CD on hand because that’s what’s required for the builders.”
It’s Not the Heat, It’s? “Our treated lumber doesn’t last here because of the humidity. So we tend to sell more composite products. I was told we were the biggest Trex dealer one year.”
Being Hispanic. “I have been asked questions by Hispanic people, like ‘How did you do it? How did you become an owner?’ I just did it. It didn’t seem like a great decision [in 1990]; we went through the worst of that downturn. Now, we’re about 30% off what we were two years ago. But we’re still in the black.”
–Craig Webb
