Masonite has quietly launched in Florida a new service that bypasses its usual dealer distribution network and delivers custom-built doors straight to pros' jobsites within five days of when they place their order.
Called Advisar, the service appears to be similar to Door-Stop, a British unit of Masonite that the company has cited as a successful example of how technology can change the supply chain for doors.
The first YouTube video for Advisar began running on June 5, and a follow-up video published June 15 shows remodelers touting the service. A June 6 press release from Masonite described Advisar as "an exciting and revolutionary concept in online direct ordering" that now is available in central Florida. "The unique online platform features select offerings of pre-finished and pre-hung premium door systems, complete with decorative glass and hardware, delivered to the job site when the contractor needs it in as little as five business days."
Using Advisar's website, contractors can configure, quote, order and track their purchases. Orders are shipped direct to the job site when needed. Deliveries can take place in just five business days; a Tampa Business Journal article says the typical wait time for a customized door is four to five weeks. And if it doesn't come by when it's promised, the pro gets a 25% discount.
“We came up with a website that allows the contractor to design a door system ... and within 17 clicks you’ve designed a door, you hit the button and you get a quote, right there on the spot,” Todd Apple, vice president and business leader for Tampa-based Advisar, told the Business Journal. “We won’t commit to making that door until we check that the inventory is there and won’t give you a quote unless we know we can deliver the door in five business days or whenever you want it." The doors come pre-hung and pre-finished and come with all the hardware required.
Advisar represents a slight change of style for Masonite. It offers an online configurator, but the product is sold through the company's distribution network There's no indication on the company's website that it has sold directly to pros before.
Door-Stop International, which Masonite purchased for about $50 million in 2014, also uses a web-based configuration and sales tool. It offers to deliver a door in three days, or contractors get their money back. “It’s a great model for us,” Tony Hair, Masonite’s president of global residential business, told us in an interview in February. “It continues to outpace and outperform profitability for the rest of the company.”
The fact that Advisar's business model cuts lumberyards and other building material distributors out of the transaction is rankling some potentially affected dealers in Florida. In a statement sent to us on June 29, Hair confirmed that Advisar does represent the first time Masonite has gone direct to pros. But he added: "Those who work with us in this industry know we are as committed to our current distribution methods as we are to the success of our partners and customers . ... We continue to invest heavily in the success of our distribution partners through new products, new marketing solutions and new digital tools. We are committed to leverage the tools and data from the Advisar effort to enhance our current distribution partners’ business."
