It’s May, time to kick off the summer season, and what evokes summer fun more than frolicking in a backyard pool?!
With the pandemic and the amount of time folks have hunkered down inside, many people will be looking forward to opening and enjoying their pools this year.
At Savol Pools, company officials have been planning all winter for what they expect to be a busy pool season starting this month. Pool sales skyrocketed during the pandemic when people were spending more time at home, says Ken Camello, president of Savol, an East Hartford-based pool maintenance and repair company.
In addition, he says, the real estate boom in the last year means homes with pools have new owners, some of whom have never owned a pool before.
“With the increased sales of new pools our business servicing them has grown exponentially.”
Savol started in the 1930s as a general chemical distributor. Ken and his former business partner, Chris Duff, took over the business in the late 1990s. They began focusing on selling pool chemicals to meet an increasing demand and over the years the firm expanded into pool repairs and maintenance.
Just a small sampling of some of the long list of services the company provides include openings/closings, liner replacements, restorations, diving for underwater repairs, leak detection and repair, salt systems, heater repair and replacement, pump replacement and repairs, drain cover replacements, tile/coping repair/replacement, skimmer replacements and safety covers.
With a staff of 12, and a fleet of service vehicles, Savol is open year round and serves residential, commercial and municipal customers.
Most of its customers, Ken adds, want full service, which includes general maintenance, repairs and pool chemical services.
The company, says Lynn Spaulding, Savol’s office manager and part owner, prides itself on being a “one-stop source for all of our customers’ pool needs.”
Savol’s success as the region’s premier pool maintenance company, rests largely on its dedicated staff, says Keith Anderson, Savol’s service manager.
“What separates us from other companies is that everyone enjoys what they do and we communicate that to our customers,” Keith says.
The company invests in ongoing education programs for its staff and even customers, Lynn adds. Savol managers recently met with one large commercial account to help its employees understand the workings of its outdoor pool.
“That’s the kind of value-added that we try to bring our customers,” Ken says. “Some of our customers call us their business partner and that’s the ultimate compliment for us.”