This week, I received a call from one of our trusted partners requesting an updated letter to verify their status as a ProRez Coatings Authorized Installer. A general contractor was conducting due diligence to ensure that the installer was legitimate and reputable. At ProRez Coatings, we take immense pride in partnering with experienced, skilled contractors who are not only knowledgeable in industrial flooring but also uphold the highest standards of integrity and professionalism.
Unfortunately, the flooring industry has seen a rise in distributors who take a different approach. Many of these companies charge contractors for minimal training (a couple of days at best), impose monthly membership dues for discounted pricing or leads, and sometimes even charge subscription fees just to access training videos or speak with a representative. This model often favors sales over quality, which can be detrimental to both contractors and their clients.
At ProRez, we do things differently. We partner with contractors who are not only technically skilled but are also thoroughly vetted for their character and commitment to good business practices. I personally take great pride in the quality of floors our partners install, and I proceed with caution when considering new installers. Poor-quality installations damage more than just a company’s bottom line, they can severely impact a business’s reputation.
A poorly installed floor doesn’t just hurt the contractor; it also reflects badly on the manufacturer and all other contractors who use that product. Reputations are fragile in this industry, and “guilt by association” is a real concern. When manufacturers and distributors open up their product lines to the public, selling through retail locations or online stores without regard for the quality of the contractors involved, they’re not just risking their own reputation, they’re putting at risk the hard-earned trust that reputable contractors have built with their clients.
At ProRez Coatings, we believe in working with trusted professionals who understand that good work is the foundation of long-term success. When you choose to work with authorized, experienced installers, you’re not just buying a product, you’re investing in a partnership that values quality, integrity, and customer satisfaction.
How Buying Online and Retail Brands Kills Your Credibility
1. It Drives Prices Down Across the Board
When a homeowner can buy “the same” epoxy kit online, it anchors their expectation of what a floor “should cost.”
Even though the pro product is far superior, customers still compare price tags.
This forces contractors to:
• Spend more time justifying professional pricing
• Fight the “I can buy this at XYZ Depot or Amazon for cheaper” objection
• Compete with unrealistic expectations
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2. It Makes Your Expertise Look Optional
DIY kits imply “anyone can do this.”
When a brand markets heavily to homeowners, the installer’s skill appears less critical.
That means:
• Less respect for professional installation
• More customers thinking, “How hard can it be?”
• More failed DIY jobs you must fix after the fact (and they blame the product, not the installer)
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3. Wider Distribution Means Less Contractor Exclusivity
When customers can buy what contractors can buy, you lose any sense of competitive advantage.
Pro-only lines like ProRez give installers:
• Access to products their competitors don’t have
• Professional-only pricing structures
• Advanced chemistries not sold to DIY users
• True differentiation in bids and proposals
Retail brands erase that edge.
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4. Lower-Performance DIY Kits Hurt the Brand and Your Reputation
Homeowners often install epoxy incorrectly:
• Thin spread rates
• Wrong prep
• Wrong temperature
• Wrong mixing ratios
When the job fails, they blame the brand, not the installer.
Those bad reviews hurt professional installers who use the same label.
This doesn’t happen with pro-only lines.
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5. Retail Products Create Support Headaches
Homeowners flood the manufacturer with:
• “How do I mix this?”
• “Why is this yellow?”
• “Why didn’t it stick?”
• “My floor peeled up, who is responsible?”
Manufacturers responding to thousands of DIY complaints often:
• Soften their technical stance
• Change formulations for ease of use
• Focus on retail packaging instead of contractor needs
Professional installers end up getting non-optimized coatings that cater to consumer simplicity, not jobsite performance.
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6. You Get Undercut by Budget Installers
Retail availability empowers:
• Weekend warriors
• Handymen
• Low-skill “coating companies”
These crews buy retail kits and start marketing themselves as floor installers, undercutting serious contractors on price.
This drags down market rates and hurts the perception of the trade.
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7. Contractors Lose the Support They Actually Need
Retail/DIY products come with:
• Lightweight technical sheets
• Minimal jobsite support
• No systemization
• No architectural or industrial documentation
Professional installers need real tech support:
• On-site visits
• Cure window adjustments
• Chemistry troubleshooting
• Industrial system design
• Flooring specs for manufacturing plants
That’s something pro-only companies like ProRez excel at—and retail brands almost never do.
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The Bottom Line
When a brand sells directly to homeowners, it stops being a professional system supplier and becomes a commodity retail product.
For serious installers, that leads to:
- Lower margins
- Less competitive differentiation
- More price objections
- More DIY failures dragging down reputation
- More low-skill competition entering the market
- Less technical chemistry innovation
- Less respect for the trade
This is exactly why ProRez positions itself as a contractor-focused, coatings manufacturer.
No Amazon.
No big-box kits.
No consumer-grade compromises.
