Steady as you go - the history of Ken Hall Plumbers in Adelaide
The story of Ken Hall Plumbers which began in 1983, is a tale of perseverance, courage and commitment. Ken Hall started from humble beginnings, surmounting many obstacles to create a successful plumbing business in Adelaide that always maintained a focus on the customer first and foremost.
We interviewed Ken about some of his defining moments, challenges and turning points. He generously shares his journey of creating a business he’s very proud of, and one that has solid loyalty from its customers.
What was the role of a traditional plumber in Adelaide when you started the business in 1983?
“What we do now is what we’ve done since day one. A plumber has always been multi-skilled and that hasn’t changed. From bathroom renovations which include the plumbing, pest control, rendering walls, tiling and installing fixtures and fittings, to replacing taps, stopping water leaks, fixing leaking gutters – we did all that back then and we still do it today.
We used to outsource the electrical work which was sometimes required to complete plumbing jobs, but now we have electricians in house. They do the work to our standard, so we can maintain customer satisfaction levels in our unique way.
Our commitment to our customers has never wavered. Any good plumber was only as good as the current job they were working on, and I was always looking for ways to improve my customer’s experience of our services. We always did whatever it took to make sure the job was finished first time right, and that hasn’t changed.”
Every successful business has values that form the foundation of great customer service - what are Ken Hall’s?
We have ten core values that make up the Ken Hall Way and they start with putting the customer first and delivering a service right the first time. They are:
- Customer First - Acknowledge, listen and understand the customer.
- Be Proud -Present yourself professionally and take pride in your work.
- Integrity Matters - Work with honesty and integrity always.
- First, Time, Right - Find ways to be better everyday and aim for excellence.
- Set the Standard -Be service focussed and values driven.
- Be Positive - Love what you do and do it with passion, drive and determination.
- Communicate -Clear and simple, be a trusted advisor.
- Learn - Grow, upskill and evolve.
- Team Work - Support, empower and inspire your colleagues.
- Own It - Take the lead, be bold, be accountable.
We live and breathe these values in the business and the entire team know how much they mean to me. They’re the reason we continue to deliver excellent customer service every day after thirty-seven years.”
What has been the constant thread in your business that is responsible for its longevity?
“For anyone thinking about starting or growing a business, I’m happy to share what I believe made my business successful, and is as true today as it was back then:
- Consistent and sustained effort over the long term succeeds
- Never get ahead of yourself, that’s when you fall off your track
- Think things through, allow yourself to grow at a pace you can manage, but be steady and systematic about it
- Care for the people around you, life is more rewarding when you do this
- If you stress too much, you’ll burn out, have a strategy for quality down time
- Maintain your ethics and values no matter what, throughout your growth
- The finish line doesn’t matter, what is going on in your body and your head in any moment is what matters, the finish line will look after itself. “
I can speak from experience when I say that by sticking to our core values through thick and thin, we were able to keep steadily growing the business and maintaining customer loyalty, overcoming one obstacle after another.
Throughout our history we were always committed to quality customer service, putting ourselves in our customers’ shoes to understand what they needed. Repeat business was more important to us so we wanted to do it right the first time, and customers remained loyal to us.
Today there are many aggressive businesses in our space whose intent is to make as much money as they can make from a customer instead of making service a priority. We have traditional values of solving the problem first so that the customer is happy. We aren’t chasing the dollars, we do a good job, and have satisfied customers who are happy to come back to us.“
What’s ahead for Ken Hall Plumbers?
“I have just as much passion today as I ever did to manage and run my business with exceptional staff and to keep seeing it grow. I enjoy watching the people in my business grow and develop and I seek ways to help them evolve as people. I’ve had to wear many hats in the business.
The main challenge for us now is to ensure that we continue to be the best at what we do every day, in the face of changing customer needs and increasing competition. We’re here for the long term to do things properly, one job at a time, and the job we’re doing now is the most important one.”
Ken’s defining moments that helped shape Ken Hall Plumbers in Adelaide
Behind every successful business, there are defining moments for the individual who started it. Ken shares some pivotal lessons in his life, that eventually formed the core values that his business is based upon today.
School and life lessons
The education system in Australia (and the world) had very little idea about how to guide children with dyslexia back in the 1960’s and Ken had this condition which made school an arduous experience. In some ways, this was a blessing. He learned the value of listening to others and understanding their needs, of persevering and hard work, and of learning to cope with struggle while still maintaining focus.
Although school was not his favourite place to be, he looks back and understands the incredibly valuable lessons he learned for life and subsequently his business.
Footy and caring for others
With a passion for AFL, Ken played for Sturt for a few years but too many injuries brought this to an end. As with all chapters that close, there’s always a lesson to take with you. While going through his own recovery and rehabilitation, he learned about empathy, compassion, being human and the amazing capacity that people have to show genuine care of those around them. This was a valuable lesson for his own business and going that extra mile to look after both staff and customers.
Being a sole parent to his three small children and perseverance
Raising a family for any parent is a commitment and at times a challenge, add a growing business and being a sole parent make it even more of a challenge. This stage of his life taught him the value of persevering and following through on your word. These were important qualities required to look after the 100+ employees that work at Ken Hall Plumbers today, and the many thousands of plumbing customers in Adelaide.
Demand Duo and creating better choices for the industry
In the late 1990’s, apartment buildings were popping up in Adelaide and so was a need for a more efficient commercial hot water system. At that time, Rheem owned 85% of the marketplace and the technology was inefficient. Hot water tanks were installed on top of multi storey building in the wind and cold, losing heat quickly. They were inefficient, cost more than they needed to and had a short five year life span.
Ken established Demand Duo and developed a commercial hot water system with a five-star heater (in comparison to the three and four star that were in the market) and a stainless steel tank with minimal heat loss and a longer life.,/p>
The product was approved by the National Gas Association and gained acceptance from national suppliers. It’s a classic David and Goliath story, with Ken taking on dominant corporate players and raising the standards on commercial hot water systems. Ken Hall Plumbers succeeded in offering the commercial hot water market a completely new product that was more efficient than the market had seen in over thirty years.
