On Thursday, May 17, 2012 Home-Tech’s Lakewood Ranch location proudly opened the doors of its 10,400 square foot showroom during an official Open House and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony. At 8:30 am, Steve Marino, Founder and President of Home-Tech, alongside Manatee County Commissioners Donna Hayes, Carol Whitmore and Robin DiSabatino, the Manatee Chamber of Commerce and the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, cut the ceremonial ribbon with a giant pair of scissors. Our contractor, Manasota Commercial Construction, who built our beautiful Lakewood Ranch showroom, was there to share in the celebration. Home-Tech’s Lakewood Ranch location is the company’s second location since 1981.
Table of Contents
WATCH HOME-TECH’S LAKEWOOD RANCH RIBBON CUTTING VIDEO
The Home-Tech employee-owners were especially proud of this moment. “It had been a long time coming, and to see this day finally happen was a joyful moment for all of us,” said Corporate Sales Director, Mike Hendershott. “More than six years of planning went into this Sarasota/Manatee location.”
Following the ribbon cutting, the County Commissioners had a question and answer session with CEO, Steve Marino. They were quite curious about our employee ownership program, which is very unique to this area.
Working AC Units – See and “Feel the Difference”
The event was an excellent way to showcase Home-Tech’s leadership in the AC field. Steve Marino addressed this by saying, “Home-Tech is different from other AC companies in this area. We want to educate our customers about the difference between AC systems so they can make a wise choice. A large part of the new Showroom has been designated to showcase the different brands of AC that we sell.
Our customers can come in and compare the difference between 3 working AC systems and air handlers.” The guests of the Open House were quite fascinated by the systems. One of the guests commented that it was great to see what the air handlers actually looked like and how the plumbing was set up on them. It gave her an idea of which would fit the best in her home.
Live Kitchen Displays
Of course, all of the brand new appliances in the working kitchens were a big hit too. Our Service Agreement customers were invited to attend, and many of them had no idea we carried brands like Thermador, Bosch, Whirlpool, Electrolux, Maytag, KitchenAid, LG, Samsung and more. They had fun strolling down Refrigerator Row and Laundy Lane. In each area of the showroom, informative videos played, teaching our customers about the many special features of these brands.
Thank You, Friends!
We wish to thank our friends in the community for attending:
- Robin DiSabatino, Donna Hayes & Carol Whitmore – Manatee Board of County Commissioners
- John Barnott – Manatee Building Department
- Heather Kasten
- Marianne Goldrainer -Manatee Chamber of Commerce
- Lauren Kratsch – Manatee County EDC
- Lori Basilone – Lakewood Ranch Community Activities
- Robin Parsons & Amanda Vercheski – Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance
- Brady Chapman & Vera McGill – PACE Manatee
- Ladd Waldo & Caroline Tanner – Easter Seals of Southwest Florida
- Jennifer Moss – Florida Public Relations Association
- Gabriele Vest & Valarie Wadsworth – Sarasota Young Professionals Group
- Dave Kramer – Leadership Sarasota
If you want to learn more about Home-Tech’s Lakewood Ranch location, as well as the Fort Myers office, please visit our website.