Adorning a wall on the outside of the Claremore, Oklahoma, location of Spectrum Paint is a beautiful tree mural, painted by renowned street artist Kelsey Montague. Montague started her #WhatLiftsYou movement in Manhattan in 2014 with large-scale murals of her iconic wings, and in 2020, Taylor Swift commissioned Kelsey to create a winged mural to help launch her song “ME!” in Nashville.
Gentry Stafford, vice president of marketing and store development, says when the company purchased the building for the Claremore store, it needed major exterior repairs, including new stucco and paint. Those repairs unfortunately covered up the existing mural, so Spectrum commissioned Montague to create a new piece.
“We knew we wanted to do a new mural, and the goal was to do something experiential that would inspire people from all over the region to come to Main Street,” Stafford says. “We were inspired by seeing Kelsey’s work in Nashville and subsequently following her on social media. When you travel, it’s fun to make memories by taking pictures with fun, local murals, and we thought it would be cool to bring one to our hometown.”
The mural has its own hashtag, #spectrumfamilytree, and visitors are encouraged to take photos with the mural and share on social media.
“It has been fun to see people use the hashtag to share their photos,” Stafford says. “Even more than that, we see people who are making memories with their families on Main Street come and take pictures, and it makes
our day.”
Showcasing Your True Colors
When it comes to staining, not every type of wood accepts stains the same way. At Summit Paint, which has locations in Akron and Barberton, Ohio, customers can see what different colors of stains look like on different types of wood before they buy.
“We’ve had these boards for about five years, and they give customers a better idea of what the stain will look like on the type of wood they are working with,” says owner and president Nelson Roder. “We have customers that come in just because we have the boards.”
The Barberton store has boards in poplar, oak, birch, maple and pine, each stained with different colors of stain the store offers. Currently, the boards feature Zar stains, and Roder and company vice president Craig Goos have plans to create boards for General Finishes stains when the store starts carrying that brand.
“Customers love them, and they make a quick stain choice much easier as they are much more accurate than brochures or factory samples. They have even kept us from having to make samples in the back for customers,” Roder says. “We want to be as helpful as possible, and this is just another way we can help our customers achieve the best results with their projects.”
When customers at Flanagan Paint & Supply need a recommendation for a paint or home improvement contractor, they can turn to the Contractors Connections board in the store in St. Peters, Missouri. The board includes business cards from contractors and businesses the company works with and recommends.
“We ask for business cards from our professional customers and share them on the board for other customers to reference when they need a contractor,” says owner Jay Flanagan. “We have quite a few customers who take advantage of the recommendations.”
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