Good Neighbor Podcast: Frisco

EP #261: From South Africa to DFW: How Damien De Klerk Built a Painting Legacy

• Sophia Yvette

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What makes Damien De Klerk with PRO Painting LLC a good neighbor?

Ever wonder what separates a true professional painter from someone who just slaps paint on walls? Damien De Klerk's remarkable journey from South African rugby player to founding Dallas's most trusted painting company reveals exactly that distinction.

Damien shares how his rugby career unexpectedly led him to painting celebrity homes in Aspen before establishing PRO Painting LLC in Dallas back in 2003. With refreshing candor, he dispels common myths about the painting industry, explaining why proper preparation, product knowledge, and meticulous attention to detail make all the difference between amateur and professional results.

What truly distinguishes PRO Painting isn't just technical expertise but their philosophy of partnership. "We're not a painting company that you hire and hope they do a great job," Damien explains. "We're on the same team." This approach has made them particularly valued by designers, contractors and realtors—clients who might send other painters running. While most companies avoid "picky people," PRO Painting embraces them, confident in their work quality and communication process.

The conversation reveals how resilience shapes successful businesses. Drawing from his rugby background, Damien lives by the motto: "When life tackles you hard, get up and tackle life twice as hard." This mentality has helped PRO Painting overcome inevitable challenges with what he calls "stupid resilience"—an unwavering commitment to making things right, no matter what.

Whether you're seeking a quality painter, running your own business, or simply appreciate stories of immigrant success, this episode offers valuable insights into building customer trust through transparency, communication, and genuine pride in workmanship. Discover why PRO Painting has earned their reputation as Dallas's go-to painting professionals for over two decades.

Ready to see the PRO Painting difference for yourself? Visit dfwpropainting.com or call 972-974-8003 to turn your painting project into a partnership.

To learn more about PRO Painting LLC go to:

https://dfwpropainting.com/

PRO Painting LLC

214-952-7809

Speaker 1:

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Sophia Yvette.

Speaker 2:

Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a trusted DFW painter? Well, one may be closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, damien DeClercq with Pro Painting LLC. Damien, how are you today?

Speaker 3:

I'm great, Sophia. Thank you for having me on the show.

Speaker 2:

Of course, damien, and it's a pleasure. We're so excited to learn all about you and your business, Can you?

Speaker 3:

start by telling our listeners a little bit about your company. Yes, so we've been in the Dallas area for about 22 years, since 2003,. I used to be the painter, the guy out there rolling the walls and painting, doing the physical painting, and we do residential and commercial paintings.

Speaker 3:

So with that experience I've brought into the company, into growing a business that helps equip some of Dallas's top crews painting crews and we're taking that level up to the next level, which is really just being trusted that we could deliver what we say we're going to deliver. So in the residential and commercial industry we're often known as Dallas' top painter that works with designers, contractors and realtors as well as wonderful homeowners.

Speaker 2:

So, Damien, getting into your story a bit more, tell our listeners how you got into this business originally.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I came from South Africa back in 2001. Came here to play rugby in the Super League. So I played rugby in the Super League for about eight years and in doing so, unfortunately we didn't make enough money with rugby here in America because it's not NFL football. But so some of us guys we all got together and worked with a wonderful painting company started painting up in Aspen, colorado, where our rugby team was. We painted a lot of movie stars' houses and all that up there. So from there I met my wife in the Dallas area while we were playing rugby here.

Speaker 3:

And one thing leads to the next the American dream Got the beautiful wife in Dallas and two kids and playing rugby and growing a business at the same time. So once everyone here in Dallas realized I could do a little bit of painting myself and I was highly have a high attention to detail when it comes to working I quickly became a popular amongst the designers and realtors and contractors in Dallas. My network is huge with them over the past 20 years and we still do a lot of business together. A lot of business together. A lot of us and some of my best clients are people we've been doing business together for 15 years, 20 years wow.

Speaker 2:

So, damien, it really sounds like rugby really led you to your full happy happily ever after huh yes, absolutely, absolutely.

Speaker 3:

Rugby is a good avenue and a good bunch of people and it doesn't matter where you are in the world. Rugby is a family.

Speaker 2:

So, damien, what is the most common myth or misconception in your industry?

Speaker 3:

the prep work and the details and the communication and the knowledge of the product that you're applying and making sure you're applied in the correct process, that you would understand that painting is a lot more difficult than just going down the home depot and just like slapping some paint on the wall. Now, good on you if you do it yourself, that's fine. But you know, diy job and a professional job are two completely different things. The next thing is that, like painting is cheap, it's not a cheap process. When you take the correct prep work, like I mentioned before, a highly skilled crew and a company that delivers great communication and project management, then you have the perfect mix of a company that's really going to take care of its customer.

Speaker 2:

on that next level, yes, and I can advocate for you as well. Trying to paint your home yourself is not a good idea.

Speaker 3:

Right, hey, it's a good idea. If you try, hey get on you if you try, so at least you tried.

Speaker 2:

Right. And so, damien, you got into who your target clients are. So, in terms of marketing, how do you typically attract them?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, we are. We do a lot of networking, so referrals are huge and, as you know, your referral goes only as far as your next good job, you know. So if we deliver a poor job, that referral stops right there. So I don't like to say we're perfect. We're far from perfect, but and but we'd like to say we're perfect. We're far from perfect, but we like to say we have a perfect process in the way we do things. So when we're out there looking for our customers, they want somebody that they know is going to take care of them, that they can be assured that we didn't just walk into a house and say that this job is worth $10,000 without giving you a detailed itemized estimate on why it should be that price. So a lot of other companies might come in and say, like you know, give you a number high or a number low, or should I say you might get an estimate that the number's high and number's low and you don't know where to go because you're just like, well, I think I'm just going to pick the nicest guy for the job or you're just going to go the cheapest because you don't want to spend that extra two, three grand. But in the long run that could cost you a lot more money. Um, so networking is is huge for us.

Speaker 3:

We love working with designers and if you ever ask a painter, do you love working with designers? A lot of them would say, oh, no, no, please, I don't want to deal with those picky people. Well, we love the picky people because we know we know nothing to hide in the work that we do. They love the work that we do work with some of Dallas's top designers and designing groups as well. General contractors love us as well, because they're sick of those painters or companies that just come in and they do a bit of a shoddy work and they leave and they never come back and do the touch-ups. Well, our contractors and our designers love that we schedule that touch-up day that's going to make sure that we come back and pay attention to the smallest little detail possible too. And realtors love us.

Speaker 3:

Realtors hate referring painters and contractors because they are uh, you know they do a great job one day and the next day they make a mess and they leave their client dry, you know, and it gives them a bad rap. But because of our process from beginning to end, they can be rest assured that they love referring us to other customers, you know. And then we love the homer that just gives us a call on the phone. You know like, hey, I saw your page and you guys do painted brick and you do great cabinets, or you know. Or you're number one on Thumbtack, so we're also around on some of the other third you know lead generating partners out there. So we've been number one on Thumbtack for the last five years out there, so we've been number one on Thumbtack for the last five years. Getting customers is all about just creating a good relationship with everyone that we have for the long term, everyone we work with.

Speaker 2:

I agree with you 100%. So, damian, let's go ahead and switch gears and talk a little bit more about your personal journey. Can you describe a hardship or life challenge you overcame and it made you a better and stronger business owner today? What comes to mind for you?

Speaker 3:

So we have in rugby. We have a saying and I've taken this throughout my life, and when life tackles you, when you get tackled in rugby really hard, you get up and you tackle life twice as hard. There's been a few projects that we've worked on where we've just dropped the ball and we've just like. For some reason. We hate to make excuses, whether it was the product that let us down, or my painter just had a bad day, know, or we get hit with covid and we need to figure out how to do business together and how to be working with other. You know, within the circumstances that we're in, our communication is key with everything and equipping our crews with the right knowledge to be successful, learning every day from others in the industry. We learn from contractors and other painters and I learn from our painters and we're on the job, hands-on, trying to learn and grow together.

Speaker 3:

Like I said, we're not perfect. We like to think we have a perfect process. Like I said, we're not perfect, we like to think we have a perfect process. So when the job hits us one day and we hit that bad job where we just dropped the ball, we're on a project right now that we just like the product, let us down or whatever it was. We're back there two weeks later and we're going to knock it out of the park and I'm looking forward to seeing a smile on their customer's face at the end of the day. And that's what really tickles me is when I get to see them just look at it and be like, wow, I'm not only just proud of the money that I spent, but I'm proud of my home. The resilience is what we have. We're stupidly resilient to just make sure it's done.

Speaker 2:

Resilience is a fantastic quality and every business owner should have that.

Speaker 3:

Right.

Speaker 2:

So, Damien, please tell our listeners the number one thing you would like them to remember today about Pro Painting LLC.

Speaker 3:

The number one thing that I would like our listeners to take away today is that we're on the same team. We're not a painting company that you're just going to go and hire and hope they're going to do a great job. When you hire us, you hire our whole team From the beginning, all our experience and everything our project managers. I have my son working in the business as well. He came straight out of high school and he's given his heart into this company because he's seen what we've done in the years, that he's grown up and he's looking forward and he's proud of that. And so the takeaway is we're a team and we want to be proud together on how your project looks at the end of the day and where can our listeners go to learn more about pro painting llc yeah, so we can be found on.

Speaker 3:

Our website is dfwpropaintingcom, and we also have a Facebook and Instagram, and we can also be reached at our office phone number. Chantelle is ready to take your call at 972-974-8003. And shoot us an email at info at dfwpropaintingcom, and we'd love to help any of you take care of your problem and become a team so we can do business together for the rest of our lives.

Speaker 2:

Well, Damien, I really appreciate you being on the show. We wish you and your business the best moving forward.

Speaker 3:

Thank you very much. It's an honor to be here. I appreciate you.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnpfriscocom. That's gnpfriscocom, or call 469-221-9345.