How Mile High Coatings Contractor Sets Clear Expectations

Bad contractor stories usually start the same way: “They said it would be fine.” We sit down with David Nanninga, president and founder of Mile High Coatings, to get honest about what actually creates a great result in residential painting, commercial painting, and concrete coatings, and why the most important “product” is often clear expectations.

We dig into how we run an on-site consultation, the questions we ask to understand your real goal (selling a home, remodeling, repairing a leak, opening a business), and how experience helps us spot projects that are not a great fit before anyone wastes time or money. We also walk through the full menu of services, including interior and exterior painting, concrete staining, polished concrete, epoxy flooring, polyaspartic floor coatings for garage floors and patios, and even custom garage storage design and installation.

Then we talk about the calls we get every week: fixing competitor work that failed. We share what we see most often, how we reset scope and outcomes without sugarcoating it, and how better communication prevents surprises. We also explain why being a private, non-franchise contractor matters when you need flexibility with materials, specs, and solutions tailored to your space.

If you want a durable finish and a smoother project, listen now, then subscribe, share this with someone planning a renovation, and leave a review with the space you want to upgrade next.

To learn more about Mile High Coatings visit:
https://www.MileHighCoatings.com
Mile High Coatings
970-314-1023 

Transcript

Welcome And What We Do

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to the Mile High Coatings Podcast, where we elevate your spaces to a new peak in quality. Hosted by David Naniga, president of Mile High Coatings, this podcast explores how expert residential painting, concrete coatings, and epoxy flooring can transform garages, basements, patios, and commercial spaces across Colorado's front range. So grab your favorite beverage, sit back, and dive into the world of high-quality coatings.

Values That Beat Product Hype

SPEAKER_01 0:35

A company's values, systems, and real-world results often matter more than the products they use. Welcome, I'm Julie Schwenzer here with David Nanaga, the president and founder of Mile High Coatings. David, it's it's great to jump in and talk about how Mile High Coatings differs from competitors in the industry. What would you say are some core values or practices that make Mile High Codings stand out?

SPEAKER_02 1:03

That's a good good question. Thank you for asking that. I think that probably one of the biggest things that I've noticed or learned over the years is that I feel like we're pretty good at setting realistic expectations with customers. And you know, we do that by you know having obviously an on-site consultation and really just having a discussion with the customer and trying to get an idea of their goals, you know, why they're considering our company or this particular application or set of applications uh you know for their for their project, be you know, whether it's a garage floor or a basement or a patio or it's a it's a commercial space. And and also getting to know what their goals are. Are they selling a house? Are they buying a house? Are they doing a remodel? Are they redoing their basement because they had a leak? Are they a new business that's opening and they need something super durable or or they need something very economical and simple? And so all those things are important. And so we have a number of applications that we can present and offer, whereas some competitors might only have one or two, you know, types of solutions, if you will. And so I think that's probably one thing that that kind of sets us apart. And then with that, too, sometimes people don't know what they don't know. They, you know, they have a certain expectation or they maybe see something online and they have this idea in their head, and it's our job as salespeople, you know, as you know consultants to make sure that their expectations are are realistic and that that we identify you know potential problems and and and things that you know can can look really good, or maybe things that may not work so well.

SPEAKER_01 3:20

And I know that in a previous episode, when we talked to you, you mentioned how you did build this company from the ground up and you started with painting jobs, and you learned when to say no and yes, which I think as any potential customer would take that as being pretty important because you're looking for the right fit. And is that, you know, you apply that methodology as you expand your company?

SPEAKER_02 3:47

Yep. And I absolutely, especially now we're doing this for 18 years since twelve 2008. I would say, you know, looking back to to those beginning, those first few years, we probably did say yes to too many projects, or maybe there were the you know, the the the projects that weren't a great fit. And so all that experience over the years, it's easy to recognize projects that you know maybe a particular application isn't gonna work well, or someone has unrealistic expectations for for various reasons, right? So definitely the experience factor. I I always used to kind of discount the experience factor, but now you know it's coming in on 20 years here soon. And I really think that we have seen so many types of projects over the years and completed thousands of projects, millions of square feet, you know, with floors and painted so many homes and and you know, commercial projects, industrial projects. You know, we've had things go go wrong and we've learned from those. And so all that builds, you know, to to where we are now. And so I think we have just a really good approach, and we have usually we we can find a good solution for someone um, you know, when when when appropriate.

Full Service List In Plain English

SPEAKER_01 5:24

And I know time is always a factor for people when they're you know looking for quotes and they're looking to do something either with their home or business. Do you mind quickly reviewing all the services that your company offers?

SPEAKER_02 5:37

Sure, yeah. So started out doing painting. So we have interior and exterior painting services, both for residential and commercial projects. We do um on the coatings, we do concrete staining, and that could be good for a range of different projects, basements, commercial spaces, um, you know, offices, and we do polished concrete. So that's very popular in commercial industrial types of spaces, and of course the epoxy and polyasparta coatings that we do on garage floors, patios, and and also in commercials. So so there's a lot that there can be a lot of overlap, you know, between the different applications and and again, depending on sort of the goal of the customer. And then we do garage storage options. So we've we've been working with an awesome manufacturer organizers direct since 2016, so it's 10 years now, and and so they have lifetime warranty on their um, you know, on their cabinet products, we do a lifetime warranty on the install. And so we do we we design and uh and and install custom you know cabinet solutions for Karazids.

SPEAKER_01 6:56

And I know you've stressed that quality and consistency are really important across, you know, all the all the projects that you work on. What has it been like when you've been invited by a new customer to come and possibly fix something that a competitor had worked on?

Fixing Competitor Jobs Gone Wrong

SPEAKER_01 7:12

And what do you see the most often when it comes to something like that?

SPEAKER_02 7:16

I we actually just bid one yesterday. Happens probably, I would say, weekly where someone calls us to come and fix a competitor. All happens all the time, and and we redo it. Yeah, it it could be for a for a number of reasons. And uh, and so yeah, you just gotta feel for the homeowner. Um you know, a lot of times, you know, they may feel feel duped, or or maybe that you know, you know, we come in and they're maybe a little bit guarded or they're or they're angry, um, and you know, they they want fixed, and of course, it's already done, and they, you know, they're in a hurry, they want it done yesterday, type of thing. And so it's all these different things. So it's it's it they're always interesting projects in that regard. So, so again, that's really where setting expectations uh is very important because uh you we gotta maybe maybe we have to temper expectations, or maybe the con you know, the previous competitor, contractor, whoever just did such a poor job and it's and it's laughable. You're like, oh my gosh, I can't believe they thought this was acceptable, you know. And it, you know, and and so all that happens. And we just you know approach it like I would say about any other job, review options, and and maybe in some cases determine that wow, this was not the right application for this space, we have another option for you.

SPEAKER_01 8:45

So and you know, as somebody who had work done, you know, in our home recently, I really appreciate that a job is done well, and I look at it like a long-term investment for time and money. So, how do you go about that too, where you make sure that your clients are, you know, using the best materials that within their budget, but also you know, they're looking where they don't have to go back and revisit this project again in the near future. Because you're fixing all these jobs and then you have to come back because the other because a competitor do not do that.

SPEAKER_02 9:24

Yeah. So I think uh it it really just boils down to again making sure that the expectations are, you know, that that we can we can do what we say we can do and not just you know say, oh yeah, oh yeah, we we can fix that, or oh, oh that's no problem. And then, you know, the crew shows up and they're like, wow, this is impossible, or this is not gonna turn out well, or or or we do the project and there's some something wrong. And so I think that we we really try to use the best materials and use our experience. And we do so many of these projects that you know we we've kind of got it sort of nailed, you know, nailed down. We've kind of got it down to a science, so to speak, on most of these things. And so we rarely rarely have have issues, you know, anymore. And so um, of course, things happen, but uh yeah.

Communication Systems Customers Actually Feel

SPEAKER_01 10:31

And I know a challenge for a lot of people that I know, whether it was on their commercial space or home, is communication. How do you guys go about, you know, making everything transparent for the customer where they're not chasing you? Because I know a lot of people have dealt with that when it comes to contractors and painting and co, you know, everything that has to do with the project.

SPEAKER_02 10:54

For sure. So yeah, that's al always something we're always trying to improve on and and not always perfect on. But with that said, we we have a a CRM, which is you know, kind of our estimating software program that that helps. Um it's it's a tremendous help. We've been using it for a few years now. And um, it just helps with the being able to stay in touch and respond and and and communicate. And then while the guys are on site, you know, if they come across something, you know, they're they're likely calling, you know, me or or one of the sales guys, or and and consulting with the customer, like, hey, you know, we we we I just identified this potential issue. Here's you know, one or two ways we can fix it. Or or it could be something like, you know, here's a here's a problem, you know, there's not really a whole lot we can do, but we'll you know do our best. And so so it's just yeah, communicating that way and just making sure that that uh you know they don't just do something and then later on the customer is like, oh, I didn't know that was gonna happen, or I didn't know that was gonna look like that. So which which we see a lot of with with with the competitor uh projects and and things like

Non Franchise Flexibility With Materials

SPEAKER_02 12:04

that.

SPEAKER_01 12:04

So, David, since you are a private company that you did build and you're not a franchise, how is the experience different for a customer when it comes to supplies and materials available to them and of course customer service?

SPEAKER_02 12:20

Yeah, so a lot of times franchises may they use a certain you know sort of uh bucket of uh of products and they generally don't stray. We can use theoretically about anything we want. Obviously, we use the materials that we're we're most familiar with and comfortable with. And the other thing uh that that that I sometimes will point out is that you know we we buy our materials in bulk by you know multiple pallets a month. I mean, we go through a lot of materials. I've actually had manufacturers mention to me that I order more materials than some other distributors and spars. Like we we do a lot of floors and and and so you know, we use a lot of polyaspartic and and um th that's probably the main the the main product that we use, and we use a lot of it because we we do so many you know garage floors and industrial projects that you know uh they use a decent amount of material. So I I think that we're positioned in a way that that we have versatility, not only in the the size of projects that we can do, but in the range of products that we can use. You know, sometimes someone might have a spec or a particular product that they that they saw, and we'll certainly um explore that. Um it's possible, it's not a big deal.

SPEAKER_01 13:49

So okay. Well, David, thank you so much for giving us a closer look at what sets Mile High Coatings apart. We always appreciate your time.

Free Quote And Closing

SPEAKER_00 14:02

Thanks for tuning in to the Mile High Coatings Podcast. Ready to give your space a fresh, durable finish? Visit MileHighCodings.com for a free price quote or call 970-314-1023. At Mile High Coatings, we're not just painting walls, we're setting a new peak in quality. Until next time, keep your standards high and your coatings higher.