Rooflock, a new contender: New roof company boasts usps and a flexible business model

One of the most memorable sights from the recent Glassex was the stand of Rooflock, which was helped in its bid to be ‘Star of the Show’ by a Marilyn Monroe lookalike. The reason for the big entrance was a familiar one – to attract fabricators for the company’s recently launched roof system. But in reality, this Staffordshire systems house has set achievable goals, and offers many surprises, both with its product and in the way it does business.

Rooflock founder David Pemblington was attracted to the conservatory market after selling his successful music distribution business. Another key member of the team is Paul Hullock, who has worked for some important companies, at all stages of the conservatory process. They describe their company as a pure systems house. The extrusions and other components that make up the roof system are bought in, and the system is distributed by a third party logistics and distribution operation with 16 bases in the UK. The whole roof system totals around 200 components, which includes screws and colour options. Most conservatory roof styles can be made using one type of ridge and most designs use straight cuts.

Roofs are fabricated solely by customers, while Rooflock takes a continual training and support role. Designs are completed on First Degree software and when the first components arrive, customers are helped through the first few roofs and installers are supported on site.

Profit and open pricing

‘I believe that the way we’ve designed this roof means there’s more profit for the installer and fabricator’, says David Pemblington. Unusually for the industry, customers don’t get a discount according to the quantity of components they buy, and open pricing means that fabricators can assist each other. David is keen to stress that customers get a degree of exclusivity in their sales areas.

Unique selling points

A key feature of the roof is its ‘Polyclasp’ feature which prevent glazing panels slipping – a problem that usually accounts for a lot of maintenance calls. This is one of six patented security features that make it extremely difficult for a burglar to enter a house via the roof.

This unique selling point, and the company’s branding itself may remind readers of the short-lived campaign by Aegis a few years ago. The Rooflock team haven’t just brought the Aegis product back to market, although it does offer the same USPs. The design has been re-tooled, components are extruded at a state of the art extrusion facility, and the roof system offers a lot more besides security. ‘The other corner stones of your strategy have to be there’, says David.

Rooflock expects to have a network of over 20 fabricators by July, aiming for 40 by July ’06. The decision to do Glassex made people take the company seriously. ‘Although we had already converted a number of fabricators, the response from some was "come back when you’re well known".’ David has already booked a bigger stand for next year.

In summary

‘We’ve got a good quality product with many USPs, one of which is security’, says David. Other developments on the horizon are ISO 9001 accreditation and the availability of a portal frame for commercial projects. The company’s flexible philosophy means that Rooflock should make its mark on the conservatory market without too many growing pains. David remains open-minded about the future, as he expects the market to move faster still. ‘The fabricators are part of our business and are influential about where we go. We’re trying to make sure that everything we do is flexible’, he adds. ‘Nothing’s ruled out, and nothing’s ruled in.’