Philosophy
Here's the the part where it gets philosophical...
Now, some people will say that the philosophy of a business owner has no place in his advertising, and by extension, his website. Well, for starters I have never put a lot of stock in what "they" say. But beyond that I think that a person's outlook on life has a great deal to do with how he will operate his business. So it follows that this is information that you, my potential client, might like to know. And right there is one of those differences I mentioned. I think of the people who choose to do business with me as clients, not customers. Why? Because "clients" are people who use a particular business deliberately, exclusively and repeatedly. They expect a degree of professionalism as clients that they do not expect as customers who use whatever business is at hand and will satisfy their immediate need. "Customers" expect only passable service and may or may not ever use the same business again. The relationship is disposable. A dollar store seeks to attract customers. I seek to develop loyal clients. I also appreciate and value each and every one of my clients. I try to demonstrate this by NOT using pre-printed "Thank You" notes on service tickets like everyone else. Instead, I hand write "Thank You!" on every ticket. It's a small thing, I know. But it serves to remind my clients that I really do appreciate them. Maybe even more importantly, it reminds ME at every single home I visit.
That's the business philosophy. Here's the personal... We all know that you "can't take it with you when you die". What I think most people overlook is that while you are here on Earth it can also get awfully tiresome dragging "it" around with you. There comes a point where you stop owning your stuff and your stuff starts owning you. Well, I can't be bothered with that. I believe in living simply and honestly. Some people will call my approach laziness or a lack of motivation but the truth is it is more that I don't put a lot of importance on material things, plus a little touch of Karma.
I am not in business to get rich. It's not that I don't like money. It's just that I do not equate it with quality of life. I'd love to be rich, but I have never wanted to work that hard or that many hours per day. So, call me lazy if you like. Maybe I am... a little... but a big house and a fancy car are just things that require maintenance. That's not how I want to spend my time. I do what I do because I am good at it and I enjoy it, and because I get to make a difference in the quality of people's lives. The old truck still runs. I don't owe anyone. And at night, I sleep like a baby. To me, that's what it's all about.
In practice this means that instead of putting a bunch of trucks on the road and raking it in, I do the work myself. I charge a reasonable rate and I make a reasonable living. I have no employee hassels that way. The Karma part shows up in the form of honesty. This is a business where it would be very easy to make a lot of money on people by misleading them. A lot of people do. But I won't tell you that you have termites when you don't just to make a sale. I really believe that you reap what you sow. So I'll do the job the right way. The common sense way. The honest way. And damn the torpedoes.
401-821-9440
My name is Tom Brennan and I am the owner of the business. I also do the majority of the work. I've lived in RI my entire life, raised three of the world's best new adults, am always looking for new and better ways of doing stuff and am a big fan of common sense. Since I'd be the one doing any work at your home, let me tell you a bit about myself, my experience level, and how things are done here at CPC.
Ownership
I started in the bug biz working for the venerable Griggs and Browne Co. back in about 1982. I learned a lot there and made a lot of both good friends and fond memories. After leaving G&B I worked for a friend for a while and when he sold his business I went with it. The new owner didn't have much luck as an entrepreneur and in a short time that little company went out of business. Out of a job I had a choice... Go back to working for someone else or hang out my own shingle. So, in August of 1989, CPC was born!
History
Coventry Pest Control
a TAB Enterprise _______________________________________________Professional Pest Controllers since 1982
We are your Pros!
27 years of experience !
Thank you for visiting Coventry Pest Control on the web! As you go through the site it will not take long for you to realize that CPC is a very different kind of pest control company... from ownership through history and operating philosophy. That word, "different" will come up a lot on this site. If you have visited other company's sites you've seen basic, out-of-a-box products, created by web site providers to satisfy the requirement of having a web presence. They give you a phone number and tell you what services are offered, but not much about the people behind the logo. So let's start the differences there...
That choice presented both a challenge and an opportunity. I had always wanted to do things a little differently than the competition... a little innovation, a little closer interaction between owner and client. As I said earlier, I am a BIG fan of common sense so I launched the company with the idea of doing pest control from a common sense perspective. One of the big things I looked at was the standard "quarterly service program" offered by every major p.c. company around. Basically they cover certain specific problems and they visit your house like clockwork every 90 days. Well, one very obvious thing I learned early on is that bugs do not own calendars. I mean it would be cool if they did because then we could just make an appointment with them to meet in one place and wipe them all out. Sort of like an insect version of the OK Corral. But it just doesn't work that way. All pests react to environmental stimuli to control their cycles of life. So your treatments need to be tied to these stimuli... not the date. That's why I designed the very first of it's kind Trimester Service Program. Click that link and I'll tell you all about TSP.
Of course, being in the industry since the early 1980s it is fairly obvious that I have a good deal of experience. But it's not always that easy to tell the experienced from the inexperienced. Anyone can slap a sign on a pick up truck and run around with a sprayer and some chemicals that they found in the garden department of Home Depot . So let me just add a few words about how to tell a professional pest control person from the other kind. First, every PMP must be licensed by the State, and then some of us are Certified. Certification is to Licensure sort of like being a Doctor is to being a Nursing Assistant. It indicates a long term dedication to expand one's knowlege base as well as to stay abreast of the latest advances is specific areas of the industry, such as Termite Control or Wildlife Removal. So, when you talk to a pest controller, ask for his license or certificate number. You have every right to know, and then you have the ability to call the D.E.M. and find out if he is legitimate. But that piece of information also gives you another insight into his level of experience. You see, license and certificate numbers are issued sequentially and numbers are not reused. So the lower the number, the longer the person has had the certificate. To give you an example, current certificates are being issued in the high four digits. My Certificate number is 440.
Since 1989 I have been asking that one question. You have choices in a pest control company. Lots of choices. But the majority of companies that ADVERTISE for Coventry and Kent County work... are NOWHERE NEAR HERE! Some of them aren't even in Rhode Island. So I think it is important to point out that...
I AM THE LOCAL GUY! Have been for more than twenty years. I live right here in Coventry about two minutes from the high school. There are a couple of other guys around but they do not have the experience or the length of time in the busines that I do. And they never will. Some companies are getting really creative in the ways they mislead you about their location, their size, their experience level, and so on.
Some examples I have learned about: One company claims they have been in business 30 years, but the truth is that they just are a franchise office of a company that opened 30 years ago, in another state. Their RI experience level? About two or three years. Another company has seven telephone numbers listed in an effort to apear like they have offices in, and are local to, several towns. They don't and they're not. Some boast of having been in business for a very long time, but fail to mention that they just bought an existing business. I even called one company and asked about scheduling a visit. When pressed the woman who answered the phone finally admitted that she would have dispatched her "local" representative with an email from her office... in Atlanta, GA.
So I try to state things very clearly. I started working in this industry in 1982, in Rhode Island, for another company, and in 1989 I opened my own business right here in Coventry and have been here ever since. In a full day's work I seldom drive more than thirty miles and I'm always less than ten minutes from home. I have one or two guys who help me out and I work out of a home office and an off site warehouse.
You're entitled to the truth in choosing your pest control company. The truth is: There is only ONE that has been here in Coventry, with the same ownership for over 20 years... And you're looking at it! Home Grown and Locally Owned. NOT a franchise. NOT a "Regional Office". Your neighborhood professional pest control company.
COVENTRY PEST CONTROL
We are Your LOCAL Pros!
Experience
Philosophy
401 - 821 - 9440
TAB Enterprises
In various places and different types of advertising you'll see the reference that Coventry Pest Control is "a TAB Enterprise". Some folks have asked what that is all about. Many years ago my dad opened a toy store in Central Falls, Rhode Island and with that was born a corporate entity called "TAB Enterprise" As he later dabbled in other businesses he kept each one under that same corporate name. I have several business interests including Bindlestiff Rentals through which I provide rental apartments to my resident-customers. Square Deal Handyman which is self explanatory, and of course Coventry Pest Control. Among my other endeavors are providing voice talent for radio and public service announcements... Something I call Headstrong Talent. In honor of my dad's memory, I reference each separate project as "a TAB Enterprise."
Why call another, when you can call A NEIGHBOR?
