Ask the Expert: Theo Tsalacopoulos

Tony Cassar: Welcome, Theo! Thank you for being part of the WFA Ask the Expert series.

Theo Tsalacopoulos: Tony, I’m very pleased that you’ve asked me and I’m very humbled, mate.

Tony Cassar: Let’s start with the history of unique screens. Theo, tell us a little bit about it.

Theo Tsalacopoulos: We started Unique Screens in 2003. Prior to that, we had worked with my father and his partner in both wholesale manufacturing and retail. We had been in the industry for some time, and Dad sold out in 1999. Part of that was because his two sons, George and I, were also leaving. We took a four-year sabbatical from the industry and pursued other opportunities, such as working in electronic security.

I studied electronic engineering at uni, but ended up dropping out. I still have a passion for technology though, but that’s another story.

We’d been out of the industry for a while, but when you’ve done something all your life, you miss it. It was time for us to get back in there. My brother George and I turned to our dad and said, “You know what, dad? George and I are getting back into the game.” He replied, “Great! When do we start?”

Dad had sold out at 59, and at the age of 62, he was still young. We started Unique Screens.

We wanted to be a little bit more specialised than the mainstream manufacturers. We had this vision of working within motorisation and we could see that technology grow in homes. There was a massive gap in the market. 

We entered the industry with a clear goal: to sell motorised roller blinds. We were familiar with roller blinds, motorised rollers, and external components. It was just the three of us, and we leased a factory and some equipment. We walked in and looked at the four walls, with no customers.

Tony Cassar: You mentioned your dad is still working with you?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: Dad retired about two years ago.

We retired him at 81, but he does still come in now and again. Yeah, he still comes in. I think he likes to see his boys and spend some time with them as well. So yes, he’s still going strong.

Tony Cassar: Do you have any other family members working in the industry?

Theo Tsalacopoulos:  Our sons have spent some time in the business. My oldest son, when he was at university, was involved as well.

During uni holidays, my brother’s son comes in to give us a hand and earn some pocket money. My youngest son also helps out on his spare days. He is finding his direction, he’s here full time at the moment. The kids have all done some time, well, the boys have anyway.

Tony Cassar: What range of window coverings do you manufacture?

Theo Tsalacopoulos:  We have a small range of three core products: the traditional roller blind, external products such as views and zip screens, and motorised curtain tracks.

Rollers are our most popular product in terms of core numbers, but we also have a high degree of motorisation for that product.

The feather in our cap is the Somfy range of motorised curtain tracks. We’ve been making those since about 2009, before they were popular and before soft furnishings started to take off again. Soft furnishings went through a cycle, with the majority being done in the eighties and nineties, with the occasional roller blind in a kitchen or bathroom.

We’ve had this surge of blind growth, and now we’re seeing this cycle back to sheers and curtains.

With curtain tracks, we bend them, curve them, and powder coat the tracks. We find solutions to customers’ problems with them. That’s probably our strongest area.

We don’t do any direct supply, so we don’t do any direct commercial work. That wasn’t what we wanted to do as far as getting back into the industry. We’ve got relationships with commercial retailers who specialise in that sort of field.

We work with residential retailers as well. We may also do consulting work with them. We may go out to commercial projects where they need assistance with integration into a building management system or finding the best product solution. However, we do not do any direct work at all.

Tony Cassar: You mentioned  your time at uni. What else were you doing before uni?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: Before university, during high school, I cut my first blind at 16 during school holidays. I was out there cutting blinds and assembling warnings and all that sort of stuff. We were introduced to the industry in the early days.

Tony Cassar: What roles have you undertaken within the business, seeing that you’re with your brother? 

Theo Tsalacopoulos:  We have two different sides of the business that we manage. George looks after most of the production side of the business and manages the order processing with the staff. I am probably the one who takes care of the other aspects of the business. We are like yin and yang.

I work extensively with clients on solution selling, finding the best solution for their challenges, and discussing motorisation options.

Tony Cassar: What do you think you would have done if you didn’t enter the window covering industry?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: I’ve never seriously considered it before. Once I was introduced to the industry at a young age, I thought about it more seriously. When I started working in it full time at 21, I knew it was the right path for me. We took a break from the window furnishing industry for a while, but we always wanted to come back. If I hadn’t pursued this, perhaps I would have gone into the design field; perhaps something in technical sales or working with high-end products in the electronics industry. However, I have not seriously considered this possibility.

Tony Cassar: What do you think are your greatest challenges with the business at the moment, Theo?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: The current economic climate, both at a global level and at a local level, is something we need to be cautious of over the next 6 to 12 months.

I think we have at least six months of challenges.

Until we can see some interest rate reforms and some confidence back to the economy, mum and dad businesses are stretched at the moment. That disposable income, let’s face it, is still a luxury item in many cases. You don’t need new blinds or curtains, or even a blind for the al fresco dining. You may want it, but it’s not a necessity.

That’s probably one of the biggest challenges. The other thing is maybe some supply chain issues. In terms of pricing, we have to be able to adapt quickly as wholesalers. We all tend to hold our pricing as long as we can, or until the competition moves. I think potentially we could see some dramatic increases over the next 6 to 12 months.

Tony Cassar: How do you prepare for that sort of future?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: I think that you have to make sure that your business is still in a strong financial position. You have to be selective with the people that you deal with of your customer base. You have to work closely with them in a pseudo partnership to really understand where they’re going with their business. Ultimately, you have to keep a war chest.

We’ve always had very good arrangements with our customers, so we’re not particularly interested at the moment in opening up new accounts. We don’t do things like cod or credit for someone new that’s just coming along. We don’t really know who they are.

We’re really being careful to make sure that we always pay suppliers on time. They’ll always look after you and deal with customers who want to do business with you. Obviously, we do the same for you. That’s been our mantra.

Tony Cassar: Has motorisation become quite competitive now?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: I think motorisation is sitting at a fair price. 

We are a key partner for Somfy, but they have always been at a premium price compared to others. As new businesses enter the market and want to sell or import motorisation, they will have to drop their prices to compete. This means they will have to offer an entry-level price point.

There’s always going to be a cheaper option, but you have to consider who you want to align yourself with. Do you want to go for the cheaper option or the one with the best reputation, warranty, and technical support?

Technical support is always a challenge and 99% of our products are motorised.

We’re big on associating ourselves with brand names and we run our business by only using brand name products. We do not independently import any products that are not 100% brand name. That’s the way we operate.

If we have a problem with anything, we can fall back on the supplier. You know, it’s a copy of anything, but it’s all the genuine article.

Tony Cassar: Theo, do you undertake any promotional activity?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: This business has been built on the back of relationships. In terms of promotional activity, if you’re talking about advertising or social media, it’s certainly not something that we have done. The way that we’ve grown is with relationships and reputation; referrals from suppliers, customers, and installers are saying, “Hey, if you need something like that, go and see these guys.” It’s just high levels of customer service.

Tony Cassar: In the past, I’ve personally witnessed that you possess a wealth of knowledge and generously share it with the world.

Why do they come to you?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: We have a combined experience of 42 years in this industry, my brother and I. Our tendency is to work outside of the box, manufacturing products that may not be the norm. We’ve had significant experience in this industry, both individually and together.

We might be manufacturing roller blinds that are eight or 10 m drops and wide widths to suit their current supplier. We have a lot of knowledge in different areas, so we occasionally get people calling us. It may not even be for a product we make. We deal with a lot of people on motorisation who may not buy at the same time.

The door is always open with us. We have some clients that only buy products from us once every six months, the door is always open because that particular product suits them. 

Tony Cassar: Staffing seems to be a concern with many industries in Australia at the moment, how about yourself – are you noticing any staffing issues? 

Theo Tsalacopoulos: We have an enormous amount of long-term staff, with some employees having been with us since 2003. In fact, we have several individuals who have been with us for 17 years. This is a testament to the satisfaction and contentment our employees have in their roles and working for our business.

People will be referred to us by somebody who may be working for us. However, we have a tendency to take people without experience in our industry and teach them our way.

Tony Cassar: What challenges do you believe the window covering industry faces now and in the future?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: I think one of the big problems from a manufacturing perspective is offshore manufacturing, for larger commercial projects, particularly.

Whereas traditionally, the large projects were manufactured in Australia, I think that from what we’ve seen, there are a number of people going offshore now. I think that’s going to be a big problem with commercial work.

Once upon a time, the industry used to be really contained. There was a range of retailers and manufacturers, and now it’s so easy to get into the game. Entry level is very low so that creates competition, and not always healthy competition.

The window furnishing industry needs to find a way to demonstrate value to consumers, not just focus on price. This is a common issue in our industry – consumers don’t always see the value in what we do.

I think that’s a big challenge for the industry in the future. The entry point needs to be addressed.

Tony Cassar: The DIY sector has grown dramatically over the last few years. Has that affected your business at all? Where do you see that going? That is again relative to the price issue you just mentioned.

Theo Tsalacopoulos: The DIY product hasn’t really had an impact on us. The people interested in DIY, it’s an entry point they’re looking at saving a dollar. There’s a lot of talk about people who prefer to shop online, but I think with this sort of product, people are interested in DIY.

That isn’t really our marketplace. I think it’s a problem for retailers at that end of the market within the industry, but for us personally, it’s no good.

Tony Cassar: What has been your greatest achievement throughout your career, Theo?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: My brother and I have taken the business to where it is now.

That’s it. This has been my career. I’ve known nothing else. So, acquiring the knowledge that we’ve acquired and being where we are at the moment, we’ve been here for a long time, starting with no customers.

We’ve also maintained the vision that we had when we started. We didn’t want to be that big bulk wholesale manufacturer with 150 employees. We weren’t interested in that. We wanted to be a little bit more niche, more specialised. And I suppose we’ve achieved exactly what we started out to do. There’s still a way to go.

Tony Cassar: Who have been your greatest influences in your life?

Theo Tsalacopoulos: No doubt, in terms of individuals, probably my father’s migrant work ethic; he was a really good role model.

He did everything from running a milk bar to traditional sort of stuff. He also worked in a dental lab and got into window furnishings. His work ethic came from very poor beginnings in Greece and he has given us great opportunities

Tony Cassar: Tell us about your family and your interests outside of unique screens.

Theo Tsalacopoulos: We could talk about family forever. There is my wife Carmel and I have three great kids.

My oldest is a specialist theatre nurse and my oldest son is a civil engineer. The younger one works here. My wife, Carmel, has done an amazing job bringing them up.

As we spoke about earlier on, my priorities in life at the moment are my couple of grandkids. They are two and a half years and about eight weeks old respectively. Nothing else matters.

Tony Cassar: What are your interests outside of business? Other than family, I know you like your cars. So, tell us a little about your hobbies.

Theo Tsalacopoulos: I like my cars, I like lots of cars, but I only have one. I bought another 911 approximately 11 years ago, when they weren’t as expensive as they are now. 

Through some of the driving groups I’ve made some incredible friends. We do three and four day drives two or three times a year in Victoria. We also do a week-long trip to Tassie over the Queen’s birthday long weekend in January.

I enjoy driving. It’s probably my release, you know, how I get rid of some of the stress and tension. I look forward to it, but apart from that, family takes up an enormous amount of time. My current interest is spending time with the grandkids, and friendship groups. I haven’t got a very exciting lifestyle.

Tony Cassar: Where do you see the window covering industry heading? It has undergone numerous changes over the years.

Theo Tsalacopoulos:  We have seen a big evolution in certain technical products. I think we need to separate the window furnishing industry into two areas: practical and aesthetic. We have window furnishings that enhance the beauty of our homes, such as soft sheers and textured blinds. And then there are more practical options.

We have furnishings that are best for controlling heat, light, and meeting code requirements. Technically, we will see a lot of changes in the window furnishing industry.

I think we’re going to see a lot of changes in the technical nature. It’s not just the technical fabrics that we’re going to see changes in, but I think it will have an impact on the industry as glass becomes cheaper. From a technical standpoint, I believe there will be significant developments.

From a design and style perspective, I believe the industry is gaining significant traction and will continue to do so because people appreciate aesthetically pleasing and high-quality items. A curtain is not just an object, but rather a functional and visually appealing addition to a space.

Motorisation will continue to grow and become the norm in the years to come. We won’t see chains on roller blocks anymore, as countries overseas are already banning them.

We’ll see more motorisation and integration into building management systems, making it easier for retailers to sell without the need for complex systems. But it’ll be off the phone or a device, and it’ll integrate into everything else very easily. It will very quickly become just a way of life. People want simple stuff, they don’t want complicated stuff.”

Tony Cassar: Thanks Theo, and thank you for being part of the Ask the Expert series. 

Theo Tsalacopoulos: My pleasure Tony.