Ep. #11 Transforming Adversity into Opportunity: The Royal Coating LLC Story with Community Impact

Curious about how a job loss can turn into a thriving business opportunity? Join us as we chat with Lester and Shaunté, the brains behind Royal Coating LLC, a resurfacing and painting business serving the Charlotte metro area. Listen to their inspiring journey from unexpected unemployment in 2018 to building a company known for transforming dated countertops and bathtubs with epoxy finishes, and refreshing homes with on-trend interior and exterior painting. From working with low-income families and apartment complexes to their aspirations of collaborating with local government facilities, Lester and Shaunté share how they’ve built a business that stands out in a crowded market through a relentless commitment to customer satisfaction.

We also shine a spotlight on community-focused businesses making a real difference. Hear about the positive impacts of businesses deeply engaged with their local communities, and why mutual appreciation is essential for growth and success. We express our heartfelt thanks to Lester and Shaunté for their contributions and encourage you to nominate your favorite local businesses for future episodes of the Good Neighbor Podcast. Visit GNPSouthCharlotte.com to share stories of businesses that deserve recognition and tune in for an episode that celebrates the power of community and entrepreneurship.

Royal Coating LLC
Shaunté and Lester Royal
[phone]
[e-mail]
royal-coating.com

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Regina League.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Good morning.
This morning we have the ownersof Royal Coating LLC.
I have Lester and S here on theshow this morning.
Welcome, good morning.
Welcome Good morning, veryexcited to have you.
So I see you guys have been inbusiness since well for six
years now and you handle all ofthe Charlotte metro area.

(00:34):
Tell us a little bit about yourresurfacing and painting
business.
Just an overview of what you do.

Speaker 3 (00:42):
Okay, well, we're operating out of charlotte .
We service Concord area, southcarolina, rock hill and
resurfacing.
We do countertops and bathtubresurfacing, so our countertops
a an epoxy with a stone likefinish and a clear coat and

Speaker 2 (01:00):
so you can do sinks, bathtubs, countertops,
resurfacing, and then you alsodo painting, interior, exterior
decks, staining, all of that

Speaker 3 (01:10):
.
Correct.

Speaker 2 (01:11):
Yes, so there are a lot of people painting their
houses right now.
Are you getting a lot of thejobs where they're painting
their house white and the windowtrim black to get that current
look?

Speaker 4 (01:23):
Yes, that's the trend right now, yep.

Speaker 3 (01:26):
For the last what?
Two, three years now?

Speaker 2 (01:28):
Yeah yeah, I see the whole city kind of turning like
that.
Well, I would love to know andhave you explain a little bit
about the resurfacing part ofwhat you do.
On your website you've got someexamples of how you've taken
just some really old dingyproducts sinks and bathtubs and

(01:48):
converted them.
So talk about that for a minute.

Speaker 3 (01:52):
OK, well, with the bathtub resurfacing, we
basically take old tubs that arechipping, peeling, rusting,
fading, stained scratch, rusting, fading, stained, scratch.
We strip them, clean them andgo over with the polyurethane
coating, which basicallyresembles the manufacturer's
coating, so we bring it back tolife, even 70-year-old tubs.

Speaker 4 (02:17):
And that's how we do the process with the sinks too.

Speaker 2 (02:20):
Okay so like someone with a historical home that
wants to preserve the old things.
But how about someone whodoesn't like the color?
They just bought a house andthere's a pink bathtub.
Can you do anything about that?

Speaker 3 (02:33):
Yes, we've seen pink tile, pink bathtubs, green.

Speaker 2 (02:41):
Green doesn't color tha.

Speaker 3 (02:41):
Turquoise, blue, and we give them an option to do
bone white, pure white or chinawhite.

Speaker 2 (02:49):
That is fantastic.
Those are very, very coolthings.
So how did you guys get intothis business?

Speaker 3 (02:57):
Interesting.

Speaker 4 (02:58):
Well, I guess in 2018 , the company I used to work for
they eliminated my position, soand they did that across the
company, so there was a lot ofus that lost our jobs based on
that position no longer beingbeing in that company.

(03:19):
I was struggling with thedecision to either go work for
another company or to start myown business, because I kind of
wanted more of that work lifebalance that I didn't have.
We do have children, so Iwanted to be able to spend more
time with them, so my husbandand I discussed it, and first he
partnered up with one of hisfriends that he grew up with,

(03:41):
and, and they started a shortcompany, but then we kind of
ventured away from that and juststarted our own, and that's how
Royal Coding LLC came intoexistence.

Speaker 2 (03:52):
That is amazing.
So you guys work together allday.

Speaker 3 (03:59):
Well, I'm going over operations and she's doing the
office, the back office stuff, Iget it.

Speaker 2 (04:06):
I get it so outside of the ugly bathtub and sink in
my house, who, who else wouldmake an ideal client?
Or what kind of clients andindustries do you guys work with
?

Speaker 3 (04:21):
OK, so now would be two.
So one would be our focus,which is now and has been
growing, has been low incomefamilies.
So in the apartment industryyes, in the apartment industry,
because these are most of thetubs that we, we do, because a
lot of these apartmentindustries are um, gonna say,
we're gonna just say dated yeahand then do a lot of painting

(04:45):
for them too.

Speaker 4 (04:45):
Yep, and then our ideal client now is.

Speaker 3 (04:48):
We always thought who would be our perfect client,
which is our local government,so we wanted to figure out how
to branch into into that spaceso we could start working on
government buildings andfacilities and get into facility
maintenance.

Speaker 4 (05:03):
And then we also provide services for homeowners
too.
So don't leave that out,because there's a lot of that we
paint for and that we resurfacetheir tubs and sinks, and we
also resurface countertops,which is kind of a similar
process, but you can do a littlebit more with countertops as
far as the color, the variationof colors.

Speaker 2 (05:23):
So we do that a lot too for homeowners and then um
so when you come to a kitchen,count like kitchen countertops
as well yes, so regardless ofwhat kind of kitchen countertop
is in there, you can resurfaceit.

Speaker 4 (05:38):
Yes, we can layer it with a different coating.

Speaker 2 (05:41):
Okay, so that can change not only the color, but
the functionality, everything.
I would think a little bit.
So, yeah, very, very cool.
What kind of misconceptions arethere in your industry?
I'm gathering that a lot ofpeople can say they do this, but
what sets you apart?

Speaker 3 (06:06):
So I would believe the misconception is that in
this industry we call it in thisindustry a lot of fly-by-night
vendors.
So they come in, they offer alower price, they tell the
people that they can do it forcheaper and they're, I guess,
somewhat reputable, but theydon't exist outside of you
speaking with them.

(06:26):
So we have to make sure thatour presence looks good and, you
know, we bring some value tothe customer instead of them
just being our customer.
We want to actually make surethat, whatever we do for them,
they're satisfied and they'rejust overall happy with the

(06:46):
whole overall experience.

Speaker 2 (06:49):
So when you do, let's say, a sink and bathtub
resurfacing, how long does aproject like that take for a
homeowner?

Speaker 4 (06:58):
Oh, I mean it could take anywhere from two to about
four hours, depending on how theissue with the with their
current tub or sink orcountertop.
It just depends on what itlooks like prior to us getting
there.

Speaker 2 (07:15):
And can they use it within a few hours?
Is there a dry time In?

Speaker 4 (07:19):
24 hours.
They have to let it sit for 24hours so that the product can
cure and because if they use itbefore then, then they can
easily scratch it or the watercan damage it, it can bubble it
up, so they have to wait.

Speaker 3 (07:33):
It also void our warranty.

Speaker 2 (07:35):
Well, that's good to know.
So they're not out ofcommission, but for 24 hours,
that's pretty amazing.

Speaker 3 (07:41):
We'll discuss that before anyone moves forward.
So at least they're aware.
So it's not a surprise.

Speaker 4 (07:46):
And then a good thing about the product we use it's a
commercial product that onlybusinesses can get.
So it's nothing that ahomeowner can go to like Lowe's
or Home Depot and grab and dothemselves.
So it's a high quality productonly for businesses.

Speaker 2 (08:01):
Okay, that is good to know.

Speaker 3 (08:02):
So that sets us apart .
You deal directly with themanufacturer.

Speaker 2 (08:08):
That's huge, because I bet there are a lot of people
that would consider that a DIYtype project and it just.
It's just not because of, Iguess, the products you're using
and the process you use.
Am I basically stating thatcorrectly?

Speaker 3 (08:26):
Correct.
Yes, you answered that actuallygood for us.

Speaker 2 (08:29):
Well, I can envision me trying to do that, and so,
yes, that is a big misconception.
Very, very good.
So, husband and wife teamworking together when you're not
working, is you?
Know what do you like to do forfun?

Speaker 4 (08:45):
Well, we like to spend time with our children.
We have a son.
He's in.
He's going into his second yearcollege.
TGirls.
One's in the sixth grade andone's in the fifth grade.

Speaker 2 (08:58):
You are busy parents, then yes, and if one's in
college, yeah, you got to keepworking hard and two more to put
through it.
Well, tell our listeners how toreach you and find you, like
your phone number, website, thatkind of thing.

Speaker 3 (09:14):
Our phone number is 704-691-0300.
Our website is royal-codincom.
You can also find us onCharlotte CBI, which is
Charlotte Business and Inclusion.
You can find us on the BBB siteBetter Business.

(09:34):
Let me see North Carolina State.
We are a North Carolina stateapproved vendor and charlotte
housing charlotte housingauthority.
so all of those sites, uh,charlotte mecklenburg, you can
look us up for a vendor uh,north carolina state site, or

(09:54):
the evp, which is electronicvendor portal, which you can
browse vendors, that uh doesbusiness with the city and I
believe that does business withthe city and I believe we're on
so many different platforms.

Speaker 2 (10:05):
You could just-.
No, you are very yeah, you'rein touch with the communities
that you're really focusing on.
I think that is amazing.
Well, it is a pleasure to getto know both of you.
I can tell you're verypassionate about what you do and
we just appreciate your timetoday.
Thank you, thank you, and wejust appreciate your time today.

Speaker 3 (10:24):
Thank you, and we appreciate you too as well.

Speaker 1 (10:27):
Thank you for listening to the good neighbor
podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on
the show, go to GNP southcharlotte.
com.
That's GNP south charlottecom,or call 9 8 0351-5719.