Today we’d like to introduce you to Dennis Schumacher.
Hi Dennis, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Upon arrival back in Texas in 2010 from many years in business overseas, I settled in Brenham and looked around for a business opportunity. My experience overseas had introduced me to alternative power systems and it struck me that although there were frequent power outages in the area, not many people had a standby generator. As an engineer, I had a natural bent toward technical types of businesses.
I contacted Generac Power Systems, and they were very helpful in getting me set up as a dealer, even with no track record of business in Texas. I am grateful for the low barrier to entry since it soon proved to be a good business, although it took quite some time to develop a healthy customer base. Originally I worked out of my garage, unloading trucks in the street and borrowing the neighbor’s driveway to park my trailer. In those days I was a one-man band.
Fifteen years ago, the standby power industry was relatively unknown and I spent a lot of time educating people. That is not the case anymore. I soon progressed from my house to a shared space in a Polaris dealership, and then to a rented warehouse on the west side of Brenham. As business picked up. I added employees and my oldest son came to work with me in 2016, and we have not looked back since.
Now, in a purpose-built building just outside of Brenham, we have 6,000 square feet of office/warehouse space and employ 9 people. There are 5 certified technicians on board and we have 5 vehicles on the road, installing and servicing standby generators from 10kW up to 200kW. We cover most of the area between Houston and Austin, from north of Bryan/College Station to south of Eagle Lake, and from Waller to Elgin.
Our main products are Generac and Kohler residential and commercial standby generators. We are currently a PowerPro Elite dealer for Generac, and a Platinum Bold dealer for Kohler power products (now called Rehlko).
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely not a smooth road. In the early days, it was a struggle to build a critical mass of customers to establish the service side of the business. Then in 2016 and again in 2021, severe weather caused a massive increase in demand that was difficult to cope with given the limited resources in the Brenham area; primarily for skilled labor.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Zenith Power Systems?
We are a family owned business that places emphasis on personal service to our customers. Most of our customers know us personally after doing business, and we get many repeat customers. We take pride in our technical expertise, and all our technicians are highly trained; something that we invest in heavily.
We have focused on two main brands, Generac, and Kohler residential and commercial standby generators, and we maintain a parts warehouse for both, and cross trained techs for maintenance and warranty service. We maintain an emergency phone line, and during critical weather events have staff on standby for callouts. We also monitor the fleet of installed generators electronically in order to maintain a state of readiness for all our customers that opt in to the monitoring program.
Currently we are a Generac PowerPro Elite dealer and a Kohler Platinum Bold dealer, for sales, service, and warranty. We often get called by the manufacturers to solve problems in the field in our area, even if the generator is not one of ours. We are active in participating in new product development with both Generac and Kohler based on our field knowledge and have a good relationship with various departments in both companies.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
Be nice to people and keep your promises.
Pricing:
- We offer financing through Synchrony Bank
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.zenithpowersys.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zenithgenerators
