Franchisee All-Stars: CertaPro Painters’ Chris Drucquer

Main Line Philadelphia CertaPro Owner Chris Drucquer 

Main Line Philadelphia CertaPro Owner Chris Drucquer 

The home of the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York is over 200 miles away from Chris Drucquer’s Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania CertaPro Painters. Given Drucquer’s impressive collection of awards, his entrepreneurial batting average is as impressive as any baseball player’s–and earned without any performance enhancers to boot! It might be high time to open a CertaPro Hall of Fame and Chris Drucquer would be in the inaugural class for sure.   

A father of seven, Drucquer’s accolades are all the more impressive given the demands he must meet as a proud dad. Below are just a few of the commendations Drucquer’s CertaPro Painters locations have received in the last few years of serving the Ardmore, Bala, Broomall, Bryn Mawr,  Gladwyne, Haverford, Havertown, Manayunk, Merion, Merion Station, Narberth, Newtown Square, Penn Valley, Penn Wynne, Radnor, Rosemont,  Villanova, and Wynnewood areas.  

On January 7, 2012 Drucquer was named Franchisee of the Year from CertaPro—among more than 350 franchisees—based on his locations’ growth, profit, and overall customer satisfaction, as well as the Quantum Leap award for franchise growth.

In January 2014, Drucquer’s CertaPro was named Best of HOUZZ for its tremendous customer service. In June of 2014, Drucquer’s CertaPro was named Best of the Main Line in the category of painting businesses. In August, Drucquer was named on the Philly 100 as one of the 100 fastest growing businesses in Greater Philadelphia.

Chris Drucquer (third from the right) at the Philadelphia 100 award ceremony

Chris Drucquer (third from the right) at the Philadelphia 100 award ceremony

Now, not even a month into 2015, Drucquer is already adding additional awards to his repertoire. This month Drucquer has been named CertaPro Painters’ People Grower of the Year, in recognition of his efforts to help people within the business, Brand Champion, for growing the CertaPro brand, and Crew of the Year, beating out 3,500 other crews for the distinction. Drucquer’s CertaPro Painters has also received the Best of HOUZZ award for its customer service record for the second consecutive year and is due to receive the Angie's List Super Service Award for interior and exterior painting in February.

Chris Drucquer with his award-winning CertaPro crew

Chris Drucquer with his award-winning CertaPro crew


Founded in 1991—the year CertaPro Painters became a franchise—Chris Drucquer and his crew at CertaPro deserve the recognition and stand as true All-Stars of the franchisee community. 

For more information on franchising with CertaPro Painters, the largest residential and commercial painting company in North America, visit http://certapro-franchise.com/. 

A Reflection on Veterans in Franchising

Today the country reflects on all that the men and women in service provide for its appreciative populace. We would like to salute some of our veteran franchisees by taking a look at how their unique military experiences have, in one way or another, contributed to their success as entrepreneurs. While owning a franchise pales in comparison to the tremendous good done by those in our armed forces, franchise ownership nevertheless requires the exhibition of many of the same skills, abilities, and traits which are inherent to our nation’s heroes. Below are but a few examples of how such valor is translated from the battlefield to the office.  

A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and a Gulf War veteran, Steve Taylor, owner of a Floor Coverings International franchise in Pleasanton, California, rose to Lieutenant and is no stranger to making bold decisions, a crucial trait for any successful entrepreneur. But more than just owning a business for the challenge it represented, Taylor was inspired by something quite basic—his longtime hobby as a craftsman. “I’ve always done a lot of home improvement projects around my home,” adds Taylor. “With my own business, I knew I could do for others what I was already doing—and do it better than the competition.”

Since opening, Taylor has worked on projects ranging from replacing water damaged floors, to flooring multi-million dollar homes. For Taylor, each new client offers a unique experience, an exciting prospect for a man used to a life of variety. “I love working with each individual customer,” Taylor explained. “When you work with your customers on a personal level, you can better tailor each project to meet their wants, needs, and desires.”

In the late 1990s, U.S. Air Force veteran Chad Marshall lost his father and three sisters in a span of 18 months. Heightening his grief, his mother was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease at the time, losing her primary caregiver upon the death of her husband. Yet the tremendous losses did not break Marshall. Instead, the experiences that caused him so much pain served in the end to inspire Marshall to a new calling: that of owner of ComForcare Senior Services at 827 N. Glendale Ave., serving the San Gabriel Valley including Pasadena, Glendale, La Canada Flintridge, La Crescenta and Monrovia.

Marshall’s opening of his ComForcare location in July, 2009 was the culmination of a journey that was an often tumultuous, yet in retrospect, always tremendous learning experience for the veteran-turned-entrepreneur. A broadcast video engineer by trade, Marshall spent four years of active duty working in broadcast maintenance for the Air Force where his duties included documenting missile launches and fixing television equipment. Upon completion of his four-year tour of duty, Marshall worked for Panasonic Broadcast and Television Systems Company for 16 years. Inspired by what he witnessed as his mother suffered from Alzheimer’s, Marshall turned to ComForcare Senior Services to help care for others in a similar situation. Marshall's experience proves that a member of the military never really stops serving his or her community. 

Window Genie franchisee Dick Stieren in Omaha, Nebraska may not be a veteran himself but he nevertheless has an important place in this story, as he plans to build a business legacy by mentoring and training U.S. veteran Wade Johnson to take over his business. Stieren wants to pass along his knowledge of business and success to someone he feels is capable of taking over his Window Genie. While Johnson works now as a Window Genie employee, Stieren has been imparting his business acumen so that Johnson can take over upon his retirement.

Diverse though their backgrounds may be, the drive, dedication, and resolve shown by these franchisees is consistent among all of the franchisees profiled--and, for that matter, for many military veteran franchisees in general. It's no wonder that franchising is a popular choice for those retired from the military. Franchising allows veterans to continue to use that which they've gained in service, making franchising an appropriate--and oftentimes successful--fit.