Aquatech Institute Grand Opening

2012 has been a big year for the corporation of Aquatech.

The board of directors and the management team made the decision to move the corporate headquarters to Las Vegas.  With this move, and the purchase of a new building an opportunity arose to create a training room to hold seminars and educational symposiums.  As a major goal of the organization to provide educational opportunities to the members, this is a unique opportunity.  October 3 - 5, the new Aquatech Institute was opened with great success; and Pools by John Clarkson had a representative there to improve our company.



Along with ~30 other attendees, we had speakers and discussed topics ranging from social media to hiring practices to creating better displays.  For example, Brett Abbott with MYM Austin discussed website design, referral programs, incorporating social media and which types of media are right for each type of company.  This seminar was unique in that it combined companies from retail to construction, all desiring to improve their individual businesses.  The set up of the education facility allowed for easy viewing from all seats & tables; has wifi capabilities; and many conveniences, such as built in outlets for every work station.  This made for a relaxed environment, conducive for learning.

As a proud member of Aquatech, Pools by John Clarkson is excited about the facility and we applaud the designers for creating this excellent educational facility.

Houzz.com - Portfolios and Idea books

The internet has undoubtedly changed the way people buy and sell products and services.  The pool industry is not exempt from this, and I have enjoy watching the evolution.  One of the biggest effects has been on the way people are able to research companies, materials and designs before they even meet with a contractor.

In the "Old Days," say the 90's ;) a salesman would show up at a home with a photo book as a portfolio of projects the company he represents had built.  The customer may have a few magazine cut outs of pools, but nothing the designer could take with him as that was their only copy.

With the internet becoming more readily available, the contractor's portfolios transitioned onto a website created by the company to display their work.  It was common for a salesman to show up at an appointment, in which a homeowner had printed out photos of pools, along with the magazine clip outs.  The challenge was the quality of the prints are usually sub par and from many unique sources, making it difficult to track down.

The fact is, Contractors want to display their portfolio and homeowners want to create and share a scrapbook of their ideas.  It adds to the excitement of the process.  At the Aquatech conference this February,  Pools by John Clarkson learned about a site that facilitates this online: Houzz.com.

Here is Houzz's description of their site:

About Houzz

Houzz is a leading destination site for home design enthusiasts-- professionals and homeowners. The Houzz site and mobile apps feature over 250,000 high quality interior and exterior photos, thousands of highly-engaging articles written by design experts, product recommendations and social tools to manage the remodeling and decorating process.

On the Houzz platform:

Design professionals showcase their portfolios, sharing their work with a community dedicated to home and landscape design. 40,000+ professionals have uploaded more than 250,000 inspiring photographs, making Houzz the Internet's largest database of design and decorating ideas.

Homeowners collect their favorite photos, find design professionals in their areas, upload photos of their homes and gardens, and swap tips and questions with other members. More than a million ideabooks have been created by Houzz members, and new ones are added every minute. 

PBJC has created a profile and encourages our prospective customers to visit the site and start creating their own idea book.  They can even follow us to be notified when we add new photos.

Hope to see you on Houzz!

Aquatech Design Awards

Recently Pools by John Clarkson received a surprise honor that was both humbling and rewarding.  At the 2011 Aquatech Conference, PBJC was awarded multiple design awards; the greatest being "Best of Show!"
Currently it is part of the header on Aquatech's Website.

You can also see the image on PBJC's Facebook page. 

The reason this was such a satisfying award was that it was a total team effort, with the design being completed in house by Joel Hartman and Jordan Clarkson.  This was a vision the homeowners bought into and love the outcome - which is always the number 1 priority.

We are excited to advance our designs and look forward to attending a 2 1/2 day course in california called "Elements of Design" offered by Genesis 3 this coming week in California.  Expect an update in a couple weeks.

Aquatech Seminar

Education and Networking are 2 vital parts of any business - yet why do they tend to get overlooked?

The easy answer is summed up in one word: TIME.

To attend seminars and meet with other builders, we are removed from our business for some period of time. With new technologies such as, web based scheduling programs, smart phones with constant e-mail access, and remote meeting programs - it is certainly easier to not be present AT the business. However, you still have to take time away to be focused on learning; both from classes, as well as from others.

Jacksonville, FL pool Builder Pools by John Clarkson just returned from one such event. Aquatech Corporation held an Education Symposium from 3/30 - 4/1. Topics included Major Renovations, Fire Features, Scheduling Programs, Gravity Feed Hydraulics (including perimeter overflow pools,) Marketing / Brand strategies and 3D design programs.

PBJC also spent some time with ~20 other Aquatech builders from across the country - discussing design and construction trends throughout the nation.

All in all - I would encourage anyone who has the opportunity to experience these type of events to take full advantage of them: it should be well worth your TIME.

PBJC on Facebook.

Aquatech Honors Jacksonville Pool Builder

During its 2009 annual convention, Aquatech announced the highly anticipated Design Awards. Pools by John Clarkson was honored to receive 3!

The first award was a Silver for a pool designed by Joel Hartman. The category was traditional design; and this vanishing edge swimming pool is a show stopper for sure.

The second Honor came from a pool which was a joint project from Jordan Clarkson and Joel Hartman. The category was Concrete Spa and this picture won Gold! The design is a simple perimeter overflow with glass 1" x 1" tile. At night the reflection of the color pool lights gives the spa a beautiful cobalt hue; and the photographer, Ben Brewer, framed the shot perfectly.Along with the obvious excitement about the Award; we were blown away when we received a letter from the Architectural Review Committee for this neighborhood thanking the homeowner and PBJC for setting a high standard for the neighborhood. These type of letters are few and far between and it was a honor to receive.

The third Award was in the renovation category, designed by our specialist Kevin Chung. We refer to this as a "true" renovation, because the pool and spa remained the same in structure - there was only a change in materials, equipment and safety features. Visit our website or our facebook page to see before pictures.
Congratulations to all our designers on the hard earned recognition!

Design Partnership Featured

Recently, I was contacted by an editor for Pool and Spa Living asking if they could feature a particular pool on the final page of their Buyer's Guide 2009. Obviously, PBJC felt honored to receive this request and agreed - however, there was one stipulation: they must give credit to my friend for the origional concept.

Quite a few years ago, I became friends with another pool designer Michele Sherman from Essig Pools in Miami. We admired each others professionalism, creativity and most importantly Love for pools and the people who use them. Over the years we have followed each other's careers and designs.

This is the reason I quickly recognized a picture one of my customers presented to me as something he wanted. This was Michele's Signature design

After meeting with the client, we developed a North Florida / Jacksonville take off on the pool. We used a clay Bullnose Coping, an aqua color Pebble interior, created a large Beach entry and added a fountain of 2 cranes standing on the Vanishing Edge. It was fun to take a design and add to it in such a way that the origional designer approved!

I have never submitted this pool for an Award, out of respect for Michele - and this article gave us a great opportunity to honor her. Thank you for the chance!

Jacksonville Pool Builder earns high honor

Each year Aqua Magizine selects 11 projects to feature as an "Aqua Choice" winner. Of these, only 3 are concrete swimming pools.

This year Jacksonville's very own Pools by John Clarkson, was selected to be featured in the February edition and on the cover!

Joel Hartman was the winning designer and you can view more of his creations on our free CD. or by viewing our gallery.

Aquatech Pool Builder - Jacksonville Florida

PBJC is proud to be recognized as an Aquatech pool builder - a collaboration of pool builders from across the country and the world who work together to share their knowledge and talents for common good.

The exclusive Aquatech Society will accept no pool builder other than those that meet their strict standards for quality construction, business ethics, and impeccable reputations. Less than 1% of all pool builders in America have been approved to join the ranks of Aquatech builders.

Pools by John Clarkson ~ Aquatech Pool Builder ~ Servicing Northern Florida