Badilla Painters Adapts To COVID Times

Over 30 years ago, Joe Badilla founded his Bridgehampton-based company, Badilla Painters, with a paintbrush, creativity and a dream: to create high-quality interiors, exteriors and custom finishes at a fair price.

And that has never changed — even in the face of COVID-19.

“We wanted to be proactive and prepare with different tools to serve our clients in that new reality, and we saw this as an opportunity,” Mr. Badilla said, adding, “Uncertainty was always present, but our long trajectory in the market gave us the courage we needed to tackle this challenge.”

The business reinvented the way it worked, implementing digital outreach and communications tools that kept relationships with its main clients alive, which looked like a combination of video and phone calls, and in-person meetings for those who felt comfortable, Mr. Badilla said.

“The great relationship we have with our clients, in conjunction with the use of technology, was the best approach to deal with those who were fearful of the virus,” he said. “We implemented protocols and followed them to keep everyone safe. By sanitizing our tools and units, checking the health of our employees, and communicating with our customers in all our projects, we managed to overcome different challenges and keep our company going.”

An increased virtual reach brought in a wider spectrum of clientele, too, Mr. Badilla said, especially homeowners who moved to the East End during the pandemic. He estimates that new construction projects will resume this summer, and his schedule is already filling up.

“Being creative and thinking outside the box have always been our strengths,” he said, “which led us to do things that others were not doing — like investigating new products, looking for ways to be more efficient and investing in advertisement.”

This challenging time pushed Badilla Painters to launch new lines of finishes, including resistant UV-cured paint to renew kitchen cabinets, as well as chrome finishes and magnetic plaster. And while some of the new products were not successful in their trial phases, it was ultimately a learning experience that will only benefit the company, Mr. Badilla said.

“We feel blessed that we live in this part of the country and survived and stayed strong during this tumultuous time,” he said. “We hope that the economy recovers, and everyone is able to regain economic independence as well as mental and physical health.”