Brushing Up Buffalo
Tuesday, May 10, 2011 at 1:18PM 
Local entrepreneurs are beautifying homes in Buffalo one stroke at a time.
Where in Western New York can you get “Chocolate Therapy,” “Al Green,” and “Red Stiletto,”...for your walls? At one of the area’s newest local businesses, C2 paint retailer Evanhill Paint. Founded by Tom Hill Jr. and Sr., Evanhill offers a unique approach in the paint industry that has sparked interest in the local design community of Western New York.
The father and son started on their own in the paint industry over 10 years ago when Tom Hill Sr. was laid off from Pratt and Lambert, formerly headquartered in Buffalo. In the late ‘90s, a buyout took P & L outside of Western New York, and Hill Sr., a former VP and innovative chemist, was inspired to re-invent the industry. He wanted to support the independent merchant in a market dominated by corporate giants Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams. After reading an article about the consolidation of the brewing industry and the rise of micro-breweries, Hill Sr. began applying the same principle to the paint industry. He built a cooperative network, “The Coatings Alliance,” comprised of micro-retailers selling a custom brand of paint that he developed, called “C2.” Evanhill Paint was the logical next step for the Hill family.
Tom Jr. had worked beside his dad in the industry for over a decade, and watched the product gain the respect and trust of its customers. He believed there to be a local niche market for C2 Paint, and recently opened Evanhill, Western New York’s exclusive C2 retailer. Evanhill focuses on family-oriented service, local convenience, and a superior paint product. “The chips you see in the C2 color samples are made of real paint, not inks or dyes. The resulting product is a more accurate color-match. Also, the paint itself is made using a unique 16-tint colorant system, bettering the 12-colorant system of most paint brands. The four additional pigments make the paint more intriguing by offering depth of color, saturation, and visual interest,” Hill Jr. explains.
His company’s business model is as unique as the C2 product itself. Hill Jr. says, “Evanhill is a new way to sell paint. I’ve been asked, ‘Why would you open a paint business in a depressed economy?’ My response is that we have to look hard to find new, more effective, and better ways to sell everyday products like paint. We have no other choice but to get creative in tough economic times. C2 makes the common uncommon. The very names of the paint colors have been created by independent C2 retailers across the U.S. and Canada. That kind of control and free reign is rare in this industry.”
Evanhill Paint. Founded by Tom Hill Jr. and Sr., Evanhill offers a unique approach in the paint industry that has sparked interest in the local design community of Western New York. Evanhill Paint has no traditional paint storefront, only a bare-bones laboratory where paint is tinted and shipped locally (and free of charge). Customers can order the paint or color samples online, another convenience Evanhill offers. “In a mature place like the paint industry, this is our way to innovate. We stand with the product wholeheartedly, and we build relationships with designers and customers that ’Big Box’ stores cannot offer. At Evanhill, we answer your calls, we respond to your emails, we deliver your paint, and we build relationships because we are a paint family. Paint is more than wet walls; it is an expression of people’s identity. It is independence in a can.”
The entrepreneurial spirit of companies like Evanhill Paint are helping Buffalo thrive again. You can visit Evanhill at 9880 Transit Road or online at www.evanhillpaint.com.!
Buffalo, C2, Evanhill Paint, design, home
Reader Comments (2)
Love it! Support our local small businesses! Small, personal, family run, and an outstanding product!
I agree, though I haven't used C2 Paint (yet) supporting local business means the money stays here, businesses grow, give back to our community and we all benefit.