By
Meredith
Knight
| Photos by
Dallas McNeal
Photography
When
Dr. Janine Kreft purchased her new Frisco home, something was missing — a
pool. Her Realtor recommended a few local
contractors and one of them really stood out — locally owned and operated
Canyon Oak Pools. “From my first phone call, I felt this was someone who’d
treat me right,” Dr. Kreft said. “Susan scheduled Mike to come out and take a
look at the yard and discuss design options with me.”
Happy
Customer
Dr. Kreft
called other pool companies, but the warmth and responsiveness of Canyon Oak
Pools — even on a weekend — impressed her. “Their customer service was head
and shoulders above the rest.”
The design
process was collaborative. “I really wanted to be a part of the process, but
I needed guidance,” she said “I knew I wanted a higher-end resort feel. Mike
gave me things to consider and helped me hone my vision.” When she decided on
certain tiles that weren’t available in the area, Mike jumped in his truck
and drove to get them.”
Construction
took 60 days from design to completion and Dr. Kreft couldn’t be happier with
the outcome. “They absolutely nailed it,” she said. “They were accommodating
from day one and really honored what I wanted. I’d recommend Canyon Oak Pools
to anyone.”
Who You
Build With Matters
Dr. Kreft
discovered what hundreds before her have. Who you build with matters. After
all, for most families, their home is the largest purchase they’ll ever make.
If you’re dreaming of a backyard pool, that could be the second largest. When
you decide to take that plunge, you want your money’s worth — in the quality
of the build and in the level of service you receive from your pool company.
For many of your North Texas neighbors, that company is Canyon Oak Pools.
Owner Larry
Parnell spent 27 years in the big-box pool industry designing, selling, and
building pools for some of the top-producing pool companies in San Antonio,
Austin, and Dallas. But he became disillusioned with the emphasis placed on
numbers of pools built, rather than on quality of customer experience. Larry
and his wife, Susan, live in this community. They dreamed of offering a
better product and experience to their DFW neighbors.
Rethinking
the Pool-Building Experience
It was a
giant leap of faith for the two of them to start their own pool company.
Their vision was that — no matter how big they grew — Larry would be onsite
for every job, actually giving his personal cell number to each customer,
forgetting about quotas, and concentrating on the quality of the pool and on
the relationships they’d build with local families. It was a winning formula!
Today,
Canyon Oak Pools is recognized as an elite pool builder offering a wide range
of custom pool and outdoor living options. They enjoy an A+ rating with the
Better Business Bureau, a five-star rating with Google reviews, most of their
business comes through referrals, and they were recently named a finalist in
the Better Business Bureau’s 2023 Torch Award for Ethics. Far beyond awards
and accolades though, the most important thing to Larry and Susan is running
into a neighbor for whom they’ve built a pool — they’ve built 11 and counting
in their own neighborhood — and knowing they’ve done their best for them. In
fact, for any one of their dozens of five-star reviews, Susan can put you on
the phone with the customer who wrote it.
A Team You
Can Trust
Larry and
Susan carefully hand-selected the others who’d join their team. They include
Susan’s brother and head of operations, David Maia, longtime friend and
director of sales, Mike Woodfin, and another longtime friend, Scott Yoakum,
senior design consultant. The number one quality the Parnells considered
while building this team was character. But even with this dynamic team in
place, Larry still insists on being onsite for every job (Susan is often with
him) and personally fielding phone calls from customers.
“One thing
you can be sure of with any construction project is there will be hiccups,”
Susan said. “The important thing is how those hiccups are handled. Because
Larry is onsite and is the ultimate decision maker, any issues can be address
immediately which improves our build times.” Those build times average 62
calendar days — from excavation to plaster — with several jobs last year
being completed in 35 calendar days.
Paying It
Forward
The Parnells
are active members of Snow Hill Baptist Church in Farmersville and annual
sponsors of the Blue Ridge Rodeo. Both Susan and Mike’s wife, Audrey, sponsor
women in recovery and the entire Canyon Oak Pools team loves participating in
local events and supporting Melissa and Blue Ridge ISDs. The Parnells have a
soft spot for dogs and support numerous rescue groups throughout the
Metroplex.
Whether
they’re working on a large commercial project at a hotel, apartment complex,
or health club or helping fulfill a family’s dream of the perfect backyard
get-away, the team at Canyon Oak Pools puts their name on the line with every
build. Find out more at CanyonOakPools.com.
TRANSFORM YOUR UGLY-DUCKLING POOL INTO A LUXURIOUS, NEW OUTDOOR RESORT. FIND
OUT MORE AT CANYONOAKPOOLS.COM/REMODEL
Where was Your Pool Contractor
During the Freeze of January 2024?
For
customers of Canyon Oak Pools, he was just a FaceTime call away. That’s easy
when you have your contractor’s personal cell number. During those uncertain
days, Larry Parnell talked many a pool owner through the freeze protection
process for their pool. All survived unscathed, and Canyon Oak Pools had even
more customers for life.
CONTACT
2150 South
Central Expressway, Suite 200
McKinney, Texas 75070
