The remodeling industry has just a few faces that are recognizable to outsiders. The smiling, handsome mug of Danny Lipford certainly is one of them.
But Lipford wasn't always a household name.
He began his television career with a live call-in show that aired on local cable in Mobile, Ala. The show grew in popularity when it switched to its “on the jobsite” format.
Now the show — taping its sixth season as “Today's Homeowner with Danny Lipford” — has 1 million viewers per week and is run on upwards of 200 stations.
Lipford hasn't found himself unprepared for his new career. “All of my training for this came from remodeling,” he says. “[Remodelers] make potential customers as comfortable as they can and break everything down and explain it in layman's terms. That's exactly what I do on the show.”
Lipford also appears monthly on CBS' The Early Show and CNNfn's Your Money, and The Weather Channel regularly broadcasts his home improvement tips.
Lipford Construction continues to run strong, even though Danny, who still owns the business, is only involved a couple of hours per month. In fact, the first six months of 2004 were the best the company's had in its 26 years. “They should've gotten rid of me years ago,” Danny jokes.
