One of the smartest building material dealers I ever met ran a lumberyard in a dusty small town in California’s Central Valley; the kind of place where the office cat sleeps on the counter and every employee’s hand is callused. “I may dress like a blue-collar guy,” the dealer said, “but I’m white-collar as well. One moment I’ll be pulling studs, and the next I’ll be at a computer forecasting budgets.”
I’ve been thinking of that dealer as I take on the honor and the challenge of serving as this magazine’s editor-in-chief. While that dealer may have been a bit unusual in his world, he’s nothing special in yours. The multitasking requirements of your job is the main reason why the pages of Remodeling encompass such a vast collection of issues and ideas.
I hope to bring skills and experiences to REMODELING that complement the top-notch editorial team already in place. While construction work runs in my family — I’m the grandson of a bricklayer and the great-grandson of a home builder — I’m no Sal Alfano; my hands-on experience is restricted to installing a kitchen in Belgium while I was with The Wall Street Journal.
At least at the start, I’ll be relying instead on the 35 years of experiences I have accumulated as a reporter, much of it covering business and regulations. Now I look forward to covering your world.
I visited 49 states during my years at PROSALES, and now I’m eager to travel the country again, this time learning about you. Wear whatever color of shirt collar you’d like when I drop by.
—Craig Webb, editor-in-chief, REMODELING.
