“I
can’t say enough good things about Canyon Oak Pools! Everything about the
pool-building process was enjoyable. The quality, the timeline, the
communication were all top-notch. They’re a family-run business through and
through. You won’t get this level of service elsewhere.”
Photos by
Dallas McNeal
Photography
For most families, the
largest purchase they’ll ever make is their home. For many,
the second largest is their backyard pool. Is it worth every penny to have a
family oasis right outside your back door? Absolutely! But before you buy
that pool, you have to “buy” the company who’ll design and build it for you.
Who you build with matters. Many of your North Texas neighbors have chosen to
build their pool and outdoor living spaces with Canyon Oak Pools. Let us
introduce to you to this family-owned and operated custom pool company, the
Texas native who started it, and his vision for a better customer
experience.
The year was 1995 and just to show you how
long ago that was, Larry Parnell was looking for a job — in the newspaper.
(Remember those?) The ad that caught his eye was just three lines. “Sell
pools. Have fun. Make money.” Little did Larry know how that blurb would
change the course of his life and the life of many North Texas
families.
“I didn’t know a thing about pools except
they were fun to jump in,” Larry said. But for the next 27 years, Larry
designed and sold pools for several of the top pool companies in San Antonio,
Austin, and Dallas, always chasing quotas and selling hundreds of pools a
year. Emphasis at these “big-box” companies was on numbers of pools, rarely
on quality of pools. Larry worked his way from sales to construction to
general manager and learned that — to paraphrase a popular saying — mo’
pools, mo’ problems.
“It was stressful,” Larry said. “My last year
working for the big boys, I sold $16 million and was looking at a
$20-million-dollar quota for the next year — and probably a heart attack.”
Larry couldn’t help but think there was a better way. He began to formulate
an exit strategy and consider what he wanted his future to look like. He
imagined a pool company that put the customer experience first, a company
that was small by design, not seeing the customer as a number but as a family
who deserves individualized attention, quality craftsmanship, and a five-star
experience.
“I told my wife, Susan, ‘We’re only doing
this if we can offer a five-star experience to every customer every time,’”
Larry said. “If we’re not five-star, we want to know why and we want to make
it right.” They spent years researching, planning, and learning. “We don’t
want to be millionaires. We want to make a decent living, offer a good living
to our team, and give our customers the best product and the best build
experience they can have — from first contact to design to the finished
product. Or as we say, ‘From start to splash.’”
Want a new
custom built pool for the summer? Find out more by visiting CanyonOakPools.com/custom-pool-and-spa
The Parnells soon learned when you treat customers
right, they tell their friends and family about it. Canyon Oak Pools began to
grow strictly through word of mouth. They’d build a custom pool in a
neighborhood and, next thing they knew, they were building one a few doors
down. They’d build a pool and outdoor living space for someone and then
receive a call from their coworker or friend. Today Canyon Oak Pools is
recognized as an elite pool builder with top-notch craftsmanship, 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, and
a long line of repeat and referral customers.
Joining Larry at Canyon Oak Pools is his
brother-in-law and head of operations, David Maia, his friend and director of
sales, Mike Woodfin, and his wife, Susan, who handles the accounting and
helps with marketing. “I have 100% confidence in every member of my team,”
Larry said. “I’m personally onsite for every job, but I also know I have a
team with the utmost integrity and attention to detail. We all live in this
community, and we love running into our customers knowing we gave them the
very best experience we could.”
Canyon Oak Pools specializes in designing the
perfect pool for each back yard, according to the owners’ unique dreams. They
begin by walking the space and listening to the customers’ vision and ideas.
Then they create an interactive 3-D design according to their exact
specifications. They guide the customer through selecting tiles, water
features, stone, etc. so each custom pool and outdoor space is just that
—custom and unique to that family.
The Parnells have deep roots in this
community and are intentional about doing good in the place they call home. They’re
active members of Snow Hill Baptist Church in Farmersville and are annual
sponsors of the Blue Ridge Rodeo. Both Susan and Mike’s wife, Audrey, sponsor
women in recovery, the Parnells’ daughter, Katherine, volunteers at the
Magdalen House in Dallas, and the whole family supports DFW Rescue Me for
abused and neglected animals.
Find out more
and schedule a consultation at CanyonOakPools.com.
Let Canyon
Oak Pools remodel your ugly-duckling pool and give you a luxurious, new
outdoor resort. Find out more at CanyonOakPools.com/remodel
Canyon Oak
Pools is happy to service:
- McKinney
- Blue Ridge
- Melissa
- Dallas
- Celina
- Prosper
- And all surrounding
areas in the DFW Metroplex
