Team sees immediate benefits of employee uniforms

Branded look leads to increased trust and recognition

By Sara McKone

Kirkwood Property Services is a full-service homeowners association (HOA) management, accounting, maintenance and repair company in California’s Kirkwood Mountain Resort community. Kirkwood Property Services opens in new window manages properties for 14 HOAs, handling administration, carpentry, electrical, plumbing, painting, snow removal and more.

For years, members of the Kirkwood Property Services team of eight wore street clothes to work. But Jonathan Frick, engineering manager, knew investing in branded employee uniforms could make a difference.

“I’m a veteran, and I understand the importance of uniforms and the impact they can have,” Frick said. “It’s not just a visual for everyone else; uniforms also provide self-confidence for the people wearing them because they show they’re a member of a team.”

Since late 2023, Frick and his colleagues have worn trucker caps and Dickies^® work shirts. They can be seen taking care of tasks around the popular ski resort known for its abundant snowfall and remote location south of Lake Tahoe. The benefits of employee uniforms have become apparent, as HOA board members and others from the resort community spot the branded apparel and know right away it’s the Kirkwood Property Services team.

“When we started wearing the uniforms and looking the part, I saw an immediate change,” Frick said. “We work with the board members and now there’s an under-current of trust from them. They recognize our team out there doing the work, and they recognize our presence in the valley.”

Kirkwood Property Services often presents proposals for repairs and large-scale projects, and since the change in apparel, the uptick in trust has made for smoother meetings and quicker processes. There have been financial benefits too. Frick said Kirkwood Property Services has done “exponentially more business,” earning double its contribution margin each of the past three years. “I attribute a lot of that to the trust we’ve earned with the board members, our presence within the valley and how people see us,” he said.

“We were always out there working,” Frick said. “But all of a sudden, I have people coming up to me saying they saw our team out there. The reason they know we’re getting stuff done in the valley is because they see us. They recognize that we are Kirkwood Property Services and see what we’re accomplishing out there.”