S2:E32 Roofing Road Trips with Heidi - Innovative Products and Future of the Industry

By Colin Sheehan, RCS Reporter. 

RCS Partner Heidi J. Ellsworth is joined by Marianne Sumter of Wil-Mar Products to discuss their innovative products and where the roofing industry is heading. 

Marianne Sumter, owner of Wil-Mar Products sat down with RoofersCoffeeShop’s own Heidi J. Ellsworth on her podcast, Roofing Road Trips with Heidi and discussed the details of Sumter’s role as business owner, the innovative products Wil-Mar provides, and what she has learned in her years working in the technologically evolving roofing industry. 

Wil-Mar Products, Inc. was founded by W. R. “Bill” Merrin in 1990. Unfortunately, in 1995 Bill passed away and Marianne Sumter, Bill’s wife, took over the business. Marianne has since grown Wil-Mar into a highly respected roofing product manufacturing business that offers pipe collars and solar roofing mounts. 

“It's really important to enlist the help of your friends,” Marianne told Heidi on the recent podcast. Marianne admitted that she felt overwhelmed in the beginning, and eventually enlisted a fulfillment company to help handle her products.  

Due to the high-quality of the products and the performance of the Wil-Mar pipe collar she found that the business could nearly run itself. In fact, you can reach out to Marianne through the RoofersCoffeeShop website and request a free sample. “Get yourself a free sample of this pipe collar from us, and then you’ll have it in your hands and you can see what it’s all about,” said Marianne. 

The pipe collar was not the only thing Bill invented either. He also invented a mounting system so he could mount things off the roof, instead of having them lay on the roof itself. This invention has become popular within the solar industry in particular.  

Marianne and Heidi also discussed how powerful women supporting women in a male-dominated industry can be. “I’ve had a lot of good experiences with women also in roofing distributorships,” said Marianne. 

Both agreed that the inclusion and empowerment of women in the industry has created positive and necessary change. Increased diversity and inclusion within the industry means more perspectives, more ideas and more innovation. In such a rapidly evolving industry, such as the roofing industry, these qualities can only bolster business.   

With the ever-evolving technology, that Marianne has watched grow throughout her lifetime, she stresses the importance of building relationships despite the restraints COVID-19 has placed on in-person gatherings. To Marianne, building relationships is of top-tier importance, “whether that’s over the phone [or] on a Zoom meeting.”  

You’ll want to listen to the full conversation to learn more about the history of Wil-Mar Products, Sumter’s ownership of the business after her husband's death and how women continue to shape the future of roofing.