Craft and Quality 4 min read
Epoxy Cowboy on Metallic Epoxy in Germany: 15 Minute Pot Life, Test Customers and Trust
A German master craftsman explains why strict solvent rules make metallic floors harder in Germany, and why a masterclass is only the beginning.
Key takeaways
- Germany's rules on volatile organic compounds push installers to non-solvent epoxy, which gives about 15 to 20 minutes of working time per bucket.
- German customers ask three questions about epoxy: how long it lasts, whether it scratches and whether it contains solvent.
- He built his portfolio on four test customers before his first full paying job.
- His order for building a team: hire for preparation first, then for design.
In Epoxy Cowboy’s relaxation room in Germany, the walls are lined with original Super Nintendo games and vintage action figures. The floor under them is a blue, gold and black metallic epoxy, about three or four years old.
It is the kind of floor that is common in American garages and living rooms. In Germany, he says, it is still something new, and much harder to install.
Fifteen minutes in the bucket
The biggest difference between the two markets, he says, is solvent.
Germany is strict about volatile organic compounds, the chemicals that evaporate from some coatings. So German installers use non-solvent products. For a metallic floor, that changes everything.
“If I use a metallic floor epoxy, I have 15-20 minutes time,” he says. Then the next bucket has to be ready.
He once spoke with an American installer who described about 50 minutes in the bucket and more than an hour on the floor. “In Germany, we couldn’t use this material,” he says.
Selling a material nobody knows
When he started installing metallic floors, people in Germany did not know what metallic epoxy was. They asked whether it was for a garage, a living room or a business.
Germans, he explains, want to trust a material before they buy it. They know what wood and tile will do. Epoxy raises three questions every time:
- How long can I use it?
- Does it scratch?
- What about solvent?
He is a master craftsman, and customers trust him. “The people trust me and I sell a lot of floors for a German craftsman,” he says. But he believes the market could be much bigger. “The people need to trust in epoxy metallic.”
Four test customers before the first real one
Epoxy Cowboy teaches masterclasses for new installers. On the first day, he tells students to take pictures, make content and build their own brand.
He also tells them to invest in themselves, and to find test projects. He did exactly that. Before his first full paying customer, he did four test projects, each one bigger than the last: about 20 square meters, then 80, then 100.
He photographed each one and posted it on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook. After the fourth, he landed his first real customer, who paid the full price.
“I make my experience on the test customer floor, so I can start my business,” he says.
The other mistake he sees is skipping preparation. Grinding, repairing and priming the concrete is what makes a floor last.
“Preparation is number one before starting your design,” he says.
“Preparation is number one before starting your design.”
A masterclass is only the beginning
Many students, he says, want to be the next El Patron, JP Resin or Don Resin as soon as they finish a class.
“This is not the way,” he says. “If you start a master class, you have the basic. And then you have a long, long way to make your own brand.”
It took him about four years, he says, to get Epoxy Cowboy to the level he wanted. After a class, he tells students to show their work, interact with other creators by commenting on Instagram and Facebook, and keep going.
In Germany there is another step. To run this kind of business, he says, you first need a recognized trade qualification, such as painter or tile layer.
Building a team
His advice on hiring follows the same order as the work.
When there are more customers than he can finish on time, the first hire is for preparation. “This is the easiest part,” he says. Once the prep team is in place and the business grows again, the next step is people who can do the design.
Flying to San Antonio
Six to eight years ago, when he first started with metallic floors, Epoxy Cowboy watched American creators like JP Resin and El Patron and told a friend he wanted to do the same in Germany.
So when he was invited to the Golden Pour Awards, he decided to make the trip from Germany.
“For me it’s a great opportunity to get know network with these people,” he says. “We can exchange ideas, project ideas, maybe we can make some business together.”
What could change everything
For Germany, he sees one breakthrough that would make the market “blow up”: a non-solvent material that works like solvent material, with about an hour of working time instead of 15 to 20 minutes.
He hopes it comes, and he hopes the industries on both sides of the Atlantic grow together.
“I hope we can get material from the US and we can make some business together and make epoxy metallic floor much more bigger,” he says.
Watch on Epoxy Growth Guy
Clips from the interview
See Epoxy Cowboy tell it in their own words, on Instagram.