The family behind Country Commercial – Jake, Shannon and Rhett Payne

As Owner and Sales Manager of Country Blinds, Jake has focused on market research and continuing to expand the range of products offered by the business to best serve the needs of South Australian homeowners. Working with the Country Blinds sales team daily, Jake is well-connected to a constant flow of feedback that helps inform the choices made in creating new product lines and in improving and evolving existing products.

“We place a great deal of importance on building customer relationships that extend well beyond the first visit. To gain the long-term trust of our customers, we must prove to them, we know what we are talking about and that we can deliver. I’m constantly training our consultants, ensuring they understand every facet of current products, as well as keeping up with new trends that are coming through. We want our customers to get the best result for their home, we ask questions, we work together as a team, I even have consultants face time to me whilst onsite for a second opinion. We spend the time going through the design and delivery, allowing us to tailor a solution to suit the client’s budget. We love making it right for you.”

Rhett Payne’s role of Owner and General Manager of Country Blinds is a hands-on job that sees him at the Mount Barker factory every day, working with staff, many of whom have been part of the Country family for over a decade. Materials, techniques, and mechanisms are constantly refined to enhance choice, durability and ease of use of the end product. The factory itself has evolved over the years as new equipment has been brought in to streamline the workflow and further improve quality.

“From computer-controlled vacuum fabric cutting tables to advanced fabric welders that eliminate old-fashioned stitching on outdoor blinds, the investments we make in the Country Blinds factory are always far-sighted and focused on improving the end product for our customers. We genuinely aim to create curtains, blinds, awnings and shutters that are the best made anywhere in the world. And it’s impossible to overstate the importance of good people at the Country Blinds factory. Our team of 35 craft people is made up of loyal, highly skilled men and women who share a dedication to doing the best job they can, every single day. The result is a collection of products that we are all genuinely proud of.”

Great curtains, blinds, awnings and shutters demand precision in their installation and proud homeowners expect the best. Country Blinds Owner and Installation Manager Shannon Payne sees to it that every customer is as pleased with their installation as they are with the products they chose. This entails balancing a host of variables and an ability to be adaptable in order to deliver a result that everyone can be pleased with. Shannon and his team of 21 installers work every day all over metro and regional South Australia and aim to deliver a result that their customers will be proud to show off.

“At the end of the day, our customers are our best salespeople – there is simply nothing better than a word-of-mouth recommendation by a homeowner who is happy with their installation. To achieve this, it is vital that we work precisely, communicate clearly and know our products inside-out. This is yet another area where locally manufacturing what we sell and install gives Country Blinds a huge advantage. My team is in touch every day with the factory, sharing feedback that can potentially lead to improvements in design that will ultimately benefit our customers.”