Star City Six – DJ McGerr
Decks Unlimited is Lincoln’s premier deck builder and material retailer. DJ McGerr is the sales manager at Decks Unlimited.
Tell us a little about your business
Decks Unlimited is a deck building company here in Lincoln. Dan Waters is the owner. I’ve been working with him since July of 2016. When I started, we had two crews running with six total employees. Now, we have five crews and 15 employees.
How did you get started in the business?
Construction is something I never imagined myself doing, although I do like working with my hands. A friend of mine had told me that Dan was hiring, and I said, “Why not, I’ll give it a shot.” At the time, I had zero experience and didn’t know how to read a tape measurer. With Dan’s training and his foreman, I gained the knowledge and ability to build a deck on my own about seven months later. After three years of building, the sales manager position opened up and I gladly accepted as I have a business degree and love talking to people.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced professionally?
Since being in sales, I’ve learned a lot about how the construction process goes. Scheduling has been the biggest challenge thus far. In this industry, there are countless obstacles that get in the way of staying where we need to be. Every deck is different and there’s always unexpected snags we run into, and with that, we learn and become better. I like to think that with every project completed, we become more efficient. In addition to unforeseen obstacles, the weather heavily affects our schedule. Whether it be rain, snow, cold or hot temperatures, each day missed due to that creates a ripple of processes needed to make things work.
Tell us a little about your family
Family is very important to me. I’ve got a mom, dad, step-mom, and step-dad. I have an older and younger sister as well as a twin brother! My older sister has two children ages seven and three, which gives me the opportunity to be the coolest uncle alive. In addition to my immediate family, I consider my boss and co-workers family as well. In all my working years, Dan is hands down the best boss I’ve ever had, and I’m certain my co-workers would say the same.
What’s your favorite thing to do on a day off?
I love sports and being active, so given the day off, I’ll go play pick-up basketball or workout. I’ve got a lot in common with my coworkers, so if we have a day off or on the weekends, some of us go longboarding, golfing, and a popular activity that most of us enjoy, frisbee golf!
What is your favorite TV show?
Breaking Bad.
If you could have a super power, what would it be?
Flying.
What local nonprofit organizations(s) are you passionate about or involved with, and are there any special reasons why?
In December 2019, we started volunteering with The Bay in Lincoln every third Wednesday of the month for their monthly food drive. So, on that day, three or four of us in the company head there around 4 p.m. to help set up the line, hand out varieties of food, then help clean things up. The Bay has all sorts of volunteer opportunities that we hope to be a part of in the future!
If our readers would like to contact you, how should they do so?
Phone: (402) 601-5091; Email: decksunlmtd@gmail.com; Website: www.decksunlimitedne.com. We recently moved our location to 3160 N 33rd St. in Lincoln.