NEW HARTFORD, N.Y. — Just in time for everyone to open their swimming pools for the season, Tucker Backyard Pools & Spas plans to soon formally open its new headquarters and showroom at 8086 Seneca Turnpike in New Hartford.

Construction crews are currently working on finishing the interior of the new 11,000-square-foot building, and owner Ben Tucker is hoping for an early May grand opening.

Founded in 2014, Tucker Backyard Pools & Spas previously operated from 3,000 square feet on Commercial Drive in New Hartford. That space was fairly limited, Tucker says, with limited storage space, room for displays, and even room to park equipment.

“We didn’t have room to display things,” the business owner explains. “It made it hard to do the ‘one to show, one to go.’” That meant when customers saw a display spa they wanted, Tucker needed to order it. With the COVID-19 pandemic, lead times for ordering spas was anywhere from 14 to 16 months, he notes.

That made things challenging during what turned out to be a brisk sales period, Tucker notes. His business has been growing an average of 12 to 14 percent a year, and the pandemic didn’t hurt things at all. In fact, everyone spending more time at home ended up helping his business, as more people sought pools.

“Last year was a huge influx of business because everyone wanted one,” he says.

The new showroom is the same size as the entire previous building, Tucker says, giving him plenty of room to display spas as well as the pool and spa chemicals he sells. The showroom features three walls full of windows, letting in lots of natural light and creating a bright and airy space.

“It’s all about creating an experience,” Tucker says. To further round out that experience, the spas will all be installed the same way they would be at a customer’s home, he adds. That way they can see what the electrical hookups look like.

With that same concept in mind, the new Tucker Backyard Pools & Spas building also features an enclosed space where three different styles of inground pools will be set up and fully functional. Those pools will be just outside the windows of the new conference room, so customers can look out the window just like they would at home and envision what their pool might look like.

“I think it’ll change the way people shop,” Tucker says of the space.

Along with the showroom and conference room, the new building also includes a parts room, a repair area, offices, a break room for employees, and a warm storage area to keep the chemicals above freezing temperatures. There is plenty of room to keep spa inventory on hand, Tucker adds.

The building sits on 1 1/2 acres that also includes a second 2,300-square-foot building that Tucker is currently using for office space. Once the new space opens, he plans to lease that building out to someone else.

The opening of the new space will bring to fruition a process that started in March 2020 when Tucker first found the property and was ready to purchase it. That process took just about a year, and construction on the building began last November. In total, the project will cost about $600,000 after the recent increase in lumber prices, Tucker notes. He obtained financing from M&T Bank for the project.

Crews are currently working on the lights, painting, and interior trim in the building, which Tucker designed himself. With an eye to future needs, there are no load-bearing walls inside the building, so he can easily change things around if needed.

As with previous years, Tucker expects this year to be busy. “Right now, we’re booking for August,” he says. “We have projects sold already for October.”

Tucker is currently looking for employees to add to his current staff of 10. He hopes to hire about six to eight more people to round out his service, cleaning, and building crews.

Tucker Backyard Pools & Spas (www.tuckerbackyard.com) is currently operating at the new location and hopes to celebrate the new building with a ribbon cutting and grand-opening event.