Where do solar panels, batteries and inverters come from? No, they don’t come from the solar store. They come from distributors who order in huge quantities directly from manufacturers where they distribute efficiently in smaller quantities to contractors in the solar industry that do the installations.
These distributors provide a tremendous service to solar and storage industry. Even though they mark up the equipment slightly to make a profit, they really reduce costs for the contractor and those lower costs flow to the businesses and homeowners that are purchasing systems.
I found over the past 20 years in the solar industry, that it is more efficient and actually cheaper to order equipment through a good distributor rather than purchase in huge quantities direct from a manufacturer. One of the very best distributors in my experience is BayWa r.e. or Baywa for short. They are based in Santa Fe New Mexico, their parent company is this huge $18b multi-national equipment and energy company based in Germany with a really strong presence in the United States.
What I really like about Baywa is their focus and efficiency and I especially like working with their team I’m really impressed by their culture. Although culture is a “fuzzy” thing, it really makes a difference in the competitive solar industry. So listen to this week’s Energy Show as we speak with Boaz Soifer, CEO of Baywa to learn how he has shaped the culture to drive success at Baywa and to hear his insight on common elements of successful solar companies that Baywa serves.