From Startup to 300% Growth: Beyond Plumbing expands with StoreConnect and Salesforce
Everyone had that moment during the pandemic — the moment everything changed.
Over a few beers, three regular Aussie dads — Danny Edwards, Dean Leary and Rick Ogge — looked at each other and said: “We can do this ourselves.”
A few weeks later, Beyond Plumbing Supplies was born.
We recently sat down with co-owner Rick Ogge to hear their story.
Building More Than Pipes: A Plumbing Business With Real Purpose
With decades of combined experience in the plumbing industry, the trio knew the trade inside out. But from day one, they wanted more than just another supplier.
This wasn’t about getting rich. It was about paying the bills, staying in control of their futures, and — most importantly — never missing a school concert or pickup.
They also made a promise: a percentage of every sale would go toward mental health programs, inspired by the toll the industry (and the pandemic) had taken on so many tradies.
And no matter how big the business grows, they’ll never forget who they are: three average Aussie dads doing it their way.
From Bricks-and-Mortar to Nationwide eCommerce
While most big plumbing suppliers rely on physical stores, Beyond went 100% online from day one — shipping nationwide from a single warehouse.
They knew the next generation of plumbers wanted fast, easy online ordering — not a trip across town.
They also knew first impressions matter.
“In Melbourne, if you go to a café and have a bad coffee, you never go back. It’s the same with your website — it has to be a really good experience. If it’s hard to use, clunky, or the invoice doesn’t come through properly… people just won’t come back.”
“My advice to any new eCommerce business? Invest properly from the start so you’re seen as professional — right out of the gate.”
— Rick Ogge, Co-owner & Business Manager, Beyond Plumbing Supplies
Why Salesforce + StoreConnect Was a No-Brainer
A mate offered to build them a cheap website. They passed.
Instead, after a referral from their Salesforce partner, they discovered StoreConnect — a full eCommerce platform built natively on Salesforce.
Every question they asked (“Can it do this? What about that?”) was met with either “Yes, it already does” or “It doesn’t yet — but we’ll build it for you.”
“We have been able to work with StoreConnect to make whatever we need happen. Every hypothetical we threw at them — the answer was yes.”
— Rick Ogge, Co-owner & Business Manager, Beyond Plumbing Supplies
Support? World-class. Issues fixed in hours — even on Sunday nights.
“We feel important. The team at StoreConnect delivers exceptional, personal support. We’re on a journey together — every new feature they release, we get to use straight away.”
— Rick Ogge, Co-owner & Business Manager, Beyond Plumbing Supplies
Seamless Experience = Happy Plumbers
From registration to purchase to invoicing — everything happens inside Salesforce. No integrations. No data gaps. No headaches.
“By choosing the best CRM on the planet (Salesforce) and pairing it with StoreConnect, we gave our very first customers a seamless experience — from day one.”
— Rick Ogge, Co-owner & Business Manager, Beyond Plumbing Supplies
The result? Over 3,500 plumbers now shop with Beyond. Late-night orders arriving interstate the next morning have become the stuff of legend in plumbing Facebook groups.
And pricing? Fair across the board — no punishing the little guy, no special deals just for the big firms. A proper fair go.
Growth is strong — but controlled. The boys are in no rush to scale at the cost of service or family time.
They still haven’t missed a single school event. The kids still build cardboard castles in the warehouse in the afternoons.
At Salesforce World Tour Sydney 2024, Rick summed it up perfectly:
“After getting onboarded with Salesforce, we had a demo from StoreConnect and it blew us away — we could have our entire eCommerce platform powered by our CRM and run the whole business from one place.”
— Rick Ogge, Co-owner, Beyond Plumbing Supplies
Beyond Plumbing Supplies proves you don’t need to choose between profit and purpose.
You can build a cracking business, look after your family, give back to the industry, delight your customers — and still have fun doing it.
We’re proud StoreConnect gets to be part of their journey.