Olaf Growald
J & V Painting | Reader Pick: Best Painting Company
When Jon Nappier’s business was once again voted by Fort Worth Magazine readers as the city’s best painting company — his fourth time to win that honor — we came up with an idea: Let’s take a picture of him all decked out in messy painting gear. We’ll sprinkle paint speckles on his clothes, skin and hair — you know, like he’s been painting all day. Come on, Jon, it’ll be fun.
In a polite, gentleman-like fashion, Nappier gave us a hard “no.” That wasn’t the image he wanted to portray.
“I’ll tell you a story,” he says. “I got one of my first customers by pulling up to their house, wearing nice clothes that didn’t have a drop of paint on them. I know most painters look a certain way, but the way I figured it, if I looked messy, customers may think I’ll do a messy job. That wasn’t the image I wanted to convey.”
Nappier’s thoughtful approach worked — on that day and for many days to come. Over the past four decades, Nappier’s company, J & V Painting, has grown into one of the most in-demand professional painting companies in Fort Worth, and often beyond. He and his team of contract workers, 35 in all, many of whom have been with him for decades, work on residential homes and commercial buildings big and small, near and far, for all walks of life.
“I’ve done small homes in Como to ski resorts in Colorado,” he says. “Here’s what we’re working on today: a shopping center in Colleyville, some yard furniture at Eagle Mountain Lake, and then someone’s home in Aledo. To say we do a little bit of everything is an understatement.”
J & V’s specialties include sheetrock jobs, texture, faux finishes, and tape and bed work, along with drywall installation and epoxy flooring.
A true family-run business, J & V is named after Nappier and his younger brother Vance, who retired three years ago but still helps from time to time. Nappier’s daughters, Sara Hiett and Kim Nappier-Pierce, assist with administrative needs.
Even though he’s in his 70s, Jon is still the face of the company, its front and center.
“He has no problem getting on a ladder and working,” says Hiett. “He still does quite a bit of teaching, too — showing the guys new techniques, new products. He still gets up at 5 every morning and goes to work and stays gone until 6.”
“Sometimes 7,” chimes in Nappier-Pierce. “The man is in his 70s, and I don’t think he’ll ever stop. He loves it too much.”
Jon and his brother started the company in 1975. Along with Jon’s wife, Cindy, the two were running a popular bar on Camp Bowie called Everybody’s Talking. Yet the brothers had grown weary of the hours and were looking for new careers; they didn’t have to look very far.
“We had a lot of painters who came into the bar, and they spent a lot of money, so we knew a person could do well in that industry,” he says. “We went out and bought paint brushes and a roller; then, next thing you know, we’re buying another piece of equipment, then another piece. We had a buddy whose father taught us a few things about painting, and pretty soon we had a pretty good little business going. And still do.”
Pool Service & Repair | Reader Pick: Pulliam Pools
Pulliam Pools has been building custom swimming pools for more than 100 years. The company made Pool and Spa News’ 2020 Top 50 Builders. It finished 2019 with $14.8 million in revenue and an average pool price of $68,029.
Moving Service | Editor Pick: Veterans Moving America
Zach Freeman founded VMA – staffed fully by veterans – during his last semester at TCU. Freeman graduated with a BBA in Entrepreneurial Management and Supply Chain Management. VMA provides full-service moving services within the DFW area. It also provides statewide moving, to or from DFW.
Roofing Company | Editor Pick: Ramon Roofing, Inc.
Ramon Roofing is well known to Fort Worth Magazine readers as a partner in our Dream Home projects. Paul Ramon founded the company in 1995, and he specializes in tile, slate, and metal roofing. Ramon is one of four Texas roofers that is a certified specialist by the Tile Roofing Institute. Ramon is teaming with Heritage Homes to install the roof on one of the magazine’s 2020 Dream Street homes in Southlake’s Oxford Place.
