Business View Magazine | March 2019

27 THE ASSOCIATION OF POOL & SPA PROFESSIONALS would advertise one thing, but sell you another. Because this was seen as a rather big issue, several pool company owners got together and formed this organization to combat bait and switch. They came up with a code of ethics, and if you were to become a member of this trade group, you had to agree to the code of ethics, that, although it has been modified over the years, we still adhere to, today. Basically, it was ‘Do no wrong to the consumer.’ Today, the Asso- ciation is much different, but that early culture of being a reputable dealer and dealing prop- erly with consumers is still very prevalent.” Today, the APSP has a total membership of 3,200 companies. “If you’re in our industry, it would be the company that is a member of our Association and then all of the staff, workers, and people that work for that company,” says Caniglia. “We don’t count them in our num- bers, but they have the same benefits as any- body else in the company. They get the same education member rates, and they can attend different events. We do have associate mem- AT A GLANCE THE ASSOCIATION OF POOL & SPA PROFESSIONALS WHAT: Representing swimming pool, spa, and hot tub manufacturers and associates WHERE: Alexandria, Virginia WEBSITE: www.apsp.org