- 5 reasons reps switch: Solar sits at the bottom of a homeowner’s list while roofing sits at the top, so the path to income is shorter.
- The switch is work, not a shortcut: Roofing rewards reps who show up on a routine, not reps chasing a quick payday.
- Leaders keep reps by being honest: Transparency about weakness, proven by action, is what makes a rep stay.
More door-to-door reps are moving from solar to roofing, and the people making that call are not rookies. Fahredin Nushi built and scaled a solar company past $20 million in revenue, sold it, and started over in roofing with ROOV in Louisville, Kentucky. On The D2D Podcast with host Chad Thompson, he explained why the switch makes sense for a young rep chasing income, and what it actually takes to make the jump pay off. His plan is simple: keep what works in solar and leave the rest behind.
Why reps are switching from solar to roofing
Reps are switching because solar got harder to sell and roofing did not. Nushi points to rising regulation in solar, some of it self-imposed by companies and some coming from government, along with a general slowdown in the industry. For an owner who is committed to solar for the long haul, he says, that is a reason to stay and push through. For the average rep, the math is different. The goal was never solar. The goal was income.
When the product is in a lull and the goal is money, the rep is better off selling something with less friction. Roofing, in his view, is that product right now.
Is roofing easier to sell than solar?
Roofing is easier to open a door with because it sits at the top of a homeowner’s priority list instead of the bottom. Nushi describes the roof as the most important part of a home. It keeps the family dry and everything else in the house sits under it. Solar, by contrast, was always the last item on the list.
He used to hear the same stall over and over. The homeowner wanted new windows first, then a new HVAC system, then a new roof, and solar came somewhere after all of that. Roofing lets a rep lead with the thing people already know they need. That shift, from last in line to first, is the core of why he thinks reps reach their income goals faster in roofing than they do in solar today.
He sums it up with a line borrowed from racing: if you are not first, you are last. In solar, he says, he was not being dramatic, he was literally last on the homeowner’s list. Moving to roofing was a deliberate move up that list, from the thing people put off to the thing they cannot.
How a new rep breaks into roofing
The first step is to reach out to a company and get connected, because a rep who raises their hand is far easier to find than one who waits. Nushi tells young reps to be proactive. He will look for talent, but it is faster for the rep to come to him.
He is also blunt about the work. Roofing is not a get-rich-quick scheme and it is not easy, but he says it is well worth the effort. A rep will not love every day of it, and that is the point. The hard days are where the growth happens. His pitch to a new rep is not a fast car. It is a set of values that carries over into the rest of their life.
He frames money as a side effect of becoming the kind of person who does hard things well. Reps who want the training that comes with that path can look at Door-to-Door University before they pick a company.
Three habits that separate consistent reps
The reps who stay consistent share three habits: they run on a routine, they control what they take in, and they learn from people who have already done it. Nushi says the single biggest difference he sees between inconsistent reps and steady ones is a missing routine.
The first habit is to get up. He does not demand a 5 a.m. alarm. He wants a set time, a schedule, and a short morning routine with some gratitude and journaling before work. His reasoning is that people are creatures of habit, and the way a rep handles small things shows up everywhere else.
The second habit is to watch your inputs, and he does not just mean food. He means content, the voices around you, and who you spend time with. His version of it is blunt: the people closest to you shape your behavior, so if everyone around you is drifting, you will drift with them.
The third habit is to find someone who already has what you want and ask them, not someone guessing alongside you. As he puts it, you cannot take fitness advice from a coach who is out of shape. If you want a specific result, go to the person who already has it and ask how they got there.
How roofing leaders build teams reps don’t leave
Leaders keep reps by being open about their weaknesses and letting their strengths show through action instead of talk. That is the whole of Nushi’s leadership advice, and he gives it as one rule rather than a list.
His reasoning is that a team already sees what a leader is good at, so there is no need to narrate it. What builds loyalty is a leader admitting what is wrong with them and with the organization, and owning what both need to fix.
A leader who is vulnerable about their shortcomings but strong in their actions, he says, is the kind of person people actually want to follow. Reps who have worked long hours with him know he will sit down at the end of a rough day and feel it with them rather than hide.
For him it is not about the leader or the company at all. It is about building an environment reps thrive in. He wants a culture people do not want to leave, one that feels less like a job and more like a home. For a new rep, that is worth more than a bigger split at a company that treats them as a number. Reps weighing a specific trade can start with roofing sales training and the mentorship that comes with it.
How to move from solar to roofing sales
Use these steps to make the switch without starting from zero.
- Name your real goal. If the goal is income and generational wealth, pick the product with the shortest path to it, not the one you happen to know.
- Pick a roofing company with values, not just a comp plan. Ask what happens to a rep in their first ninety days, and who is responsible for training.
- Reach out first. Message the leader or recruiter directly instead of waiting to be found.
- Set a routine before your first knock. A fixed wake time, a short morning routine, and a daily plan beat raw motivation.
- Audit your inputs. Cut the content and the company that pull you off track, and add people who are already where you want to be.
- Find a mentor who has done it. Ask the person with the result you want, and do what they tell you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is roofing easier for door-to-door reps than solar right now?
Roofing sits at the top of a homeowner’s priority list because the roof protects everything under it, while solar usually ranks behind windows, HVAC and the roof itself. Nushi also points to heavier regulation and a slowdown in solar. For a rep whose goal is income, roofing offers a shorter path to that goal today.
Do I need solar experience to sell roofing?
No. The door-to-door skills transfer directly, including the approach, the conversation and follow-up. Nushi’s own plan is to carry the good habits from solar into roofing and drop the bad ones. A rep switching industries keeps their sales fundamentals and learns a new product, not a new job.
Is roofing sales a get-rich-quick job?
No. Nushi is direct that roofing is not easy and not a shortcut, though he believes it is worth the work. New reps should expect hard days and steady effort rather than a fast payday. The reps who earn the most are the ones who treat it like a long-term career.
What should I look for in a roofing company?
Look for a company built on values and a real training path, not just a commission split. Ask who trains new reps, what the first ninety days look like, and whether leaders are honest about weaknesses. A culture reps do not want to leave is a strong signal you are in the right place.
What is the first habit a new rep should build?
A consistent routine. Nushi says the most common trait of inconsistent reps is the lack of one. Set a wake time, build a short morning routine, and plan the day before you knock. Because how you handle one thing tends to be how you handle everything, small discipline early carries into the field.
Conclusion
The move from solar to roofing is less about the product and more about the path. Nushi left a company he built to chase a shorter route to the same goal, and his advice holds whether a rep sells roofs, windows or anything else at the door.
Pick the product that gets you to your goal faster, do the hard work on a routine, guard your inputs, and learn from people who are already there. Then find a leader who tells you the truth. That combination, not a lucky season, is what turns a first year at the doors into a career.
I knocked doors since I was 11! Never bought into the whole hourly normal job, and used direct sales to be the vehicle to create MASSIVE success. I Started the Direct Sales division for Solcius as their VP building it up to have 70+ sales reps nation wide. In 2018 I left to pursue a greater mission to unify and uplevel the Door to Door industry and founded the D2D Experts.