Pivot when Needed, and Create when Appropriate!
Last time (June 30th – Art/Science v. Risk), we visited Risk Mitigation, with ‘laying off risk’ as the example. There is, however, much more that surrounds the risk aspects of entrepreneurship and business in general. Therefore, I will return to the subject in future posts. But in this post, I want to embark on the first of a series of stories relating to my experiences over the years. Lesson: Find a need; Fill it!
I cannot say I’m a storyteller – so we’ll see how it goes – nor will I assume anyone has much interest in my experiences. No, I am sharing these real-life situations because they are authentic, each a true case history. Individually and collectively, they offer some crucial lessons.
Following these initial blog posts, you’ll know it all started as a painting contractor enterprise. Boy, did that get boring quickly!
Soon, another opportunity presented itself, and our mini-five-member crew responded. After sprucing up just a few buildings throughout Vancouver, one of the owners – who also happened to be a Custom Home Builder – expressed how he was having some trouble with his construction projects. A housing boom was in full swing on Vancouver’s North Shore. Like many others within the sector, he was constantly plagued by delays. The advantages of strong market demand were, in this case, unfortunately, hampered by too many interruptions.
The cause: industry inefficiency. Tradespeople call-backs (e.g., back-framing), work-order changes (e.g., plumbing to be moved), or damage caused by another trade (needing drywall repairs) caused all sorts of project disruption. These stoppages added significant costs, especially when tradespersons that undertook the original work moved on without bothering to return, forcing the builder to 'go fish'!
Adding to the frustrations, many small, ancillary jobs could further challenge these builders. The list included installing flashing or fascia boards, completing drain tile placement, adding driveways or sidewalks, etc. Decks and gazebos, a must on the North Shore, would, in turn, add an entirely new level of aggravation. Framing carpenters are not finishing carpenters and, therefore, would not accept this work. And most finishing carpenters found this work 'wholly beneath them'.
As I said before, any cowboy can paint. He can also swing a hammer. So, our little ‘builder support service’ quickly took shape, taking care of all and sundry.
The lesson learned was twofold.
1. Pivot: from a “Just another/Me to” Painting Contractor Business to an industry-unique, ‘in-demand’, ‘We Tie-Up-Loose-Ends’ builder support service.
2. Meet or Create a Market Need: With a few flyers, some word of mouth and several jobs well done, local-area builders soon realized this was a ‘time and cost saving’ service they could not do without.
Within eighteen months, this tiny business evolved into an equally unique 'Builder Buying Group/Purchasing Service', uniting B.C. Lower Mainland Builders into a significant purchasing powerhouse. But I’ll save that story for the next blog post.
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