How I built a multi-million dollar window and door replacement company with a $3,000 credit card - Hey everyone,


I started a window and door replacement company in December of 2018. We specialize in residential homes. Previously, I had worked for two other companies of the same type. I started in the marketing department, learned a great deal about buyer psychology, and then moved into sales, and the rest is history. Eventually, I decided to do it better on my own. We're almost five years in and at 8 million in all-time revenue. Here are a few tips and principles that are steadfast and necessary in growing my service business—all with $3,000 on my credit card.
***1: The tedious but necessary barrier to entry.***


I purchased an LLC $60-$100) and was tasked with trying to get a contractor's license($1,000). I also went overseas to get a logo($60), which saved me a couple hundred. The contractor's license was daunting because I'd never actually replaced or installed a window. However, I know how to ask questions. I called five local contractors. One of them gave me the best information. He mentioned that suppliers don't care about the license type, but as long as you weren't a GC, it had some form of carpentry. He told me the license type and why. If anyone is interested in more details, I can give you the low down, but there’s a lot to explain here, and each state is slightly different.
***2: suppliers***


I needed a supplier. The trades aren’t much different from any other industry. We buy with wholesale prices from a supplier, mark them up, and then sell them. I met with an inside sales rep and relayed my goals. Suppliers call family-owned businesses “ma and pa’s.” They don’t want to hear you have a partner or wife or want to help the community. They want to hear that you’re trying to take over the world.
***3: I copied everything from my previous employers, and they copied their previous employers.***


Having good contracts and agreements is essential. Not only do they protect you, but they can add a sense of credibility to your young business. If you respect processes and procedures, you're likely to be more stable, and customers will perceive this and have more confidence in you.
***3: Marketing is like a sword; you live and can die by it.***


Marketing has been the most challenging part of owning my business (besides operating cash). For a local-based company, use the material world as much as possible. I started by knocking on doors in neighborhoods with homes valued at over 350k on average. People were rude, but surprisingly, most were extremely friendly. I sold 337k my first year by knocking on two or three thousand doors. I was 22 then, so it was easier to stomach the shame of the hard-knock life.
The following year, I started print media and digital ads. Don’t do these unless you know what you’re doing. The biggest pitfall for businesses is low-efficiency marketing; overspending for leads and not having the infrastructure to support them will break the bank.
***4: Overspending is bad, like bad, bad.***
The first year was the hardest. I thought I had more money than I did. Imagine a twenty-two-year-old going from never seeing checks more extensive than $800 to suddenly getting $35,000 deposits. Not only this, I had a partner who liked to party. My partner blew through ten thousand partying one month and lent his dad two thousand due to overspending in a nightclub. He wasn’t my partner much longer. The separation was also expensive, over 40k.
Irresponsibility led to my supplier debts exceeding 150k. At this point, I don’t know how I didn’t go out of business. I worked 16 hours daily doing the marketing and sales, and it took me a year and a half to get out of the hole.
The story's moral is that hawkishness is critical to running any business. Maybe I’m traumatized, but I started saving every dollar I could. I downsized office space, got a cheap warehouse space, and lived more frugally outside the business.
Now, I have a margin of 66% to ensure the business runs smoothly. We maintain a healthy balance of payments to suppliers and allocate capital to improve the business's efficiency.
***5: Pay extra for better work***
Paying more for quality labor should be self-explanatory, but my previous employer's biggest mistake was low-wage pay. When you get the cheapest work, you get the cheapest results. I remember copying their process early on and paying small wages. It ends up costing me so much more. The turnover could have been better. I would spend two thousand on finding an employee that only stayed one month– consistently. The low pay compounded to multiple tens of thousands over time.
Eventually, I did something unheard of in the world of capitalism. I paid people a metric- fuckton of money to work here. Most of my employees make over 100k, and the business is making more money than ever. The turnover is incredibly low, so people are getting way more skilled and doing complex things that abstract above the job I hired them for. My installers are making over 100k as well. It just makes it easier to do the work we need to do. It also justifies our higher cost because the customers benefit from the best product and quality work.

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***To conclude:***
I am still learning daily and studying economics to try to make sense of the world around me. I often have imposter syndrome and feel guilty for my life. But I ensure I deserve it by spreading wealth and competence. While I’m writing this, I can’t help but notice there’s so much more that I don’t have the time to explain, but practical things like managing cash flow were challenging for me because I didn’t know anything, and there are no books about it. If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask. I’m no guru and don’t have a course to shill, so I’ll try to genuinely help anyone I can if they’re in a similar industry.


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