Owned and Operated - A Plumbing, Electrical, and HVAC Business Growth Podcast The 3 Stages of Building a Home Service Business From $1M to $20M and Beyond
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Mar 20, 2026 A candid roadmap for scaling a trades company through three growth stages. Stories about buying broken businesses and funding expansion from internal cash. Practical moves on pricing, digital leads, and rapid hiring. The shift from chaotic growth to building HR, accounting, and leadership systems. Finally, focusing on EBITDA and measuring expansion by return rather than top-line revenue.
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Early Scrappiness Growing 8 People To $1.7M
- John Wilson started with an 8-person, $1M business and spent the first year learning fundamentals like P&L, hiring, and marketing.
- He pivoted to flat-rate pricing, focused on Google presence and sales training, and grew 70% to $1.7M in the first year.
Create Cash To Fund Growth
- Do create your own cash to fuel growth because small businesses can't afford many mistakes in marketing or hiring.
- John generated cash via pricing changes, digital leads, Google ads, and installing commission plans to boost revenue quickly.
Cold Outreach Bought A Competitor
- John found 50 small plumbing companies by searching Google reviews and sent 50 letters, getting 4–5 responses and buying one in early 2018.
- That acquisition taught him you can just buy competitors and double quickly if the deal math works.