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HVAC Masters of the Hustle
Episode #294- Brandon Brown- Owner HVAC Plumbing
00:38:06
HVAC Masters Of The hustke has a great podcast episode for you on episode 294. Brandon Brown is in the HOTE SEAT discussing what it takes to start a HVAC or PLUMBING company. Brandon talks about all the challeneges being a NEW contractor but also...
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- [00:02]
A
This is H Vac Masters of the Hustle with your host, Jacob Money Maker.
- [00:11]
B
Looking at the city like I already own it.
- [00:38]
A
What is up? You are listening to H Vac Masters of the Hustle podcast and here's your host, J Dub Moneymaker. And welcome to episode 294. And this podcast is brought to you by Nuva Thermostat. This is the thermostat made by the contractor for the contractor. I got two installed in my house. I got them installed in my shop. My team's installing. We talk about brand recognition, retaining your clients, your customer base so your competition doesn't come in. This is the thermostat that is going to work for you. If you guys want a demo, reach out to me. Jdub@h vacmastersofthehustle.com I would love to hook you up with a demo on that, but I got a great episode for you all. As every single week, what I like to do is get grinders, hustlers, people that are making a big impact across the nation. I'm out here all the way in California and we're bringing someone all the way from the East Coast, Virginia. Let's go ahead and welcome the one, the only, Mr. Brandon Brown. What is up?
- [01:52]
B
Hey man, welcome. Thank you for having me, actually. Good to see you.
- [01:56]
A
Absolutely. So I'm just super excited because I've been watching and following you for the last couple years and just watching your growth, right? And then not just your growth, but you also putting yourself out there and your team putting themselves out there on social media and making content and everything like that. So before we get into like the meat and potatoes of the podcast, let's tell everyone. How did you first off get introduced to this crazy trades that we call H Vac?
- [02:27]
B
Man, I tell you, I was actually, it was just blessed and it was God's path. I was in high school looking for a. I spoke the other day at a huge trade summit for, for the community colleges. And I was a junior in high school facing the same questions. What are you going to do with your life? Where are you going to college? What are you going to be? And I had, you know, I knew I didn't, I wasn't going for a four year degree. I kind of was a C average student. I hated school, but I love working with my hands. And luckily it was the very first year I went to guidance counseling. I said, I need a plan. And our guidance said, you know what, we have a new program starting. It's a dual enrollment. You can Pick from these things. And I was looking at the list. It's electrical, plumbing, heating and air. You know, EMTs, welders. I'm like, man, I don't know. I said, just something about heat and air stuck out. So I picked it and I was like, well, if I don't like it, I'll change. So I hit the door running my junior year. Did half a day heat and air, half a day's high school. Graduated high school with my heat and air degree the same day and just hit the ground running for a local company until 2006 when I launched Brown's Heat and Air.
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A
So when you launched Brown's Heating and Air, what was kind of that. That leap of faith or that decision to make you start your own company? Because, I mean, that comes with a lot of obstacles, challenges, hurdles.
- [03:49]
B
Yeah, that's a story in itself because I was working for someone, it was around 2005, so about 98 to 2005, working for someone and just. I loved heated air, but I just didn't feel right working for someone or just where I was at. It's like something. So I didn't know. I started to question if I was doing what I was supposed to do. And I also was a volunteer fire fireman from the time I could drive. So at this time, unfortunately enough. But Hurricane Katrina hit, you know, in 2005, and I took a job with FEMA, actually helping work for the hurricane, because I was like, I need a break. I don't know what it is. They offered volunteer firemen jobs to come down, work $25 an hour. They pay food, they pay you travel. Just come help us for Katrina. So I hit. I hit that for about six months, actually. I was down there for six months. And I got back, and my wife, now she's my girlfriend at the time, you know, I was like, what do I. We started talking. What am I going to do with my life? You know, my going back to the company? And she actually said, you know, why don't you start your own business? You've got your license, you've got your, your, Your stuff. Just start your own business. I said, you know, I'd love to, but I'm broke. You know, I'm 23 years old, 24. It's 2006. I'm. I just don't know what to do. And she went to Bath with me with her dad, and he actually loaned me my first loan to buy a van and stock it. It was an old van. We had to fix it up, put some Parts in it. It took me probably five or six years to pay him back, but I paid him back and, and I. And from that day on January of 2006, we launched Brown's eating in there.
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A
I love it. I love it. So, so you started pretty much with nothing. You went out, you talked to a family, you were able to get a loan. And with that you started with one truck. Okay. And from 2006, from your memory, when you were running calls in that one truck, what was your biggest obstacle? You know, from being a one man guy to hiring your first employee?
- [05:52]
B
The biggest obstacle was finding work. And back then, 2006, 7, it's different than now. Literally in this area was maybe 5 heat and air companies running the central Virginia. And they had been around forever. So getting people to trust me as a new heat and air young guy, trust me to give them their work and do their stuff. So actually for the first year or two, I rode around with a lawnmower on my back. I'd cut grass, I cleaned gutters. I help, I'd help elderly people change lights. I would paint their house, whatever. And I would just. Every time I did that, I'd leave a business card. I know you might have a heating air company. I'm not trying to, to still work, but if you need me, call me. And then from there on it started turning into more work because I was just building this community around me. I would help do whatever they needed. I didn't care. I might have been Brown's eat dinner, but I would cut grass. Today I'd paint kitchens, tomorrow I'd haul trash away, whatever they needed just to get my name in the door. And then I started working with some builders and started right then. At that time, new construction was booming. So we were booming with that until the housing market crashed, of course. And then when that crashed, you know, I was on the verge of hiring people. I had a couple subscribers and that obstacle hit. I had three builders kind of leave us with about 50, 60,000 in open invoices and things around. So I had to pay them back. So I begged a local bank to give me a loan and they did. And I paid that back. But it just to stay open, I had to borrow money again to pay off all my accounts and my subs challenges. And then at that time it was. Work was slow because the housing market crashed. So I went to work with for Lynchburg fire department as a paid fireman for the benefits. So I'd work 24 hours, all 48 in the days I was Off I started building back my heat and air again for the second time. And as that grew to 2015, I was able to hire people and then leave and make the jump again to just full time heat and air.
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A
Nice, Nice. Now let's, let's back up a little bit. Let's talk about, you know, you're starting out and you start partnering up with new construction companies and things like that. So for some of my listeners, they're brand new, they're green, they're just starting out. How do you get in front of builders? How do you get those agreements where you get new construction builds to keep the momentum going?
- [08:14]
B
Yeah, new construction is a funny game. It's a funny game. It's, I tell people all the time, it's great for the businesses that are starting in small. It's not good for the established company because you do start losing money when you get bigger. But it's a game of, it's a game of chess. You just have to show up, give a builder a card. They're always, most of them are always looking for the, the bad thing is they're looking for the cheapest price, you know, builders. So you don't want to stretch yourself thin just to get to work. And I, it took me a long time to learn being busy was not being profitable and I'd be busy as crap. And I get to the end of the year and the dudes, like tax guys like you ain't making no money. What are you doing? I'm like, I'm working 70 hours a week. What do you mean I ain't making.
- [08:55]
A
Yeah, what do you mean?
- [08:56]
B
So busy work is not profitable work at all times. You have to learn that early. I wish I had learned that earlier. Markups, cost of goods, insurance, all that stuff took play. And as you added people, I could have probably grown quicker. But, you know, everything happens for a reason. But I always tell people, now as you're starting, just slow it, go slow, get the work you need, but make sure you're profitable. Those builders and stuff, you know, want it the quickest and the cheapest sometimes, and sometimes it's good and sometimes it's bad to do.
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A
So. Brandon, let me ask you, when did you start learning as a business owner about numbers and what your numbers should look like in each department and everything like that.
- [09:38]
B
Man, it was probably literally 12, 13. I'm on year 18, probably year 12 or 13, when I was really starting to grow, getting 25, 25, 28 employees. And then when you get to that size, you Know your payroll's got to meet every week. It's when I started really breaking down. And actually I was smart then back in 2016, I hired my wife. At the time we were married, I hired her full time. She's now my vice president. She's good with numbers, she's good with, she does my marketing. We've been together since I started the business and she helped me at the house. But she's come on full time in 2016 to help us get straight because after the market crash and builders, you know, I didn't have contracts written. I mean I couldn't sue the builders because I was young and didn't know how to do a contract. It was a word of mouth type handshake job. And I learned pretty quick the lawyers like the handshake ain't going to keep you from paying your bills. You need to get a contract. So learning that, I learned from my mistakes how to do it, you know, so it literally took 10 to 12 years out of 18 before I really started diving into knowing my numbers and knowing that everything, everything's important.
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A
What would you say as a business owner from year day one to year to date? Today has been your biggest obstacle as a business owner?
- [10:55]
B
Man, I think the biggest obstacle. It's several things, I guess it's several things. Learning how to market yourself, learning how to provide the service that you stand behind and not not, you know, treating people. We take real, we take a lot of pride here of five star service. We were named the best company to work for with 150 employees here in central Virginia this year for Brown's Heat and Air Best Heating and air. And I've also added plumbing two years ago. But the obstacles was just learning how to, you know, be confident with yourself, to price it and tell people how to, you know, explain it to them. You know, this, this is how it's costing. It's not just throwing a number at something. So. And then there's so many heat and air companies around the last several years. You know, the obstacle of pricing fair, getting the work, but making sure you stand behind your work because there's so many companies now than there were when I started. So it makes it a lot harder to maintain that, you know, that busyness.
- [11:59]
A
Let me ask you a question, Mr. Brandon. What, what does Brown's clients like, overall experience look like? So, so you have a technician from, I mean the girls answering the phone or gentleman answering the phone is sending out a tag. What is the full round circle look.
- [12:18]
B
Like over there from the from the time they answer the phone here to the time we get done with the installer service, they feel like it's a white glove. Top notch, respectable service. All of our guys, we have the best guys I've had ever. We get so many 5 star reviews and comments about our, our employees, they, they treat everybody with love, respect and dignity there. We're humble, but our service is just. We treat them so well from start to finish that it's no question that they called the best. We want to make sure when we leave, there's no question. And we now have people that will spend more for us to install a system than a company down the road, even if it's 4 or 5,000 less because of our community following our reviews, the neighbors saying, don't worry, it's worth the money. We do all kinds of things that other companies don't do. If they spend over 8,000 with us, they get custom Oreo cookies with our logo. Thank you. We give them a goodie bag. Every install gets a goodie bag with a tumbler. It's got different gifts each month. The girls at office, sometimes it's flower, you know, seeds for your garden in the spring and then the fall may be pizza cutters or pumpkin seeds. So we try to do, every time we go to a job, we send them with something so that they're like, this is the best service I've ever had.
- [13:40]
A
Be different. I absolutely love that you do that. I want to bring it back a little bit. How do you get your employees to buy in to that? Because, you know, I travel a lot and I think that's probably one of the biggest concerns that business owners have is how do you get people to buy into delivering that type of service, White glove service, every single time consistently.
- [14:04]
B
You have to, you have to treat your employees better than the owners. The employee has to not come to a job. They have to feel like our employees love coming to work for us. We're like I said, we're named the best places to work because we do so many events for them. We do so many bonuses, we do so many gifts. Yesterday we did a huge stew, dessert and everything. Everybody took off for two hours. We didn't pay, we paid them. We didn't make them clock out to come, eat together, have some pump like we had a pumpkin throwing contest. We gave out awards. We do, we, we treat the employees like they deserve. They're the ones out in the attics, in the crawl spaces and they're burning up. They're in the cold and so they get treated. They get. We treat them so well because they deserve it. One. But number two, that they automatically don't. They don't have to buy in. They automatically feel the love that they show to the customers. So it also starts with hiring day one. When you come in, you go over your core values, community, you know, Christ like atmosphere, our community and our customer service. That's. We don't, we don't deter off of that. You. You break any of them. Three, you will be jobless because we expect the best when we hire because everybody around here has to put in the same amount of work. And if someone's slacking, the others are going to pick. They're going to say, hey, don't slack this company.
- [15:19]
A
Expectations, accountability.
- [15:21]
B
And they all. They just come together automatically. They don't even have to buy anymore. They list. They just. Like, I've had other companies offer my guys more money to come to work and they say, absolutely not. And they come tell me so and so is trying to get me, but I'll never leave here.
- [15:34]
A
I love that. I love that. One thing that you mentioned on the podcast a minute ago was giving gifts, being different, changing within the seasons. Right. And one thing that we're doing here at Royalty, when we do new installs, I'm trying this out. So everyone knows Cutco knives. Okay.
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B
Yeah.
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A
So Cutco actually has a gift set which it. It comes with two knives and they're big. Like, I don't know. There's different multiple to gift sets.
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B
Yeah.
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A
But they engrave your logo on it and make it personal and everything like that. It's $250, and I think that's different. And it's a lifetime on the knife set. Your logoed right there in front of them. And it's being different than everybody else. Right. So I'm trying that out, being different because no one in my market's doing that.
- [16:28]
B
That's awesome. Yeah, it'll. It'll catch on quick because we have, like I said, the Oreos. If you go to Oreo id, you can put your logo on a four or six pack of Oreos. It says thank you. I'm gonna tell you what, a customer getting that a week after an install, you just see the pictures of people posted saying liquid Brown sent us and it's in there. Oreo is awesome too. The coat them, you can be the vanilla, the chocolate, the sprinkles, and you decorate them and they're edible and. And they love them. They love that nobody does that. And they're like, they're posting them everywhere and people like, man, I'm buy a system to get the Oreos.
- [16:58]
A
So, yeah, I love, I love that. I. I wrote it down. Oreo id.com.
- [17:04]
B
Yep. You go personalize birthdays, graduations, company logos. I mean, it's. It is. It's costly, but it's worth every penny.
- [17:13]
A
Absolutely. I mean, then that's just being priced accordingly. Right. Understanding what your numbers look like, you know, starting from 2006, you know, let's talk about your growth now. Coming to the end of 2024. What are you on goal or track to hit for your revenue this year?
- [17:33]
B
We are now. We're on track to hit this year. Six and a half million. I think back in Covid hit, we were averaging around three. So in the last four years, we went from three to six and a half with about the same amount of guys. And that's where your numbers are important. We hover around 20, 22 to 28 total guys. We've added plumbing two years ago. Our goal is to add electrical next year. But that difference, you know, the same amount of people knowing your numbers, knowing how to mark up, knowing how to just to go to bat for your. All your vendors and making sure you're paying what you should pay for equipment and materials. You could be getting overcharged, taking 25 people and doing 3 million three or four years ago. Doubling the revenue with the same amount of people is been our goal, and we've hit that.
- [18:23]
A
I love that. I mean, y'all are doing the right thing. You're tracking the right stuff. One thing that I want to talk about is you were able to add plumbing, I think you said, last year.
- [18:34]
B
Yeah, we're about a year and a half in. Yes, sir.
- [18:37]
A
So what was it that made you decide to add plumbing in? And then it sounds like you want to move forward with electrical as well. So being more of a home service provider.
- [18:48]
B
Yeah, we built our membership in the last four years. We've built our memberships. We've had over 1500 memberships now. Service agreements, and they're all calling, can you. They were calling, can you do plumbing? I would. You're doing my heat and air. I just want you to do it all. So we've got. We had so many calls. People want us to do plumbing that we did heating air for. We hired a plumber. Now they stay busy in there. We actually hired another plumber to add to the team. We got four trucks on the road this year, start next week. And now there are people calling. I Want you to do generator. And I don't have electricians. So now that's the goal. Like, let's do it all in house because they're trusting us with all of their services. And so it's the call. The need is now there for, for that to be to expand.
- [19:30]
A
Talking real quick about your memberships. It's very important, right, to build that database and everything. 1500 memberships, you know, what do you do to teach your team to conversate about memberships, to make sure that they engage and understand the importance of that?
- [19:46]
B
Yeah, we meet month. Well, we meet monthly and we go over the benefits. They got to know them front and back, you know, have minute memberships. We stress that this is your job. When we're slow, this keeps you employed, you know, having these memberships, being able to. And all of the employees understand the need of the maintenance and the goal of that. And also as an owner, there's no value. There's not much value in your company. You can say you do, you know, the revenue and profit is big, but members is the next one. When people go to say, hey, I want to buy your company, one of the first questions they ask is, how many members, how much reoccurring revenue do you have a year? And if you build that up and you say, let's say you have reoccurring loans that are three or four thousand a month, we'll build up your revenue. Reoccurring revenue of memberships. Three or four thousand a month. You're already starting off zero. Every month your loans are taken care of by reoccurring revenue. Anything you do now, you start profiting. So building up a revenue that's taking care of the loans, your insurance payments, your car loans and stuff that are.
- [20:49]
A
On takes a lot of stress off of you as a business owner.
- [20:53]
B
Yeah, I got enough members. This is my month to pay my, my commercial mortgage. So now all I need to do is stress selling some jobs to pay payroll. Yeah, I don't have to pay my mortgage. It's coming in automatically. It's because it's monthly deposits.
- [21:06]
A
I, I like that. What do you perceive? You know, one thing that I like is you're on social media a lot. Right. And that's probably built your audience as well, allowing you to do different speakings or, or you just get out there. What have you noticed the power of social media been able to do for you, your company personally? Business branding, it's everything between the social.
- [21:33]
B
Media and our TV commercials. Whenever we go out to eat or Go out to this grocery store. My wife and I on every commercial are in it that people come up that we've never seen. I love your commercials. I love seeing y'all. I love your, your community awareness. We dedicate lot of time and money to give back to the community because community helped build me. So to me it's, it's a no brainer. You need to get back to the community and help the kids and the families around you because they're calling you when they need you and it should be without with the heart, not with the wallet. So go out and help. I don't care if you vote. And we do that all the time. We do, we have a giveaway, a big giveaway we do each year for a family in need. The community nominates, the community votes. We give them a free system, 100% free. And this is, we just gave away our fourth system this year and it's built up enough now. I've got five sponsors and we end up usually raising up money by the end of the year to do all three that end in the top three and give all three of them a free system.
- [22:30]
A
Absolutely love that. And that's what I think is very important is finding how you can use your platform not just to do the job at the task. Right. But give back to the community on a bigger picture and use your platform to give back. Maybe that's H Vac installs, maybe that's doing backpack drives, maybe that's doing king food drives, whatever it is. Right. But I love that you as a business owner understand that it's just not the platform of just serving based off what you're doing, but serving in a higher manner and using that platform.
- [23:07]
B
That's right, absolutely.
- [23:09]
A
What is your goal for 2025 moving into next year and when do you start going through you like your numbers with your team and everything. So you could start having that roadmap built.
- [23:22]
B
We have a. We usually meet, actually we meet next week. I bring all the supervisors together. We meet about a half a day or a full day and start going through what we've done this year with the mistakes we've made, what we need to change, where do we need to be next year? So we try. I kind of, I let each department supervisor kind of feed with us on that. Like, you know, we, this department may have done this percentage of the revenue. Our goal, let's raise it, let's try to shoot for three or four more percent and things like that or if we tighten up a little bit of this I don't think we even need to raise prices. We can tighten up on our, our, our travel times and our training in this and I think we can meet our goal with, with, you know, this and that. So we meet. Yeah, we meet in November. We try to start in October, November and putting together a plan to put forth for the next year. Our goal was, like I said, we want to add electrical. I'd love to in the next year or two get to where we're between 8 million revenue and in the area and keep growing and adding as many services as we can.
- [24:21]
A
How often? One thing you mentioned is training your team and you know, right now during off season and the transition from summer to now, training to me is something that I think is important. But you as a business owner, how often does your team get trained? How often do they come in? What do you all do?
- [24:41]
B
Yeah, we try to do an in person training once a month. We try to come up with something different each month. We go to different vendors. They have that host training events. We try to go to any of them. We can. We also have invested in Interplay which is here at the office and I design classes and they can come in on the computer and do different classes for each depending on what they want to learn more about or their week at. So we definitely stress the training, you know, priority on anything and then the guys will come to us. I need help on, on this. And we'll, we'll take the time out to help with it.
- [25:16]
A
How important is, does your team role play and everything like that and get uncomfortable?
- [25:22]
B
Yes. Yeah, we do some role playing. I got a guy that's local that's really good with sales and role playing. He'll come in every quarter or so and and meet with three or four of them and run them through some scenarios or just maintenance plans. Hey, sell me a maintenance plan and see how they progress throughout the year of doing that.
- [25:38]
A
What is right now looking at kind of your technicians and the performance of each department real quick. By any chance, do you know what your average technicians average tickets are as just like a full hole?
- [25:54]
B
Yeah. If it's service heating their service, their average tickets are running just standard service calls are running between 5 and 800 between them and the plumbers for service and then installs are running anywhere from 8 to 12,000.
- [26:07]
A
Okay. And so when you guys are going out there, how do you. So it doesn't sound like when you have an average ticket of $800. Right. As a service technician, they're not just going in Their tunnel vision. Right. They're going in there and looking at the full envelope and informing and educating. How do you get your team to buy into that? I know I asked another question about buying into culture. Right. But also buying into following the processes and procedures of the company.
- [26:40]
B
Yeah. We tell them that anything you do now is going to build that trust and relationship for you to be able to go back down the road when if that customer needs a new system or wants to buy us a big ticket item, you've built the trust where they're going to call and ask for you personally. So every job you do, whether it's small, it could be a quick just couple hundred dollar job, it doesn't matter. But if you treat it as a big job, every time you're in that door and you're educating that customer is trusting you personally. So when they call needing something major in a big system, they're going to call you for the sale. So then they end up getting the commission or the, you know, the bonuses for the sale.
- [27:19]
A
Mr. Brandon, how many trucks do you have on the road right now?
- [27:22]
B
18.
- [27:23]
A
18 trucks. So 18 trucks on the road. That's a lot of vehicles that need to be maintained. Oh yeah, right. And that's probably one of the biggest things that could also hurt a company is a truck being off the road.
- [27:37]
B
Yeah.
- [27:37]
A
What do you do to. To hold your team accountable? How often are you doing truck inspections? How often are you maintaining it? How are you following to make sure that they're getting maintained?
- [27:48]
B
Each supervisor sets up their mandatory to set up a truck inspection every few weeks, pulling in, make sure it's in there where they're checking the, when the oil is due, checking around, looking at the tires. But at least once a month they're checking the vehicles inside and out. The employees are known when that's coming. So their van, you know, they make sure they're cleaned inside and out. They take care of them. We try to stay on top and get the oil changes as soon as they're due. One other cost savings we have is several years ago I brought a fuel tank here to the shop. So instead of expense cards and then going to gas stations to fill up, everybody fills up at the shop. The service guys have an emergency credit card in case they're off on the weekend or away from the shop to fill up. But everybody fills up here in the mornings early so that they're not hanging out at the gas stations for an hour, eating breakfast, talking before they get to the job. So they fill up here and it eliminates a stop to the job.
- [28:40]
A
Absolutely. So talking about running efficient, right. How do you run your truck stock and how often are we replenishing the trucks and everything like that to make sure that the team's running efficient? What is that?
- [28:55]
B
Yeah, they stock every morning. We have an in house stock, stock room, every part and everything that's on a heating and air service truck, install truck, and then a plumbing stock room. So whatever they use for the day, they keep a list. My install supervisor for heat and air will help them in the morning, go through the list, restock back what they use, make sure there's a minimum. Same with the plumbing. So we try to keep it stocked here as well so they don't go to supply houses waiting all day for, for help. We, we keep a consignment here in the in house, typically.
- [29:25]
A
Okay, so a company starting out, typically, you know, transitioning from AC to furnace stock now and in your trucks, typically. What does it cost a business to have a full truck, one truck ready to go to hit the road?
- [29:43]
B
Probably around 10, 12,000.
- [29:46]
A
10, 12,000. Now, what are some avenues that a new startup company could use to use Truck stop? Right. One thing that I talk about is using your supply house credit. You know, as a new company, a lot of people don't know that. You know, you could, might be able to be in business for three months, two months, six months, and you might get a 25, $30,000 credit from the supply house.
- [30:15]
B
Right. And then, and getting that relationship like we have a consignment here, we shopped it out, said, look, we'll just buy from you and I will buy this much a year and we even get rebates from them like I have. We'll stock it here and I'll say, I only buy from you if I spend over $100,000 in a year. I want a 2% rebate, check back, and if not, I'll go to the next company because they're promising me I'll get that or I'll get points or rewards and stuff. So building that relationship with your supply house so that then they're coming here helping you stock because the more you buy, the more they make. But also you could, you could also be working in some kind of a rebate or rewards for your company.
- [30:53]
A
Absolutely. And that's what's really important is having that relationship. Right. And I always have to look at these relationships as a win, win, win. Right. So win for me, win for the client, win for them. But as a business owner, sometimes we look at it as, hey, when we're talking to the suppliers, what are you doing for me? What are you doing for me? But sometimes they also got products that they got to push that are new too. So sometimes we got to ask them also the opposite and say, hey, what can we do to help you out?
- [31:24]
B
Let's work together. And then they'll. You will be. You'll be surprised at the ones that'll joke that'll go to bat for you for good pricing and making sure everything's in your showroom so that you don't have to wait on.
- [31:35]
A
Yeah. What's been your biggest success so far? We talked about your biggest struggle. What's been your biggest success as a business owner?
- [31:44]
B
I'm just where we're at right now, my business. But what everything that's happening now has been my overall success. I've been. The last couple years I've been traveling, keynote speaking for several heat and air conferences and trade shows about how to, you know, to, to never give up trying to help the local schools and high school kids understand that getting in the trades is not a settlement, it's an accomplishment. Because when I did it, it almost felt like I was settling.
- [32:10]
A
I love.
- [32:11]
B
That's not it. It's accomplishment. It's not a settlement. You know, I tell them all the time, I meant like, yes, like two days ago is in a huge state summit about colleges and getting kids involved, 500 people there from local colleges and teachers. And I said, you got to tell these students it's an accomplishment. I said, just think about it. I said, if, if, if, if you don't keep that or cool enough for a doctor, the doctor can't work. You need an air conditioning tech to keep that or 40, 50 degrees, you know, he can't work. And then. And EMTs that get the trades as an EMT, if they don't get a patient to the hospital, the doctor can't work alive. So it's things that they have to be feel like they're part of that accomplishment, you know. Yes, we need. We love the doctors. We love the people that are doing that stuff. There's a place for that in that type of schooling. But there is a big accomplishment making sure you keep that or operating room at a certain temperature so that they can help people save lives. So my success, I'm just giving back to that. Giving back to the. I've been helping a couple places as well as a coach helping coach new companies grow. And then this year in March, I released my biography. Actually it's on Amazon. If anybody wants to go on Amazon. Look up Cool Success by Brandon Brown. I've got the audio version and the paperback. That was a huge success for me because, like I said, when I graduated high school, a C student, I didn't. I would. If you'd asked me then if I ever would have wrote a book, I would have laughed and said, I don't even want to write a paragraph. So the book was. It's shocked everybody around me that knew me because that's just never been me. But to be able to come full circle has been very blessed. I've been very blessed with how long.
- [33:55]
A
Did it take you to write the book? And like, what all goes into that?
- [33:58]
B
And it is a lot, actually. They approached me. I was on during COVID I was on a small business panel for Fox and Friends for about a year. I was actually on Fox and Friends in the morning news a couple times a month talking about how to get through Covid as a small business. And they reached out to me and said, you know, they kept hearing. I kept getting interviewed and they heard my story and Amazon called me. It's like, hey, we'd like to publish a biography. But it took us about. It took me about a year and a half. Luckily, Amazon is great to work with. They provide you like a professional author. So I write it and they just send back like revisions saying, try to reword this and I'll re. I would keep writing until he was happy. Like, all right. I would read this and then I'd go to the next chapter and I'd just keep writing until I was. He was happy. And then I would make all the changes. And so about a year and a half.
- [34:48]
A
Year and a half. That's great. Did you get writer block?
- [34:52]
B
Yeah. But luckily I was just typing away and luckily we broke it down chapter by chapter was make it easier now outline. But yeah, we released in March and then in July for the month of July, I was named a bestseller on Amazon. So it did reach that status in the month of July. But I made it. It's not that long and it's not expensive. So I try to make it to people's interested and can read it in a couple days. And there's a lot of good stories in there, so if anybody feels obliged to get it, I'd appreciate it.
- [35:19]
A
Yeah, absolutely. I'll post the link in on Amazon so y'all could get that book. Book. But that's a great accomplishment right there. Congratulations on that. One thing is, is you do some Speaking events. You do some teachings and everything like that. Talking about speaking events, real quick to believe it. I'm actually an introvert. So when I get on stage and I speak, people say I'm good at it. But really, like, inside my head, emotionally, I'm like, you know, how are you when you speak?
- [35:55]
B
I'm not. I get nervous. I've always loved speaking, but I am my own critic, I don't think. I always say I do horrible, and I don't know why people ask me, but when I'm done, everybody think, says it's very moving, and they appreciate. I just tell my story from my heart, you know?
- [36:11]
A
Absolutely.
- [36:12]
B
And I'm very. It's. My heart's on my sleeve. So 90 of the time when I did my story and my speeches, I end up crying every time. But. But, hey, it's, you know, it's what makes us. So I'm very proud and happy that, you know, my wife and I can build this as well. We're still married, 18 years in business, still married, and have a great company and love every one of them, so absolutely love it.
- [36:34]
A
You know, as we're ending the podcast, I got Brandon. Business owners, installers, technicians, CSRs, dispatchers, sales professionals. What would you like for them to get out of this episode of H Vac Masters of the Hustle?
- [36:49]
B
Just, if you look back, if you read my story, my biography, or just. I'm just one story of thousands and millions, just people are successful. You know, if you have a dream, go for it. You know, it's. Nothing's impossible, no matter what you do. I just love. I want everybody to feel that whatever you do in your life, be proud of it. Be proud of yourself. Be proud of where you come from. Be proud of where you're going. You know, you're accomplishing something, even if it's a small part. Never feel like you're settling, you know, that's. Be proud to be a high school student. Now, if you're. If you have a high school student at home and they want to be in a trade, but, you know, give them the praise, like, yes, that's amazing. Let's do it. You know, so that they feel like they're doing something with their life, that that's important because it is 100%.
- [37:37]
A
Well, Mr. Brandy, I gotta say thank you for taking the time out of your busy day. It's an absolute honor to get you as a guest in the hot seat. Until next time, y'all take care. God bless.
- [37:48]
B
God bless.