Building a Business from the Ground Up: Insights from Kriss Bergethon

I sat down with Kriss Bergethon, a serial entrepreneur, trades operator, and founder of the soon-to-launch SMB Uni platform. Kriss built a million-dollar dirt-moving and excavation business in a small town from the ground up—and he’s now teaching others how to do the same.

If you’re an aspiring trades entrepreneur or someone already in the game and looking to grow, this blog is for you.

Finding Opportunities in Your Local Market

Kriss’s journey started with a simple yet powerful insight: “The city has 100x more opportunity. There’s way more work, there’s way more labor.” Kriss recognized that in smaller markets, the opportunities to scale are often underappreciated, particularly when people are not taking basic steps like answering their phones or having an online presence.

His advice? “There’s tons of these guys retiring who are just not answering their phones, their voicemails are full. They don’t have a website. So you just have to find the gap.”

Avoiding Costly Mistakes: The $50K Lesson Kriss Learned

One of the key takeaways from Kriss’s story came from an early setback—a $50,000 investment that didn’t go as planned. When asked about his biggest mistakes in the business, Kriss shared:

“I just assumed this guy had figured out the others had no capacity. Turns out they had plenty. That was my mistake. I didn’t check.”

This experience taught Kriss the importance of market research before diving in headfirst. His advice: “Don’t assume. Call the top 3 competitors and ask about pricing and availability before you invest your money.”

SMB Uni: Teaching Others to Skip the Mistakes

After years of trial and error, Kriss is now launching SMB Uni, a platform designed to help tradespeople and entrepreneurs skip the steep learning curve he experienced.

“It’s a platform called Circle. Do you know what Circle is? It’s kind of a cross between Facebook and a course in Udemy, or something, where you have these courses, and then you have a news feed.”

SMB Uni will offer a variety of resources for entrepreneurs, including training videos, templates, and direct access to Kriss. His goal is simple: “I’ll be in there, so send me the link, and I’ll jump in.”

Hire When You Can Afford It (Even if You Think You Can’t)

One of Kriss’s strongest pieces of advice to entrepreneurs is about hiring. He believes in hiring help early—long before you think you can afford it:

“There’s someone in your town who wants a part-time, $25-an-hour job. She’ll show up. She’ll do a great job. It’ll be the best money you ever spent.”

Kriss explains that by hiring people to handle the small tasks (like administrative work or managing customer communications), you can free up your time to focus on growing the business. This is critical if you want to scale quickly.

The Hybrid Business Model: Why Kriss Believes in “Build vs. Buy”

As Kriss expanded, he looked at the possibility of buying businesses—but only under the right circumstances. When discussing acquisitions, Kriss explained:

“Why would I pay $1.5 million for something I can just start and go get the customers myself? I can launch a better business with better branding, better tech, and better systems.”

For Kriss, the focus is on building businesses from the ground up, leveraging smart systems and strategic growth. His approach is about creating long-term value, not simply buying existing operations.

What’s Next for Kriss and SMB Uni?

With his new platform, Kriss is helping others avoid the mistakes he made while building his businesses. “When’s the launch date?” I asked. Kriss responded, mentioning that he was aiming for a February launch date.

Kriss has high hopes for SMB Uni, a platform that promises to be a game-changer for small business owners in the trades. It’s set to launch in early February 2025, and Kriss is eager to jump in and support members of the community.

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Key Takeaways:

• Find the Gaps in Your Market: Whether you’re in a city or a rural town, identify areas where other businesses are dropping the ball—then focus on doing it better.

• Validate Before You Launch: Never assume there’s no competition or that there’s a demand.

• Hire Sooner Than You Think: Get help early. Even if it’s part-time or freelance, the extra hands will allow you to focus on growing your business.

• Build, Don’t Buy (Unless the Deal is Right): Start from scratch where possible. It’s often cheaper, faster, and more rewarding than buying an existing business.

• Focus on Long-Term Growth: Kriss is playing a 10-year game. Building something sustainable takes time, so keep your eye on the long-term horizon.

Don’t miss out on valuable strategies and tips in growing home service business with Kriss Bergethon. Subscribe to the OWNR OPS Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts to stay updated on every new episode. Tune in and take your business to the next level!

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