[LWJ]

I agree with a lot of the thoughts above. I am not a painter but have done a lot of remodeling / property management / hiring contractors as well as have many contractors as clients.

I think painting is the bottom of the barrel. Why? Very low barriers to entry. Buy a ladder, brush, and tarp (optiona) and you are in business. Much of your competition is the same. You can differentiate in any business but it takes a knack.

Here is what I know. There are contractors who stumble into being in business and businesspeople who happen to make a living in construction. Consider the thoughts below:

1) Please be a businessperson first. Your question really suggests otherwise. Sorry if I offend.

2) Whatever business you select, a narrow focus and exploiting niches pays off big. I have a client who is a roofer who advertises like mad. They get 3x the price of the lowball guys. The price shoppers simply do not call them for estimates! They do an excellent job but that should cost 1.3x not 3x. They pocket the difference after advertising costs.

3) Niches build referrals. Become an expert in a tiny world and you can own that world. My FIL did this in a tiny part of law. He claims that he brought more banks to the FDIC to close than any other attorney during the recession. And the bankers were begging him to do it. Why? He was the expert.

4) Sell solutions not price. In business, there are only four differentiating factors: Price, Service, Quality (it has other words in different industries), and Relationship. We have largely been trained to sell Price. However, what did Lexus do to Toyota? Service / quality trumped price. I challenge you to mix up the equation so that you are paid fairly for your efforts.

5) Finally. When I was in business school, a professor mentioned that most small businesses only earn a salary for the owner. As owner, you should earn a ROI for your risk and investment as well as a salary. Hopefully you are building something that has value that you can sell when you wish to retire.

Best luck!
Larry