Most people look at Canada’s trade war, a decline in innovation and economic uncertainty as significant problems.
Brian Skadamor sees the opportunity.
After 1-800-Got Junk? The 36-year-old entrepreneurial journey of the founder, most of his successes were born due to failures.
From his point of view, the more obstacles he and his O2E brand collide, the more.
“If you look at the first days of 1-800 gob? “No one loves to endure failure, but I am a big supporter of failure – what you learn from them, how to adapt so that you make you better.”
After falling at school, he reached entrepreneurship from Skadamor. The dismissal of all its staff five years later led to the philosophy of hiring, which gave rise to the empire of services at home. Leaning to the refusal, led to the strategy of the media that made 1-800-Got Junk? Home brand.
After the unsuccessful submitting an application for participation in the Dragon's Dragon's Dragon's – twice – Skadamor says that his last fruitful attempt occurred at perfect time.
He is even sure that the sale of one of the fighting brands O2
Today is 1-800-Got Junk? An annual income brings about $ 650 million, while two subsidiaries contribute to $ 100 million. O2E Brands supports about 250 owners of franchises and 6,000 employees in Canada, USA and Australia.
Just as these personal failures lost great opportunities in the professional life of Skadamor, he believes that the same thing is also true for our collective problems.
“The biggest periods of innovation – if you look back in world history – everyone has come out of difficult situations,” he says. “I believe in the opportunity, and I was lucky to understand that failure often leads to new opportunities.”
The star recently talked with Skadamor on the phone when he walked around his house in a vacation in Wistler, where he talked about the keys to entrepreneurial success, training outside the class and covering failure.
Did you consider entrepreneurship as an alternative to education?
When I was 18 years old, I was one course, embarrassed to graduate from high school. I wanted to follow my friends who studied at the university, but my parents were not going to finance my education.
I was in McDonald's passage, trying to find out how I am going to cover my studies, and in front of me was this old battered pickup with plywood panels, which said: “Transportation of Mark”, and it was filled with garbage. I realized that it was my ticket; Not to create an empire, but for payment of the university.
At that time, I had only $ 1,000 savings, so I put $ 700 in an old pickup, and the rest in leaflets and business cards. In the end, this business eventually paid for himself in two weeks, and I had enough for college.
I was present at Concordia, then UBC, but I realized that I was studying more, doing business, so I decided to quit school. I never threw training; I just found different teaching methods.
Have you always fought at school?
My teachers found me humorous and interesting, but also an annoying and problematic child. Later I learned that it was difficult for me to concentrate in the class as an entrepreneur with ADHD.
I have old manuals of performance, and many of them say things such as “Brian is too hyper” or “he is a smart child, but he is a destroyer” or “if only he could sit still and pay attention.”
Then people did not know about ADHD, but since then I have learned a lot.
How do you deal with this now?
You can treat or go to therapy, but I decided to accept it as a gift.
I know when I am interested in the subject, I can focus on a manic focus, and it serves me well. But I am easily distracted.
I am now for a walk, because it would be difficult to sit on this interview; I would prefer to move. I actually have my assistant, planning my calls when I am in the car, because I think it is different when there is movement.
When I go on vacation, I ask my assistant to change my password on my emails and accounts on social networks, so I am not distracted from my family.
I am also inclined to drink a lot of coffee, which has similar makeup with some medicines that they give adults with ADHD to help them concentrate.
Why did you want to move from one brand to many?
With my brain of ADHD, I longed for a new exit for my work. We have been looking for another business for many years, and in 2010 I accidentally painted my house. I received several referrals from friends, and the first few places that I called were very mother and pop music, we needed days or weeks to finish, and were not very professional.
Then I called one guy who came to a brilliant van, wore a uniform and said that he could draw the whole house every other day. I did not think that this could be done, so I checked it, and after I returned home at the end of the day to an impeccable house, recently painted from top to bottom, I bought a company.
And then, a few years later, the same thing happened when I tried to clear my gutter and tried my best to find someone, who could bring this professionalism, but there was one company that did it. After meeting with them, we united, and in the end I bought Shack Shine.
How about the fourth business?
We went into a moving space, thinking that we can consolidate home services, and after eight years we realized that business simply did not have a factor of happiness.
When the garbage disappears when your house is painted or cleaned, you are excited by transformation. Moving is a stressful experience, even when it goes well. This is a difficult business, and we gave him eight years to try to solve these problems before throwing a towel and selling it free.
It was a difficult time, but it was one of the best things that once happened to us.
How so?
Once there may be a fourth business or fifth, and now we know that we are looking for a industry in which our customers feel good about the work that we do for them.
We learned that no matter how much money we could earn or how much we could grow, we can only manage what I would consider a “happy business”.
Where did this gratitude come from for failure?
As my career grows, I realized that I studied well on failure. In fact, I wrote a book about this: “WTF?!: Ready to fail.”
Most of our owners of the franchise come to us, saying that they always want their own business, but pursued him only after they were fired or some other seemingly negative change in their lives.
People do not often choose entrepreneurship – this is scary, it costs money, there are many risks and no guarantees – but every successful entrepreneur begins somewhere, often after some failure.
Not at all. These things go in the cycles, and the numbers are lower for good reason; It was easier for people to find a good job.
When I was in this passage of McDonald's, I could not find a summer job, and I was forced to create my own. Everyone is afraid of AI, and there are several terrible parts, but the opportunity – yes, people will lose their work, but they will be forced to think in the other way. The largest periods of innovation, if you look back in world history, everyone became from difficult situations.
Today it is easier than when to start a business thanks to the Internet and AI and the opportunity to cover people. Today it is easier for me to conduct an income of $ 750 million than when I was at the level of $ 1 million, thanks to technology.
What about tariffs?
They are affected by us, but I try not to think about those macro, which I cannot control.
There is a company in which I invested on the island of Vancouver called Mint Cleaning, and they used tariffs as an opportunity to tell the story of Canadian pride in the media. Their business has been doubled since it appeared on Dragon's Den less than a year ago, partly thanks to the tariffs.
Have you invested in the company before joining Dragon's Den?
I was lucky that I was sitting next to Arlin; She gave me a lot of advice and trained me through it.
How did you find yourself on the show?
I submitted an application for the first season, and now I know that I did not have time to devote to this.
The third time I submitted an application, I felt that it was what I really wanted at this stage of my career; I want to take what I found out and help Canadian entrepreneurs study on some of my failures.
This week the premiere of the second season took place, and I loved every minute of this, because I feel that I can change the real meaning. I also had the opportunity to study with other dragons.
I recently had lunch with Jim Trlyiviv from Boston pizza, he is 84 years old, and he is still very active in his business. I realized that this is what I want; I also want to be 84 years old, with this big smile, still involved in creating an excellent business.
