November 13, 2025 • 22 mins
What does it take to come back from losing every single truck overnight? We sit down with Brendan Hogan of Asheville Area Movers to unpack a hard-won playbook for rebuilding stronger: bold branding that makes phones ring, smart technology that shrinks overhead, and a people-first culture that turns stressful move days into positive stories customers tell their friends.
Brendan shares the moment he saw water over the trucks, the three-day low that followed, and the switch that flipped when he realized the crisis could be a reset. From commissioning local artists to turn each truck into a rolling landmark to moving the yard to higher ground, the strategy blended community roots with pragmatic risk control. We dig into Google Local Services Ads, why they’re expensive yet indispensable, and how consistent offline visibility—yard signs, print, uniforms—keeps the brand top of mind long after a search ad disappears.
On the operations side, we break down how a mover-specific CRM handles scheduling, bill of lading, payments, and customer history, enabling a two-person office to coordinate 35 movers without drowning in paper. Brendan is candid about hiring in a tough labor market: punctuality trumps everything, attitude beats experience, and paying above market plus clear upsell incentives creates buy-in. We talk stress management, the myth of entrepreneurial free time, and the power of an operations partner who can swap in when life happens.
Looking ahead, Brendan explains the decision to expand into Atlanta with a trusted team member at the helm and the plan to centralize support in Asheville to create better local jobs. If you’re a founder navigating setbacks, wondering whether to invest in brand, or debating the ROI of LSAs and industry-specific software, this story delivers practical steps you can apply this week. Enjoy the conversation, then subscribe, share with a builder who needs a boost, and drop a review with your top takeaway.
Thanks for Listening. You may contact me or our team at https://billgilliland.biz/
All the best!
Bill
Thanks for listening. Please hit the subscribe button, leave us a 5 star review, and share this podcast. You can reach me at williamgilliland@actioncoach.com or at https://billgilliland.biz/
All the best!
Bill
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Bill Gilliland (00:36):
Hey there and welcome to this week's episode
of Epic Entrepreneurs.
I am Bill Gillilan, your host.
I am also the principal atAction Coach Business Growth
Partners and one of the foundersof the Asheville Business
Summit.
Today I'm super pumped.
I'm getting to meet a newfriend now.
Uh we always that's the one ofthe cool things about doing
these podcasts.
We get all these new friendsaround Western North Carolina
(01:00):
and the rest of the world.
Uh today I've got Brendan Hoganof Asheville Area Mover.
So, Brendan, welcome to thepodcast.
Tell us a little bit about youand your business and how you're
serving the community.
Brendon Hogan (01:12):
Yeah, absolutely.
I appreciate you having me on,and it's a pleasure to meet you.
Um we own, I own Asheville AreaMovers.
Uh, we're the largest locallyoperated and owned moving
company in the Asheville area.
Um, you say we're not owned,but we're not a franchise, we're
not partnering with a van lineor anything like that.
We're just local guys um, youknow, moving furniture.
(01:32):
Uh I've been doing this now.
We're coming up on 10 yearsnext year.
Um, so nine years in.
Um, you know, we had before thestorm, we had 12 trucks and
about 45 employees.
Uh we're back up to seventrucks, and we got about 35 guys
working for us.
Uh great guys, great team.
Um, you know, I've loved livinghere in Western North Carolina
(01:55):
and, you know, serving thecommunity.
Bill Gilliland (01:58):
So so what?
Let's talk about the storm justa bit and then we'll get into
some general business stuff.
So you it sounds like you werepretty heavily impacted by the
storm.
Brendon Hogan (02:08):
Yeah, so for the first eight years of our
business, we were headquartereddown along the Swannanoa River
over by Brother Wolf, umBiltmore Village area.
So um unfortunately, we didlose our entire fleet and
business in the storm.
Um, and you know, nothing wecould do about it.
Uh pretty, pretty, pretty crazyexperience.
(02:31):
But we were managed to get someSBA funding, and you know,
we're such a labor-heavybusiness that we were able to
get back on our feet prettyquickly.
Um additionally, you know,there's a lot of moving going on
because of the storm.
So we got lucky on that front.
But we've moved down on PattonAvenue to some dry land, a
little higher elevation thistime.
(02:51):
Um, but we're getting back onour feet.
It's been awesome to see, youknow, other businesses in the
area kind of turn it aroundaround here over the past year.
And I'm just hoping, you know,things can slowly get back to
where they were before.
Bill Gilliland (03:02):
Yeah, well, well done on responding as opposed
to folding, I guess.
Uh, you know, respondingpositively to the to the thing.
I mean, you know, if if you'rein western North Carolina and
the lean hit, then you everyonewas affected.
It's just a matter of uhmagnitude, I guess.
So uh Yeah, that's that's supercool.
It's good to hear that uh youresponded.
(03:24):
You're like you said, there's alot of people that need need
what you have uh and have neededit in the last year.
So let me uh ask you, let'sswitch gears a little bit and
just talking about some generalbusiness questions.
So if you had to start overagain, what would you do
differently?
Brendon Hogan (03:43):
Oh God, that would be a very, very, very long
list.
Um, you know, I've made aseries of mistakes, you know,
throughout the years runningthis business, and we've learned
from every single one of them.
Um, you know, most recentlycoming back from the storm, we
hired a bunch of local artiststo graffiti our trucks and do
logos on the sides of them andeverything.
(04:04):
Um, you know, I I before whenwe were up to 12 trucks, I had
no branding on them.
They were just plain vehicles.
I had, you know, our DOTnumbers on the side of the doors
and our logo, what was legallyrequired, um, but didn't want to
spend the money to, you know,put into branding and everything
like that.
I really, we really, reallyheavily relied on Google for all
of our business.
(04:25):
Um, and that was something thatI was kind of advised from
other people to do.
And, you know, since the storm,we've started doing a lot more
branding, a lot moreadvertising, uh, print
advertising, you know, outfits,everything like that.
It's made a huge, huge impact.
We're coming off.
I mean, this year will easilybe our biggest year ever from a
(04:47):
revenue standpoint.
Um, and next year is lookinglike it's it's headed in a
similar direction.
Um, I just I kick myselfbecause, you know, nine years
ago when we started this thing,we got in so early here and when
Asheville was booming.
And I think if we would havespent the money and the
resources and the time into likemore of our branding, and I
had, you know, almost a decadeof 12 trucks driving around with
(05:10):
our logos on them, we'd be in amuch better position than we
were, you know, the couple yearsprior to the storm.
Um, you know, also about fiveyears into our business, we kind
of got on board with the ideaof like leveraging technology
more to make things moreefficient, you know, in the
moving industry, especially herein North Carolina, because
(05:32):
we're regulated, a lot of thingsare done with paper and pen,
um, you know, bill of ladingsand contracts that way.
And we five years agotransitioned to a CRM that made
things just so much morestreamlined for us.
Um, we work with Supermove,which is uh you know an app out
of San Francisco that a lot ofmoving companies use.
There's several different CRMsthat you can use, but using that
(05:55):
from a scheduling standpoint,um, you know, our bill of
ladings on there, revenue onthere, customer relationships on
there.
It's allowed us to be so muchmore streamlined and it doesn't
require more guys in the office.
So I actually, you know, runthis company essentially with
me, myself, Kyle, who is um, youknow, our operations manager.
(06:19):
And then, you know, we havesome guys that are movers that
will fill in routinely to dosome of the additional office
and you know clerical workthat's required.
But we keep keep things prettyslim um because we leverage
technology the way that we do.
Um, and yeah, that's been agame changer for us, honestly.
Bill Gilliland (06:37):
Yeah, so leveraging technology and
branding would have been acouple of things that you would
have leaned into a lot heavy lotheavier, a lot earlier.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, you're sort of one of thebetter kept secrets in
Nashville, right?
Uh you know, yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
So that's a that's aninteresting thing.
So uh what are some of theother big learnings you've had
(06:58):
as an owner and an employer inthe last nine years?
Brendon Hogan (07:03):
You know, the hardest thing that I will ever
do as a business owner, and I'msure a lot of other business
owners can relate to this, isjust you know, be a manager of
other people and employ people.
Um, you know, especially in inour industry.
Um, you know, a lot of times wehave guys that are
transitioning in between work.
Um, you know, we have some guyswho this is this is their
(07:25):
career and they're amazing atit, and they've been great
employees, and then, you know,it it is people all over the
map, right?
And finding good help andtreating good help the way that
they need to be treated to stickaround is something I think is
lost on a lot of biggercompanies that is easier for a
(07:46):
smaller company like ours.
But, you know, one mistake inhiring can can lead to you know
catastrophic outcomes in ourbusiness, unfortunately.
Um and uh we've made a lot ofmistakes before.
I think we've gotten a lotbetter at it where we're
sourcing our employees, um,everything along those lines,
(08:07):
the relationships we have withour employees.
We feel very strongly that wewe we our work is very hard.
Moving people's furniture,there's a reason they pay us to
do it, right?
It's it's a yeah, it's a hardnot paying.
Bill Gilliland (08:18):
Yeah, it's a hard time.
It's heavy, it's hard, it'shard work, it's rough on your
body, it's the whole thing, youknow, it's tough.
Brendon Hogan (08:25):
Absolutely.
So, you know, rewarding guysand paying guys accordingly for
that has been kind of our motto.
Oh, especially, you know, fromthe day we started, we've always
paid more than everyone else,but you know, recently finding
ways to compensate our employeesfor, you know, upselling, you
know, whether it's insurance,materials, things along that
(08:46):
path so that we're gettingrevenue along with being able to
generate and pass back thoseprofits to our employees has
really helped build a morepositive and you know happy
workforce over the last threeyears, especially.
Um we've gotten so much betterat that, and we have such good
relationships with our employeesthese days.
Bill Gilliland (09:09):
So um speaking of employees, what qualities do
you look for in employees?
Brendon Hogan (09:17):
Uh first and foremost is punctuality, right?
Um I can't tell you how manyinterviews we set up and people
end up not showing up or they'relazy.
It's crazy, isn't it?
It's unbelievable.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
If you do that, we're justimmediately we know it's not
gonna work out, right?
If you don't value this job,you don't value other people's
(09:40):
time.
That says a lot about who youare as an employee.
I'm often blown away at theamount of people who you know we
set up interviews for and theydon't come along.
You know, uh recently we'vedone a lot more to kind of pay
more for people who have comefrom other van lines and bigger
(10:01):
businesses that are faster forus to train in.
It doesn't require as much youknow, headway.
But if we can get someone inhere who has a good attitude, uh
shows up on time, isrespectful, anyone could be
trained to do this job.
And, you know, confidentlypeople can do it really, really
quickly.
Um and I guess those are themain qualities we look for is
(10:23):
just respect, you know, notgetting flustered, I guess,
under pressure, because a lot ofthings can go wrong on a moving
day and kind of justmaintaining a good attitude with
a customer and just caringabout your job, right?
Um you know, we have wonderful,wonderful guys right now who
really care about people andcare about their jobs and care
about their community, andyou're not gonna cut corners
(10:44):
when you feel that way.
Um, and that's been reallyimportant to find.
Yeah.
Yeah, I think I don't think youcan say that.
Bill Gilliland (10:51):
So, what are some common misconceptions about
running a business?
Brendon Hogan (10:58):
Um that there's so much better work-life
balance, I guess.
Um, you know, a lot of peoplethink that I have a lot of free
time on my hands becauseespecially nowadays, I can play
golf on a Tuesday, but thatdoesn't mean that I'm not in my
car headed out somewhere on aFriday night in the middle of
(11:20):
dinner with my wife, and I gottago take care of something.
It's just it's a grind, right?
Like it's it's constant.
Um the stress is is constant.
I think in the first severalyears of my business, I didn't
like who being a business ownermade me become because I was so
stressed out and anxious all thetime when things would go
(11:43):
wrong, or you're trying to layyour head, you know, to rest at
night and you're thinking abouta damage that was caused or a
payroll coming up or anythingalong those lines.
And um, you know, I I guess theconception is that it's all
rainbows and butterflies forpeople that don't do it, but it
it is a lot of hard work andmanaging that stress is really,
(12:04):
really, really important.
Bill Gilliland (12:05):
Yeah, yeah, there's a lot of people counting
on you.
So yeah, it's uh it's a it's agood thing.
So what do you attribute yourgrowth to?
Brendon Hogan (12:14):
Yeah, so in our early years, I we tried to hire
a bunch of guys that were werelike us, right?
They're they're fun, they'repositive, they could joke around
with customers, they had goodattitudes, and that really
showed in the amount of repeatcustomers that we had.
Um, I think that's a huge partof it.
And to this day, we're verycareful about the kind of vibe
(12:35):
we're trying to curate aroundhere.
Um, we want people who arehaving one of the most stressful
days of their year to have agood and positive experience
when our guys show up withsmiles on their face and they're
cracking jokes and everybody'shaving a good time.
Um you know, beyond that, uhyeah, that's probably where
(12:57):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Bill Gilliland (12:58):
No, I like it.
I like it.
You you've you've you've you'vecreated a culture where it's
hard work, but it's you know,they have a good time.
I mean, you know, enjoy beingthere.
I like it.
Absolutely.
I like it.
So you talk you you you hit onthe challenges earlier, but how
how do you balance personal lifeand your business, the the
demands of running a business?
Brendon Hogan (13:19):
Yeah, so um I have a gentleman who's our
operations manager, and we'rekind of uh, you know, the one
two, and we work together very,very well.
And I think, you know, he justhad a baby actually a week after
the storm, um, which waspretty, pretty stressful time,
obviously.
But um having him kind of youknow go through that process
(13:41):
over the last year.
Um, I actually got married lastweekend, so I've had a lot
going on over the last couple ofweeks as well.
Yeah.
Yeah, but just knowing whereeach other is at and uh being
able to fill in when the otherperson is, you know, not
available.
I also, you know, my wife hasbeen great about you know just
helping me through stressfultimes.
(14:01):
I think I used to get sohyper-focused on things that
would go wrong in the earlydays, you know, but customer
damage, somebody sideswags a carin a vehicle, all things that
can go wrong and have it onmoving days.
And, you know, after nineyears, so much has happened that
when these things happenanymore, you start to realize
(14:22):
like, hey, this isn't the end ofthe world.
We're gonna wake up tomorrow,we're still in business, we're
protected by our insurance.
Um, you know, all things thatstart to become easier as the
years go on for sure.
Bill Gilliland (14:35):
Well, I mean, you lost your whole fleet.
I mean, it's that can't getmuch worse than that.
So I mean, you know, you know,I you know, there's yeah, life
this too shall pass, right?
Yeah.
So yeah, it's good.
So um I have an acronym calledB EPIC, and I'm gonna tell you
what the acronym is, and I Ijust want uh sort of be a quick
fire around, maybe like one ortwo words or sentences about
(14:57):
each, just your thoughts on it.
So the B and B Epic stands forbring energy.
So what are your thoughtsaround energy?
Brendon Hogan (15:05):
Kind of what we hit on earlier.
I think it's the most importantpart of the business, you know,
the vibe and and energy thatyou bring on a daily basis.
Bill Gilliland (15:12):
Love that.
How about education?
The E is education.
Brendon Hogan (15:15):
Yeah, I think properly training your employees
and guys to handle thescenarios that are going to
arise is core to any companyculture, right?
Love it.
How about P for planning?
Uh being organized, prepared,kind of like we were hitting on
with the CRM earlier, makes lifeso much easier.
If you can do one thing todaythat you didn't want to do to
(15:38):
prepare for something in thefuture, you're gonna save
yourself a huge headache in thelong run.
Bill Gilliland (15:43):
Love it.
How about I for inspiration?
Brendon Hogan (15:47):
Yeah, just dealing with people every day,
right?
I mean, that's inspiring initself.
Um, you know, getting a gettinga phone call that things have
gone well, or somebody praisingyour business or your guys, um,
you know, that's enough to keepthings going all the time.
Bill Gilliland (16:00):
Love it.
And C stands for commitment.
I reckon if you weren'tcommitted, you wouldn't have
opened back up, but let's uhlet's talk about commitment.
Brendon Hogan (16:10):
Yeah, I, you know, I'll be honest, it was a
pretty emotional period for me,to be honest.
Um I couldn't get to my lotafter the storm hit, and you
know, the the water was at like14 feet where I was crazy.
Bill Gilliland (16:26):
Yeah.
Brendon Hogan (16:26):
Yeah, it was up over our trucks, and you know, I
I told my who was my fiance atthe time, not my wife, uh, you
know, I need to get down there,I need to see what's going on.
By the time we got down there,we had parked my car like a mile
and a half away and walkedacross these train tracks.
And I got up there and I lookeddown into our lot, and I think
I looked at my wife, my notwife, and I was like, ah, my
(16:49):
life is over.
Um, and you know, I think Ijust woke up like three days
later after sulking to just say,I don't really have a choice
but to turn this thing around.
I got a bunch of peopledepending on me.
Um, you know, at one pointsomeone had called us to do a
massive contract to one of theapartment complexes that was
(17:10):
actually next to us that neededlike 300 units moved out that
was getting covered byinsurance.
And I had to tell this guy onthe phone, like, hey, we we
can't do this.
You know, I don't have anytrucks either.
I'm really sorry.
Um and I think something sprungin me at that point like, hey,
like maybe I'm looking at this,you know, terrible, terrible
(17:30):
situation, this horrible thingthat's happened to us, and I'm
not realizing that this isactually a huge opportunity to
build back stronger and buildback better.
Um, and that's you know why wegot the artists to graffiti our
trucks and everything like that.
We wanted to build back as likea part of the community.
And honestly, it it was kind ofa blessing in disguise because
I feel like we were gettingreally complacent, our fleet was
(17:52):
getting really old.
Um, we needed a good reset.
I wish it didn't happen the waythat it did, obviously.
And it was a horrible, horriblething.
But, you know, I've have neverfelt better about our business
and where we're at and thepeople we're working with and
the job we're putting forwardfor our clients.
Bill Gilliland (18:09):
Well, you know, what I would say is
congratulations on finding thegift.
There's always a gift in justabout everything.
And uh yeah, well done.
Well done on that.
So what words of advice wouldyou offer other business owners
who are looking to grow?
Brendon Hogan (18:28):
You know, keep it simple, probably.
Um we like there are littleincremental changes that you can
make that will make a massivemassive difference.
I think another big lesson thatI've learned is spend the money
to to do things right, right?
Um, you know, recently Googledid a change to their um
(18:49):
advertising platform and theyadded something called LSAs.
And if we didn't discoverthose, I truly believe our
revenue would be probably 30%less than what it is, and
they're expensive, and it'sbeen, you know, it's it's a huge
expense.
But the turnaround in businessthat we've got from from
spending the money, theturnaround in business that
(19:11):
we've got from branding ourtrucks and going all in and
spending the money, and youknow, really, you know, yard
signs and print advertising andall those things, I think it it
comes back to you tenfold um ifyou're willing to fully commit,
you know, no half measures forsure.
Bill Gilliland (19:28):
Yeah, no, I love that.
So what's the next big thingfor you and for your company?
Brendon Hogan (19:35):
Yeah, so we recently just opened a branch in
Atlanta.
Uh, we had a gentleman whoworked for us for a long time
who did an amazing job.
We really respect and trust,who moved down to Atlanta to be
closer to family.
And so we've purchased a truckdown there, we started setting
up shop down there.
We're gonna expand into Atlantaarea movers, so AAM as well.
(19:58):
Um, and hopefully, you know, ifthings start going well there,
we can start to verticallyintegrate, you know, different
branches across the southeast isthe goal.
Um, and you know, if we dothat, we're hopeful that we can
set up, you know, some type ofcall center here and run
everything out of Ashevillewhere we can provide, you know,
better jobs and opportunities topeople in this area.
(20:18):
Love that.
Bill Gilliland (20:20):
Love that.
Love that.
So, what's the best way forsomeone to get in touch with
you?
Brendon Hogan (20:25):
Yeah, through our website or through our phone
number.
I mean, we love to talk topeople on the phone.
We get a lot of emails too, butum, you know, just pick up the
phone and call us.
Our number is right on ourwebsite on all of our branding
and our signs around town.
Um and your trucks now too,huh?
Yeah, no, trucks now too.
Yeah, we we love talking topeople.
I would much rather book andmove with you on the phone than
(20:48):
email back and forth with you.
Bill Gilliland (20:50):
You're gonna have to get on the phone
eventually because you gotta,you know, or you're gonna have
to meet in person one, probablyboth.
So uh you might as well mightas well pick up the phone and
call.
I love that.
I love that.
That's great.
Well, fantastic.
This has been great.
Really appreciate you guysbeing part of the community and
all you're doing and all you'rechanging and your uh attitude
(21:11):
towards growth.
I love that.
So uh yeah, I know you're gonnacontinue to be successful.
Brendon Hogan (21:15):
So well, yeah, I really appreciate you having me
on.
This has been great, and uh Ilook forward to listening to
this episode and more episodesand appreciate what you're doing
for the community.
Bill Gilliland (21:24):
Yeah.
Well, and until next time, allthe best.
Brendon Hogan (21:28):
Yeah, you as well.
Hey there and welcome to this week's episode
of Epic Entrepreneurs.
I am Bill Gillilan, your host.
I am also the principal atAction Coach Business Growth
Partners and one of the foundersof the Asheville Business
Summit.
Today I'm super pumped.
I'm getting to meet a newfriend now.
Uh we always that's the one ofthe cool things about doing
these podcasts.
We get all these new friendsaround Western North Carolina
(01:00):
and the rest of the world.
Uh today I've got Brendan Hoganof Asheville Area Mover.
So, Brendan, welcome to thepodcast.
Tell us a little bit about youand your business and how you're
serving the community.
Brendon Hogan (01:12):
Yeah, absolutely.
I appreciate you having me on,and it's a pleasure to meet you.
Um we own, I own Asheville AreaMovers.
Uh, we're the largest locallyoperated and owned moving
company in the Asheville area.
Um, you say we're not owned,but we're not a franchise, we're
not partnering with a van lineor anything like that.
We're just local guys um, youknow, moving furniture.
(01:32):
Uh I've been doing this now.
We're coming up on 10 yearsnext year.
Um, so nine years in.
Um, you know, we had before thestorm, we had 12 trucks and
about 45 employees.
Uh we're back up to seventrucks, and we got about 35 guys
working for us.
Uh great guys, great team.
Um, you know, I've loved livinghere in Western North Carolina
(01:55):
and, you know, serving thecommunity.
Bill Gilliland (01:58):
So so what?
Let's talk about the storm justa bit and then we'll get into
some general business stuff.
So you it sounds like you werepretty heavily impacted by the
storm.
Brendon Hogan (02:08):
Yeah, so for the first eight years of our
business, we were headquartereddown along the Swannanoa River
over by Brother Wolf, umBiltmore Village area.
So um unfortunately, we didlose our entire fleet and
business in the storm.
Um, and you know, nothing wecould do about it.
Uh pretty, pretty, pretty crazyexperience.
(02:31):
But we were managed to get someSBA funding, and you know,
we're such a labor-heavybusiness that we were able to
get back on our feet prettyquickly.
Um additionally, you know,there's a lot of moving going on
because of the storm.
So we got lucky on that front.
But we've moved down on PattonAvenue to some dry land, a
little higher elevation thistime.
(02:51):
Um, but we're getting back onour feet.
It's been awesome to see, youknow, other businesses in the
area kind of turn it aroundaround here over the past year.
And I'm just hoping, you know,things can slowly get back to
where they were before.
Bill Gilliland (03:02):
Yeah, well, well done on responding as opposed
to folding, I guess.
Uh, you know, respondingpositively to the to the thing.
I mean, you know, if if you'rein western North Carolina and
the lean hit, then you everyonewas affected.
It's just a matter of uhmagnitude, I guess.
So uh Yeah, that's that's supercool.
It's good to hear that uh youresponded.
(03:24):
You're like you said, there's alot of people that need need
what you have uh and have neededit in the last year.
So let me uh ask you, let'sswitch gears a little bit and
just talking about some generalbusiness questions.
So if you had to start overagain, what would you do
differently?
Brendon Hogan (03:43):
Oh God, that would be a very, very, very long
list.
Um, you know, I've made aseries of mistakes, you know,
throughout the years runningthis business, and we've learned
from every single one of them.
Um, you know, most recentlycoming back from the storm, we
hired a bunch of local artiststo graffiti our trucks and do
logos on the sides of them andeverything.
(04:04):
Um, you know, I I before whenwe were up to 12 trucks, I had
no branding on them.
They were just plain vehicles.
I had, you know, our DOTnumbers on the side of the doors
and our logo, what was legallyrequired, um, but didn't want to
spend the money to, you know,put into branding and everything
like that.
I really, we really, reallyheavily relied on Google for all
of our business.
(04:25):
Um, and that was something thatI was kind of advised from
other people to do.
And, you know, since the storm,we've started doing a lot more
branding, a lot moreadvertising, uh, print
advertising, you know, outfits,everything like that.
It's made a huge, huge impact.
We're coming off.
I mean, this year will easilybe our biggest year ever from a
(04:47):
revenue standpoint.
Um, and next year is lookinglike it's it's headed in a
similar direction.
Um, I just I kick myselfbecause, you know, nine years
ago when we started this thing,we got in so early here and when
Asheville was booming.
And I think if we would havespent the money and the
resources and the time into likemore of our branding, and I
had, you know, almost a decadeof 12 trucks driving around with
(05:10):
our logos on them, we'd be in amuch better position than we
were, you know, the couple yearsprior to the storm.
Um, you know, also about fiveyears into our business, we kind
of got on board with the ideaof like leveraging technology
more to make things moreefficient, you know, in the
moving industry, especially herein North Carolina, because
(05:32):
we're regulated, a lot of thingsare done with paper and pen,
um, you know, bill of ladingsand contracts that way.
And we five years agotransitioned to a CRM that made
things just so much morestreamlined for us.
Um, we work with Supermove,which is uh you know an app out
of San Francisco that a lot ofmoving companies use.
There's several different CRMsthat you can use, but using that
(05:55):
from a scheduling standpoint,um, you know, our bill of
ladings on there, revenue onthere, customer relationships on
there.
It's allowed us to be so muchmore streamlined and it doesn't
require more guys in the office.
So I actually, you know, runthis company essentially with
me, myself, Kyle, who is um, youknow, our operations manager.
(06:19):
And then, you know, we havesome guys that are movers that
will fill in routinely to dosome of the additional office
and you know clerical workthat's required.
But we keep keep things prettyslim um because we leverage
technology the way that we do.
Um, and yeah, that's been agame changer for us, honestly.
Bill Gilliland (06:37):
Yeah, so leveraging technology and
branding would have been acouple of things that you would
have leaned into a lot heavy lotheavier, a lot earlier.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, you're sort of one of thebetter kept secrets in
Nashville, right?
Uh you know, yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
So that's a that's aninteresting thing.
So uh what are some of theother big learnings you've had
(06:58):
as an owner and an employer inthe last nine years?
Brendon Hogan (07:03):
You know, the hardest thing that I will ever
do as a business owner, and I'msure a lot of other business
owners can relate to this, isjust you know, be a manager of
other people and employ people.
Um, you know, especially in inour industry.
Um, you know, a lot of times wehave guys that are
transitioning in between work.
Um, you know, we have some guyswho this is this is their
(07:25):
career and they're amazing atit, and they've been great
employees, and then, you know,it it is people all over the
map, right?
And finding good help andtreating good help the way that
they need to be treated to stickaround is something I think is
lost on a lot of biggercompanies that is easier for a
(07:46):
smaller company like ours.
But, you know, one mistake inhiring can can lead to you know
catastrophic outcomes in ourbusiness, unfortunately.
Um and uh we've made a lot ofmistakes before.
I think we've gotten a lotbetter at it where we're
sourcing our employees, um,everything along those lines,
(08:07):
the relationships we have withour employees.
We feel very strongly that wewe we our work is very hard.
Moving people's furniture,there's a reason they pay us to
do it, right?
It's it's a yeah, it's a hardnot paying.
Bill Gilliland (08:18):
Yeah, it's a hard time.
It's heavy, it's hard, it'shard work, it's rough on your
body, it's the whole thing, youknow, it's tough.
Brendon Hogan (08:25):
Absolutely.
So, you know, rewarding guysand paying guys accordingly for
that has been kind of our motto.
Oh, especially, you know, fromthe day we started, we've always
paid more than everyone else,but you know, recently finding
ways to compensate our employeesfor, you know, upselling, you
know, whether it's insurance,materials, things along that
(08:46):
path so that we're gettingrevenue along with being able to
generate and pass back thoseprofits to our employees has
really helped build a morepositive and you know happy
workforce over the last threeyears, especially.
Um we've gotten so much betterat that, and we have such good
relationships with our employeesthese days.
Bill Gilliland (09:09):
So um speaking of employees, what qualities do
you look for in employees?
Brendon Hogan (09:17):
Uh first and foremost is punctuality, right?
Um I can't tell you how manyinterviews we set up and people
end up not showing up or they'relazy.
It's crazy, isn't it?
It's unbelievable.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
If you do that, we're justimmediately we know it's not
gonna work out, right?
If you don't value this job,you don't value other people's
(09:40):
time.
That says a lot about who youare as an employee.
I'm often blown away at theamount of people who you know we
set up interviews for and theydon't come along.
You know, uh recently we'vedone a lot more to kind of pay
more for people who have comefrom other van lines and bigger
(10:01):
businesses that are faster forus to train in.
It doesn't require as much youknow, headway.
But if we can get someone inhere who has a good attitude, uh
shows up on time, isrespectful, anyone could be
trained to do this job.
And, you know, confidentlypeople can do it really, really
quickly.
Um and I guess those are themain qualities we look for is
(10:23):
just respect, you know, notgetting flustered, I guess,
under pressure, because a lot ofthings can go wrong on a moving
day and kind of justmaintaining a good attitude with
a customer and just caringabout your job, right?
Um you know, we have wonderful,wonderful guys right now who
really care about people andcare about their jobs and care
about their community, andyou're not gonna cut corners
(10:44):
when you feel that way.
Um, and that's been reallyimportant to find.
Yeah.
Yeah, I think I don't think youcan say that.
Bill Gilliland (10:51):
So, what are some common misconceptions about
running a business?
Brendon Hogan (10:58):
Um that there's so much better work-life
balance, I guess.
Um, you know, a lot of peoplethink that I have a lot of free
time on my hands becauseespecially nowadays, I can play
golf on a Tuesday, but thatdoesn't mean that I'm not in my
car headed out somewhere on aFriday night in the middle of
(11:20):
dinner with my wife, and I gottago take care of something.
It's just it's a grind, right?
Like it's it's constant.
Um the stress is is constant.
I think in the first severalyears of my business, I didn't
like who being a business ownermade me become because I was so
stressed out and anxious all thetime when things would go
(11:43):
wrong, or you're trying to layyour head, you know, to rest at
night and you're thinking abouta damage that was caused or a
payroll coming up or anythingalong those lines.
And um, you know, I I guess theconception is that it's all
rainbows and butterflies forpeople that don't do it, but it
it is a lot of hard work andmanaging that stress is really,
(12:04):
really, really important.
Bill Gilliland (12:05):
Yeah, yeah, there's a lot of people counting
on you.
So yeah, it's uh it's a it's agood thing.
So what do you attribute yourgrowth to?
Brendon Hogan (12:14):
Yeah, so in our early years, I we tried to hire
a bunch of guys that were werelike us, right?
They're they're fun, they'repositive, they could joke around
with customers, they had goodattitudes, and that really
showed in the amount of repeatcustomers that we had.
Um, I think that's a huge partof it.
And to this day, we're verycareful about the kind of vibe
(12:35):
we're trying to curate aroundhere.
Um, we want people who arehaving one of the most stressful
days of their year to have agood and positive experience
when our guys show up withsmiles on their face and they're
cracking jokes and everybody'shaving a good time.
Um you know, beyond that, uhyeah, that's probably where
(12:57):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Bill Gilliland (12:58):
No, I like it.
I like it.
You you've you've you've you'vecreated a culture where it's
hard work, but it's you know,they have a good time.
I mean, you know, enjoy beingthere.
I like it.
Absolutely.
I like it.
So you talk you you you hit onthe challenges earlier, but how
how do you balance personal lifeand your business, the the
demands of running a business?
Brendon Hogan (13:19):
Yeah, so um I have a gentleman who's our
operations manager, and we'rekind of uh, you know, the one
two, and we work together very,very well.
And I think, you know, he justhad a baby actually a week after
the storm, um, which waspretty, pretty stressful time,
obviously.
But um having him kind of youknow go through that process
(13:41):
over the last year.
Um, I actually got married lastweekend, so I've had a lot
going on over the last couple ofweeks as well.
Yeah.
Yeah, but just knowing whereeach other is at and uh being
able to fill in when the otherperson is, you know, not
available.
I also, you know, my wife hasbeen great about you know just
helping me through stressfultimes.
(14:01):
I think I used to get sohyper-focused on things that
would go wrong in the earlydays, you know, but customer
damage, somebody sideswags a carin a vehicle, all things that
can go wrong and have it onmoving days.
And, you know, after nineyears, so much has happened that
when these things happenanymore, you start to realize
(14:22):
like, hey, this isn't the end ofthe world.
We're gonna wake up tomorrow,we're still in business, we're
protected by our insurance.
Um, you know, all things thatstart to become easier as the
years go on for sure.
Bill Gilliland (14:35):
Well, I mean, you lost your whole fleet.
I mean, it's that can't getmuch worse than that.
So I mean, you know, you know,I you know, there's yeah, life
this too shall pass, right?
Yeah.
So yeah, it's good.
So um I have an acronym calledB EPIC, and I'm gonna tell you
what the acronym is, and I Ijust want uh sort of be a quick
fire around, maybe like one ortwo words or sentences about
(14:57):
each, just your thoughts on it.
So the B and B Epic stands forbring energy.
So what are your thoughtsaround energy?
Brendon Hogan (15:05):
Kind of what we hit on earlier.
I think it's the most importantpart of the business, you know,
the vibe and and energy thatyou bring on a daily basis.
Bill Gilliland (15:12):
Love that.
How about education?
The E is education.
Brendon Hogan (15:15):
Yeah, I think properly training your employees
and guys to handle thescenarios that are going to
arise is core to any companyculture, right?
Love it.
How about P for planning?
Uh being organized, prepared,kind of like we were hitting on
with the CRM earlier, makes lifeso much easier.
If you can do one thing todaythat you didn't want to do to
(15:38):
prepare for something in thefuture, you're gonna save
yourself a huge headache in thelong run.
Bill Gilliland (15:43):
Love it.
How about I for inspiration?
Brendon Hogan (15:47):
Yeah, just dealing with people every day,
right?
I mean, that's inspiring initself.
Um, you know, getting a gettinga phone call that things have
gone well, or somebody praisingyour business or your guys, um,
you know, that's enough to keepthings going all the time.
Bill Gilliland (16:00):
Love it.
And C stands for commitment.
I reckon if you weren'tcommitted, you wouldn't have
opened back up, but let's uhlet's talk about commitment.
Brendon Hogan (16:10):
Yeah, I, you know, I'll be honest, it was a
pretty emotional period for me,to be honest.
Um I couldn't get to my lotafter the storm hit, and you
know, the the water was at like14 feet where I was crazy.
Bill Gilliland (16:26):
Yeah.
Brendon Hogan (16:26):
Yeah, it was up over our trucks, and you know, I
I told my who was my fiance atthe time, not my wife, uh, you
know, I need to get down there,I need to see what's going on.
By the time we got down there,we had parked my car like a mile
and a half away and walkedacross these train tracks.
And I got up there and I lookeddown into our lot, and I think
I looked at my wife, my notwife, and I was like, ah, my
(16:49):
life is over.
Um, and you know, I think Ijust woke up like three days
later after sulking to just say,I don't really have a choice
but to turn this thing around.
I got a bunch of peopledepending on me.
Um, you know, at one pointsomeone had called us to do a
massive contract to one of theapartment complexes that was
(17:10):
actually next to us that neededlike 300 units moved out that
was getting covered byinsurance.
And I had to tell this guy onthe phone, like, hey, we we
can't do this.
You know, I don't have anytrucks either.
I'm really sorry.
Um and I think something sprungin me at that point like, hey,
like maybe I'm looking at this,you know, terrible, terrible
(17:30):
situation, this horrible thingthat's happened to us, and I'm
not realizing that this isactually a huge opportunity to
build back stronger and buildback better.
Um, and that's you know why wegot the artists to graffiti our
trucks and everything like that.
We wanted to build back as likea part of the community.
And honestly, it it was kind ofa blessing in disguise because
I feel like we were gettingreally complacent, our fleet was
(17:52):
getting really old.
Um, we needed a good reset.
I wish it didn't happen the waythat it did, obviously.
And it was a horrible, horriblething.
But, you know, I've have neverfelt better about our business
and where we're at and thepeople we're working with and
the job we're putting forwardfor our clients.
Bill Gilliland (18:09):
Well, you know, what I would say is
congratulations on finding thegift.
There's always a gift in justabout everything.
And uh yeah, well done.
Well done on that.
So what words of advice wouldyou offer other business owners
who are looking to grow?
Brendon Hogan (18:28):
You know, keep it simple, probably.
Um we like there are littleincremental changes that you can
make that will make a massivemassive difference.
I think another big lesson thatI've learned is spend the money
to to do things right, right?
Um, you know, recently Googledid a change to their um
(18:49):
advertising platform and theyadded something called LSAs.
And if we didn't discoverthose, I truly believe our
revenue would be probably 30%less than what it is, and
they're expensive, and it'sbeen, you know, it's it's a huge
expense.
But the turnaround in businessthat we've got from from
spending the money, theturnaround in business that
(19:11):
we've got from branding ourtrucks and going all in and
spending the money, and youknow, really, you know, yard
signs and print advertising andall those things, I think it it
comes back to you tenfold um ifyou're willing to fully commit,
you know, no half measures forsure.
Bill Gilliland (19:28):
Yeah, no, I love that.
So what's the next big thingfor you and for your company?
Brendon Hogan (19:35):
Yeah, so we recently just opened a branch in
Atlanta.
Uh, we had a gentleman whoworked for us for a long time
who did an amazing job.
We really respect and trust,who moved down to Atlanta to be
closer to family.
And so we've purchased a truckdown there, we started setting
up shop down there.
We're gonna expand into Atlantaarea movers, so AAM as well.
(19:58):
Um, and hopefully, you know, ifthings start going well there,
we can start to verticallyintegrate, you know, different
branches across the southeast isthe goal.
Um, and you know, if we dothat, we're hopeful that we can
set up, you know, some type ofcall center here and run
everything out of Ashevillewhere we can provide, you know,
better jobs and opportunities topeople in this area.
(20:18):
Love that.
Bill Gilliland (20:20):
Love that.
Love that.
So, what's the best way forsomeone to get in touch with
you?
Brendon Hogan (20:25):
Yeah, through our website or through our phone
number.
I mean, we love to talk topeople on the phone.
We get a lot of emails too, butum, you know, just pick up the
phone and call us.
Our number is right on ourwebsite on all of our branding
and our signs around town.
Um and your trucks now too,huh?
Yeah, no, trucks now too.
Yeah, we we love talking topeople.
I would much rather book andmove with you on the phone than
(20:48):
email back and forth with you.
Bill Gilliland (20:50):
You're gonna have to get on the phone
eventually because you gotta,you know, or you're gonna have
to meet in person one, probablyboth.
So uh you might as well mightas well pick up the phone and
call.
I love that.
I love that.
That's great.
Well, fantastic.
This has been great.
Really appreciate you guysbeing part of the community and
all you're doing and all you'rechanging and your uh attitude
(21:11):
towards growth.
I love that.
So uh yeah, I know you're gonnacontinue to be successful.
Brendon Hogan (21:15):
So well, yeah, I really appreciate you having me
on.
This has been great, and uh Ilook forward to listening to
this episode and more episodesand appreciate what you're doing
for the community.
Bill Gilliland (21:24):
Yeah.
Well, and until next time, allthe best.
Brendon Hogan (21:28):
Yeah, you as well.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Are You A Charlotte?
In 1997, actress Kristin Davis’ life was forever changed when she took on the role of Charlotte York in Sex and the City. As we watched Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte navigate relationships in NYC, the show helped push once unacceptable conversation topics out of the shadows and altered the narrative around women and sex. We all saw ourselves in them as they searched for fulfillment in life, sex and friendships. Now, Kristin Davis wants to connect with you, the fans, and share untold stories and all the behind the scenes. Together, with Kristin and special guests, what will begin with Sex and the City will evolve into talks about themes that are still so relevant today. "Are you a Charlotte?" is much more than just rewatching this beloved show, it brings the past and the present together as we talk with heart, humor and of course some optimism.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.