March 26, 2025 • 45 mins
In this episode Josh Luck of Luck's Landscaping talks about his journey from one lawnmower to one of the premiere landscaping companies in Norhtwest Ohio. In our second segment Lane Montz host of A Heart For Business Podcast talks about his leadership role with the Better Business Bureau.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
Welcome to A Heart for Business. I'm Fred Lafever and
along with Lane Mons, President CEO the Better Business Bureau
of Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan, we'll highlight a local
business weekly. You'll discover why these small local business owners
have a passion for what they do and why the
(00:26):
Better Business Bureau has a heart for business. Now here's
Lane Months.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Well, welcome everyone, Welcome to the program, episode number seven
of the Better Business Bureaus A Heart for Business Podcast.
I'm Lane Monts here in the WSPD command Center, working
under the watchful eye of my commanding officer, Fred Lafever, who,
among other things, does not let me touch the equipment
and make sure I do not spill coffee on the
(00:53):
big board.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
And I'm supposed to have coffee in the studio. I
could get fired for that, I remember, and rule number
one is don't touch my stuff.
Speaker 3 (01:00):
Now.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Our guest this week is Josh Luck, who I just
had on last week before the Pro Home and Garden Show.
So when we talk about a passion for business, I
don't know if you've ever talked to Josh before. Yes,
stand back all right, because the passion comes through and
hand movements and bouncing around and voice volume and everything else.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
I already took some CBD before.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
Start slowly, but go ahead.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
And start it, all right. I'm gonna hope. We have
to put the choker chain on Josh sometimes, and I
got a little buzzer here to shock you if he
gets too lively.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
If he gets out of hand, you'll hear me go.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
I do want to say to the audience, be sure
to like, follow, and subscribe to our BBB Facebook page.
That's the Better Businesspeer of Northwest Ohio Southeast Michigan. Also,
if you're listening to the podcast, we've already trapped you,
please hit the follow button on the platform so that
you will be automatically notified of new episodes and you'll
be forced to listen to them whether you want to
(01:59):
or not.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
And that drops every Wednesday, all right, Wednesday morning, early
in the morning. When I get here.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
At four o'clock long, that's early Fred, Josh, welcome to
the program.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Lane, Thanks for having me. Super excited to be here
back in the radio station here with the Manfred and
excited to be on the podcast.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
Josh.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
I think you're super excited when you put a pillowcase
on your pillow.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
I wake up enthusiastic and excited. That is absolutely correct.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
So, by the way, that's infectious. And the first time
I met you was at a home show a couple
of years ago. I don't know if everyone here is
from Toledo, but Toledo has a professional remodelers organization and
a fantastic pro show. That's a shout out to Claire
and the pro organization. Yeah, they put on a fantastic show.
It really has come to life since COVID. To be
perfectly honest, and I noticed your setup at the pro show.
(02:51):
It's a little bit front and center, like it's the
largest display that you have. Didn't you say you start
working on that Monday before the weekend.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
Yeah, Monday mornings thirty am all the way until the
show starts Friday at three and we can stay till
ten pm. It's an incredible amount of work, but it
also is our opportunity to really showcase Lane who we
are and what we can do. Every year, I set
the bar higher and higher. Claire continues to give me
(03:19):
more and more space to use, and I love the
opportunity to put together the coolest display in the Glass City.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Cet I think your display probably gets more video taken
of it and photographs taken of it than any other
display in the place. And someone told me that this
year's if I had come over to you and said,
you know what, I love this I want at my yard,
it would have been five hundred thousand dollars. You invested
that much in that.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
It was enormous this year, you know, Fred, we want
to go above and beyond and building the coolest backyards
possible is my dream and my passion. So we had
a fifty by sixty booth. We put together a twenty
five thousand gallon water feature. It was basically a swimming
pool Forred.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
We did you have flamingos or swans?
Speaker 3 (04:12):
It was like the Bellagio, right. We brought in about
eighty tons of rock and gravel, built an incredible waterfall
water wall, Fred Lane, This was the most epic home
show booth ever in the history of Ohio, hands down, guaranteed.
Check out our YouTube channel.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Was Yeah, now do you do? I'm curious because that
took so much time and everything. Do you do other
home Are there other home shows in the state that
you do? You know? Fred?
Speaker 3 (04:40):
The Glass City Center, the Pro Home and Garden Show
is the only show that we've ever done, and every
year more and more customers approach me and say, Josh Cleveland, Columbus.
So I think, I think my intentions are and my
aspirations are to get to a larger show and put
(05:00):
an even better display together.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Oh Josh, do other cities have professional remodelers organizations? That's
separate by the way, if you're listening in, who are
listening in? It's different from the home Builders Association. It's
basically all for remodelers, and so it is a different
it's a different kind of show. Do you know if
other cities have chapters like ours?
Speaker 3 (05:21):
I'm not sure on the professional Remodelers organization side, but
I am very inspired by other cities garden shows. I
think what really separates the Home and Garden Show from
other shows in our area is not only the professional
Remodelers organization and the great team, but really the focus
on outdoor and gardens. Right, That's where people want to
(05:44):
become motivated and inspired through nature, and that's where the
garden aspect of the show has become even more popular.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
Is that because people, you know, they look at well
like me. Every day, I look out at my backyard.
So you look out at something your front yard, your backyard,
and you think, you know what if I could just
brighten that up a little bit, even with just like flowers.
You know, you talk to the you'll have extension of
people and stuff like that, and you look at maybe
putting new sod down or things like that, and then
(06:13):
you work your way up to something like you would
do for somebody's backyard. Is it because they can actually
see the change right away.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
Well, it's the simple things in life that bring the
most fulfillment, right connecting with nature, finding a place to pee,
finding a place to escape, to find peace, rest and relaxation.
You get that outdoors, you get that on the beach,
you get that at the park. You get that in nature.
And that's where our bodies were meant to connect with nature.
(06:43):
And that's really our philosophy, Fred is we want our
customers to experience and connect with their landscaping, and we
want to bring them that place of peace, rest and relaxation.
The most satisfying and fulfilling moment all weekend at the
Home and Garden Show, where the children that came to
the booth running and were absolutely captivated by the water,
(07:04):
or so many customers that came and sat on the
bench and just lost theirselves for five minutes, ten minutes,
thirty minutes.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
So you know, there are a lot of remodelers that
do windows and roofs and doors and siding and all
that's necessary. I think it's you have a little bit
of an advantage. I think it's harder to connect with
your roof, right, and it's harder to connect with your windows.
You got to do it, and you look great.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
There's real love for your room.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Yeah, but when you're sitting outside in a well designed,
well conceptualized, well executed exterior living space, that is something special.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
You know, Lane, I started in this industry eighteen years
ago cutting grass. I've done every service for every type
of customer and project, and over the years, the most
fulfilling and satisfying part is seeing the look on customers'
faces when you're able to create an amazing place for
them in their face family. That sense of fulfillment is
(08:03):
what inspires me to say, you know what, we're not
going to be like the rest. We're not going to
offer some of these smaller services. We're going to focus
on really the gold and silver that we have to
give our clients and creating these incredible spaces.
Speaker 1 (08:18):
So going back to when you started, because I just
I have a hard time believing that you were this excited,
probably more about showing up at my house to cut
the lawn. So was there a point in time when
you were doing that? Were you doing it for someone else?
Speaker 3 (08:40):
No, I was doing it for myself.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
Okay, when you were doing that that a light bulb
went off and said, you know what, this is fine.
I'm I'm doing the best job I can. I love
what I'm doing, but there's gotta be more for me.
You know.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
My roots and foundation, Fred Lane were in serving customers
a servant's heart and mindset, and and bringing value to
the marketplace. As we grew in experience, as we grew
in knowledge, and as we grew as a company, understanding
who we were. I understand that some of the work
became toll booth work. Okay, And I couldn't sit on
(09:15):
a lawnmower all day. My mind was racing creatively. I
had visions for these unique spaces, and I had the
aspiration to want to go and to always the next
project could potentially be the best project, the biggest project,
and cutting grass on a day to day routine basis
(09:36):
every week, thirty weeks out of the year, the same houses,
the same Where do you find the fulfillment when you
leave the lawn mode?
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Right? You can only mow it?
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Whoa who you know, I took I was to gratification.
I like to mow it twice in opposite directions. And
that's the neighbors that shake their head. They're like, he's
going to mow it a second, well, ma'am. Yeah. So hey, Josh,
you you talked about starting you say, fourteen year, seventeen.
Speaker 3 (10:06):
Years eighteen, eighteen years ago.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
So I want you to tell that story because again
this is about your origin story. You told me you
walked out of high school and were and started work
that Monday following or something like that.
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Absolutely, So, you know, Lane, entrepreneurship has always been in
my blood and heart. I recall the ice cream truck
coming down the street as a kid and hearing that
nostalgic sound and running to my mother and saying, Mom, Mom, Mom,
can I can I get an ice cream cone? Do
you have a few bucks? And her saying, son, you
can go earn a few bucks to buy yourself an ice.
(10:40):
Your mother told you that, and I'll tell her what
It was one of the most inspiring moments in my childhood.
And I recall saying, you know what, I have the opportunity,
I have the potential. So Lane, I was eleven twelve
years old, and I was taking a rake and a
snowshovel and a lawnmower down the street, knocking on doors
to find any opportunity to bring a level of service
(11:04):
to the marketplace. Lane, I recall high school, my mother
would take me to Sam's Club. I would buy in
bulk candy. I would take it home and break it down,
and I'd walk into school with a duffel bag of candy.
I took the vending machines all bagged up. I took
the vending machines out of business because I realized that
(11:25):
if I could have a better variety and I could
offer it at a better price, that I was selling
a product that didn't really have intrinsic value to it.
It was just a product.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
You know, you don't see. It's times of change. That's
a cliche, but it's very true.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
So I did.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
I started mowing lawns in fourth grade for my neighbors.
Ten bucks to mow a lawn in fourth grade back
in the eighties was a big deal. Yeah, and I
just kept doing it. I added more lawns. I did
a few other things here and there, because I wanted
a particular car. Of course, I wanted a convertible like
every high school kid.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
Does hopefully afford.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
Well, okay, yeah, I mean Triumph spitfire from Britain.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
There.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
It ran on two squirrels, yeats, two peanuts. It broke
down all the time, all the time, but it was
pretty good for getting dates, so I'm not going to complain.
But but so, you don't see kids mowing lawns and
neighborhoods anymore. You just don't see it. I live in Slovenia, Ohio.
A lot of lawns in Sylvanne, Ohio, well kept lawns,
but not children. I I love the message because I
(12:29):
do think parents should make a little bit of an
effort to get kids back to learning things like, hey,
how do you fix a lawnmower? How do you start
a lawnmower? How it's been it's lost knowledge. My kids
did not.
Speaker 1 (12:42):
Well, I'm the one of the things I noticed at
the Home and Garden show. Is I think you had
like your whole family there with your glue word because
I saw your kids. One of your kids was running
the drone, wasn't.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
He don't say that out loud, Okay, yeah, he was
running the drone in there. And you know, four boys,
and they've all grown up in this business. My wife
and I started this company in a trailer park eighteen
years ago with black and white flyers printed off of
our little HP printer and sticking three hundred and seventy
(13:13):
black and white flyers to all the trailer park doors
in the entire park, and then realizing that people didn't
like stuff stuck to their door.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
And so then you sell them. You sell them trash
door removal services.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
But Lane, you know, my family has been a part
of this business since the beginning, and my family is
my motivation, and really my mother to this day is
my inspiration and motivation as well. She helped form that
entrepreneurship mindset, and she helped me realize that anything that
I put my mind to, anything that I put my
(13:47):
heart to, and anything that I put my hands to,
I'm able to accomplish.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
And we need to have her on the program, Josh,
because you probably wore that poor woman out and she
deserves some free area.
Speaker 3 (13:58):
I'll tell you what. My mother is an amazingly strong
woman and continuing to inspire me daily. But that's where
it started. As a kid, Lane and going to school,
sitting in a classroom was not my strong suit. I
was in the National Junior Honor Society. I got great grades,
but my attention was not in the books and in
(14:20):
the studies and in the class I wanted to be outside.
I wanted to connect with nature. The day I turned
eighteen years old, I signed myself out of high school.
The next week, I got online and formed my LLC,
and then I started mowing in the trailer park for
seven dollars a long. And that's really how I began
(14:41):
right out of high school. But what I realized several
years ago, Lane Fred was my passion for this industry
really started as a child getting off the school bus. Really,
and what I mean by that is when I got
off the bus as a kid, I didn't run to
the front door to go inside. I ran to the
(15:04):
side gate. Lane. I ran to the side gate and
I opened up the gate and I'd walk into the
backyard because I could guarantee that's where Mom was. Mom
was out tending to her garden. She was out sitting
by her choy pond. She was out on the patio,
she was cutting flowers and bringing them in. Now, Mom
worked two jobs as a single mother. We didn't have
(15:26):
a lot, right so going to Toledo public schools, growing
up in Toledo, we didn't have wealth. But Mom found
her place of peace and rest and relaxation.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
Mom found her that was her joy.
Speaker 3 (15:41):
So in the backyard.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
Josh and I talked a little bit earlier this week,
and during show prep, I had a similar experience my mom.
My parents spent an enormous amount of time in their
landscaping and flowers and hard scaping their yard in Finley
where I grew up, and it was the same situation.
We were not in a wealthy neighborhood, you know, I say,
we were in a very average American neighborhood. And they
(16:04):
transformed that house and when they moved to Toledo at
South Toledo, it was the same situation. My mom just
loved it. She just had a passion for growing things
and making it look attractive and creating a vibe, right right, And.
Speaker 1 (16:18):
You've found enough people that are of the same mindset,
because the same thing with me growing up. I did
launch and stuff like that, but I grew up around
older Polish neighborhoods and things, and in ham Trammick. In
those days, they swept the alleys, those little old bushes,
had rose bushes, They tended everything because it was from
(16:38):
the old country. It was this is my property. It's
the only thing I own, and I'm gonna make it
look as good as I can. And we've seemed to
lost a lot of that. Are you able to find
the people who still have that?
Speaker 3 (16:51):
You say that, and I recall my great great grandfather
and my great great busha came from Poland. Okay, sky right,
So I recall as as a seven eight year old
watching my great grandfather with a pair of scissors trimming
the front lawn edging after he moved my dad.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
I tell you it, I don't feel so bad about
my personality now I feel better. But this this is.
Speaker 3 (17:21):
What, this is what stuck with me. Fred. How you
do one thing is how you do everything.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (17:27):
My great grandfather was one of the most clean cut,
well kept, well dressed, hair slicked back handkerchief in his
pocket up early in the morning, took care of his belonging,
worked hard. My great grandfather was an inspiration to me.
So that Polish heritage, that Polish background, that that hard work,
(17:51):
those those knuckles the size of golf balls, right like,
that's that's the heritage that I grew up in and
that and that's where my foundation was laid. And that's key.
That is absolutely key laying. We were speaking the other
day to why I've been able to grow and become
any level of success is because of that foundation.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
So it's it's generational. But and the way you talk
about it, I'm curious too, is there because I ran
into some guys at the home show who told me
there were faith based business. Is there a faith based
going on somewhere in the background.
Speaker 3 (18:30):
Also, I could do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.
I knew and my mom, my mom.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
We've had a track record here on the program, even
though we're only into episode seven, we've had a track
record of that bubbling to the surface. That's not planned
of certainly not a criteria for you know, selecting guests,
but it has come forward.
Speaker 3 (18:48):
So I want you to look at the back of
my shoulder blades on my jacket.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Okay, believe, it says on the back of his jacket.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
It says believe and and And that's why we do
the Home and Garden show. That's why we entered into business,
is because we have faith. We believe, but we're willing
to put hard work. We're willing to put creativity, and
we're willing to put a servant's heart and mindset behind it.
And if you have a good foundation, right, the storms
(19:16):
are going to come. In eighteen years, the.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Storms are going to come, oh, especially projects.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
But you believe that the next biggest and best project
is always ahead. And that's what wakes me up enthusiastic
and motivated. And I'm not doing the toll booth kind
of work. I get incredible opportunities to collaborate with some
absolutely amazing clients and build the coolest backyard.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
And no two projects the kind of projects you're doing.
And I know you do all sizes, but really, when
it comes to landscaping, hard scaping and soft scaping, no
two projects are ever exactly the same because no two
pieces of property are the same.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
You know, as we've grown and we've learned more of
who we are and what we do. We understand the
consulting aspect of our job and how every project is different.
Every property needs evaluated because every property is different, and
every project needs consulting because there's so many aspects of
(20:20):
what landscaping is today, hard scaping, soft scaping, water features,
fire features, construction, pergolis.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Pattiosmomingos, right water that shoots thirty feet in the air,
you know, color changing lights.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
There's so many options. In order to feel confident and
comfortable as a consumer, you need a consultant who's willing
to collaborate with you, who has the knowledge and the
know how, and also is probably more passionate about the
project in the backyard and even most of our customers.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
Well, and who has an open mind and is willing
to listen. Because there are some guys out there who
you'll go and talk to a client and who will say, well,
I don't know if I can do that, and I
get the impression that that's not you, that you're gonna go.
You know, we'll have to figure out a way to
do that.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (21:09):
Creatively, every challenge is an opportunity and its potential, and
I love and am intrigued by some of the most
challenging and creative projects. It's what keeps me up at night,
it's what keeps me going. I want to stretch, I
want to grow. If I'm not being challenged by new projects,
new challenges, then I'm not growing as an individual. And
(21:32):
that's why I had to get off the lawnmower.
Speaker 2 (21:33):
Yeah, I knew there was more potential and you know
it also, though it's not just about I don't think
it's just about the creativity. That's obviously a strong suit
of yours. The passion is clearly there. But if you're
going to be investing in a big project, and that's
what it is, it's an investment. It's an investment in
your quality of life, it's an investment in your property value. Both. Absolutely,
(21:55):
you got to have somebody, whether it's lux or somebody else.
You got to make sure that they have the nuts
bolts skills as well the hard crunchy skills, because nothing
sharpens a project like the limits of budget right. So
if you have a budgetary limit, right, then you need
somebody that can get the hard crunchy, get it to
fit fit. Like Fred was saying, you know, can I
(22:17):
do this, will I be able to do this? Here's
my budget. If that if that service of that landscaper
or that designer doesn't have those nuts and bolt skills,
it's going to be hard to fit the project within
the budget one hundred percent.
Speaker 3 (22:29):
And that's where it takes a collaborative effort. You know,
we're consulting with our customers. Every customer is different, learning
their their unique interest, their unique wants, their desires, and
then figuring out, okay, well what is a projected budget
and understanding that most customers don't understand what budgets are.
When we're talking large scale landscape design and construction, that's
(22:51):
our job, that's our opportunity.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
Well that could be a scary number.
Speaker 3 (22:54):
Absolutely right, But that's what we're here to do is
consult with our clients, give them the information, let them
consider so they can make an appropriate next step. Some
of these projects, this is the biggest purchase these customers
will make outside of their home. Oh yeah, so they
better be confident and they better be comfortable. And that's
why I think it's incredibly important to Lane not just
(23:16):
be creative and not just not just be passionate, but
also explain how tell our customers how we're going to
do it, because the how behind it, whether it's following
appropriate building code and practices, or the process that we
have in working with our clients is even more important
(23:40):
because I've redone so many projects that have failed because
they weren't done correctly. Somebody created it, somebody designed it,
somebody sold it, but they didn't have those nuts and
bolts from a know how standpoint to explain to clients
to make them feel comfortable. And therefore, when they show
up and they start working in the backyard, customers don't
(24:03):
have a sound understanding of how it's supposed to come
together and where do corners get cut? Every single time?
It's in what you don't see.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Yeah, so our job and I always want to know
when I hire somebody, whether it's to put the roof on,
which should be a simple matter, I want to know
what they're going to do, how they're going to do,
what the timeline is going to be, so that I
have some expectation. I feel a lot more comfortable spending
my money if I know where that's going to go.
I'm curious before we before we close up here, going
(24:33):
all the way back to when you were riding on
the lawnmower. Do you remember what your first job was,
the first one that you did?
Speaker 2 (24:41):
Absolute exactly what I was going to ask. I want
to hear the first time you got off the mower
in a landscape.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
So so hold on, I'm going to tell you the
first customer. Because I distributed the three hundred and seventy
something flyers to all of the trailers, and it was
Lucky Landscaping. And I found word on art on Microsoft
word of dice, and and I said, we're gonna come
up with this pitch of seven seven seven. We're gonna
(25:07):
mow your grass for seven bucks. We're gonna do your
snow removal for seven bucks, and we're gonna clean up
your leaves for seven bucks.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Oh now, mind you.
Speaker 3 (25:13):
It was one pass around the trailer. I bet you,
I hold you to that, I bet, I bet so.
So I remember the first the first phone call, and
the gentleman must have been in his sixties, and he said,
I want you to come down. I want you to
look at at my at my lawn. And I went
down there and I met with him and I said, sir,
we're looking at thirty cuts for the season. Seven dollars
(25:35):
a cut. It's gonna be two hundred and ten dollars.
Here's your contract. I'm gonna need half down. Gentlemen looked
at the contract, looked at the pricing. He said, I'll
pay you weekly, and I said, sounds good to me.
Speaker 2 (25:52):
Sounds good to me.
Speaker 3 (25:53):
And every week he'd write me a seven dollars check,
and I thought, well, I thought, I thought I had
landed the mothership. I'm getting ready to go get one
hundred dollars contract deposit for the biggest account I've ever had.
And uh, you know, but I recall the first taste
of getting off of that mower because my passion pulled
me off, and I seen customers and I seen opportunity,
(26:16):
and that's where my potential.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
Was well, and that's what I want to know. What
was the first job you did after cutting the lawns?
Was it something small like, oh, somebody wanted a rock garden,
and then you just exploded to where we're at the
Home and Gardens Show.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
Yeah, No, it took an It took a long road
in journey to get to the Home and Garden Show
eighteen years later. And it started with everything from simple
mulch beds, to small planting jobs, to trimming jobs, just
to anything that customers needed service and help with on
their landscape. I wanted to be able to offer it
to them. There was no big job at that point.
Speaker 1 (26:52):
Were you taught yourself all the way through.
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Self taught the entire time, through the marketplace right and
through all of the opportunities that we have to learn
in today's world, following other great business leaders, other great entrepreneurs,
other great businesses, and really learning my way through.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Yeah. So, Josh, I hope you want to come back
sometime because I'd like to spend a segment talking with
you about design and taking people through the design process.
I know you have your own, but you know it's
educating the public about the design of landscape from small
because you do big jobs too, obviously, but I think
people need to hear that. Yeah, they don't know. Yeah,
(27:34):
I'd like to have you back sometime when it's convenient
for you. I know your busy season's coming up. Fred
has given me the signal and one of us has
to leave. It's probably going to be me. It's probably
going to have to be me.
Speaker 1 (27:45):
Me and Fred are going to hang out for a while,
It's going to be both you because we have a
second segment coming up in just a moment.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
Did you know our area has over forty thousand businesses.
Some are old, some are new, but they all have
a story to tell about why they said. Well, how
someone took a chance once upon a time, someone with
a heart for business. Hi, this is Laine Monts, the
host of the Better Business Bureaus Heart for Business podcast.
We know a thing or two about our area's companies,
after all, we've been keeping tabs on them since nineteen nineteen.
(28:15):
Join me in Toledo radio legend Fred la Fever every
week as our BBB superheroes tell their origin story and
share a few industry secrets along the way.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
Welcome back for the second part of a Heart for Business,
the BBB sponsored podcast you're listening to on iHeartRadio and
wherever you can get your podcasts. I'm introducing this segment
because Lane Months is actually going to be the guest
this time around instead of the host. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
Well, we'll both be guests and we'll both be hosts
for what do you think of Josh? Isn't he amazing
to have?
Speaker 1 (28:44):
I love having Josh and I've had him on every
year of the Pro Home and Garden Show. He is
exactly what we're talking about when we talk about why
we're searching for a heart for business and a passion
for business. H Like many of our other guests, he
found something he really enjoyed doing, which is what I
always told my kids. Find something you like doing, then
(29:06):
find somebody to pay you for it. Exactly the easy part,
find something you really enjoyed doing. The hard part, find
somebody to pay you for it.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
He seems like he's got both parts nailed down.
Speaker 1 (29:16):
As both of those parts nailed down. Now, I'm guessing
because you've talked about your past history, you were in
remodeling and sold insurance. I think you said it one time.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
No worse than selling insurance as a lawyer.
Speaker 1 (29:29):
So I'm a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (29:30):
Construction I was in. I've been a lawyer for thirty years,
and then construction laws where I developed my specialty for
twenty five years at a pretty major fire, flood and
storm restoration contractor in this area. We're the largest in
this area, Okay, And I was there for a long time.
Speaker 1 (29:48):
Like we've done with our other guests. So you're sitting
in high school lay months he's not paying attention. Booy do.
He's waiting for recess to come along. What made you
decide to go the attorney route, because that's what you
did first? It?
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Well, yeah, I mean I went and got my business
degree in the University of Cincinnati. So the school system
in Finley, based on my testing score, standardized testing, they
pushed me into engineering. Believe it or not, really believe
it or not. I spent two years in engineering at
the University of Cincinnati. I had a four year ROTC
scholarship for the Air Force to be an aerospace engineer. Nice,
(30:25):
and now I must use a calculator to do addition.
Speaker 1 (30:28):
Why didn't you follow that since that's where they were pushing,
you know, because the school system does.
Speaker 2 (30:33):
Yeah, they do shit.
Speaker 1 (30:33):
They do push passion for did you?
Speaker 2 (30:36):
I did not, And I had what I had a
passion for at that particular time in my life was
not the hard work of the quadratic equation and differential calculators.
I don't even say, yeah, I know it's what I
had a passion for was mainly girls, alcohol and inherent laziness.
But I did like business. I did have actually have
a heart for business. So I moved over to the
(30:57):
business program, and I did that, and then the University
of Cincinnati has a co op program. They were the
first college ever to pioneer the co op program over
well over one hundred years ago, where after your first
or second year, you go and work for businesses for
a semester, then you go back to class, not an internship.
And my dad had run a pretty rough factory down
(31:18):
in Finley, a concrete pipe factory, and I worked for
him in the summers, and then I went and I
did a couple of co ops and another one was
in a factory, and I just realized it wasn't going
to be for me, and so I graduated with my
bachelor and I was in law school ten weeks later.
Speaker 1 (31:34):
Where was your bachelor's degree in?
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Then business? Sales and marketing?
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Was a sales and marketer, okay? And then you decided
after that, Okay, I'm going to be an attorney. Yes.
When you decided that, were you deciding it to be
specialized in business as a as an attorney for businesses business?
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Yeah, Although I spent the first eight to ten years
of my career as a litigator in civil litigator in
the courtroom and then I went in house. A client
hired me in house, and then I served as their
general counsel, and I also got my construction license, a
contractor's license, and ran the operations, which got about thirty
thousand projects while I was there.
Speaker 1 (32:11):
So why did you do that?
Speaker 2 (32:13):
Because I came in as a lawyer and construction is
definitely its own universe, and I had to supervise and
manage people that have been in construction for a lifetime,
and I felt like it wasn't fair or right for
me to be their boss unless I had showed some quality,
showed some knowledge. So I went and studied for it
(32:34):
and got the contractor's license, and I and threw myself
into learning construction, and now I teach it at Bowling Green.
Speaker 1 (32:40):
See and hearing that that makes perfect sense. So what
are you teaching at Bowling Green?
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Construction law? Construction law for the construction Management program, which
is a very successful accredited program and it turns out
like ninety eight ninety nine percent job placement rate. It's
a fantastic accredited program for construction management and architecture professions.
Speaker 1 (33:00):
So from all of that, how did you end up
taking Brian Epstein's job?
Speaker 2 (33:04):
Dick Keepstein.
Speaker 1 (33:05):
I always called him Brian Epstein because of the Beatles.
How did you end up taking Dick Epstein's job?
Speaker 2 (33:10):
So I had started serving there as an arbitrator for
their construction disputes, you know, between construction companies and members
of the public, and it helped resolve disputes. And I
did that for probably twenty years, and and then I
ended up on the board of directors. And it just
so happened the construction company that I worked for for
all those years, which was family owned, the founder passed
(33:31):
away and the family sold to outside private investors, and
of course they have their own attorneys. I knew that
my time would be limited, and I have nothing but
fond feelings for that organization and that family, And it
just happened that Dick announced his retirement. It was serendipitous
for it.
Speaker 1 (33:46):
And Dick did such a great job over the many
years he was there. He was on the show a
number of times. We talked about all the time, the
newsloaded they sent out and everything. So what improvements. I'm
going to say that you would call him improvement, So
the staff might because they were very excited. Seriously. I
ran into him at the Home and Garden Show, and
they said, oh have you seen this, and they brought
(34:07):
the new newsletter over and everything. What improvements have you
made or what changes have you made?
Speaker 2 (34:12):
I don't want to use the word improvements. You know,
every leader has to find their team and find their
heart for what they're doing.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
Right.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
You find, you got to find, you got to find
your groove as a as a leader and a manager,
and so just different. I mean, Dick was a fantastic
CEO and really built the BBB up to one of
the top in the nation. Were very fortunate. As I've
said before in the program, we're fifty ninth in population
and business population, but we're twentieth in terms of membership
(34:40):
really and we're number one or number two in market
share of BBB's Wow. Yeah, So he left me is
it's easy to make improvements when you already start with
good bones.
Speaker 1 (34:50):
Well yeah, but see, I've been through a number of
changes in the radio business, and one of the things
that happens is whenever you get a new boss, they
always want to put their stamp on it, and they
don't take the time like it sounds like you did.
They don't take the time to look at the program first,
and work within that program to see what works well
(35:10):
and what doesn't and what changes you might do. Where
did that come from? Did that come from your other
experience as an attorney and being an in construction.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Well twenty five years. I mean the workforce at that
construction company went from forty five to one hundred and
thirty while I was there. I hired, I did all
the hiring, and I did all the firing, okay. And
I sat in the number two chair, Fred, And so
when you sit in the number two chair, you know,
loyalty is important. Sometimes it was the hatchet man, but
in the end I yielded to the owners right business
(35:39):
their business, of course. But you know, you sit there
and there are times when you see things and you say,
I like that, I want to do that if I'm
ever in the big chair, or I don't like that,
and I won't do that. And I was very fortunate
the founder of the company was a Christian businessman, and
he I mean I was probably hard to corral when
I was young, and maybe even a little bit now,
(36:02):
but he you know, pulled me aside and tutored me
on principles of how to deal with humans and how
to how to be decent a decent manager. He always said,
lame when you if you have to let somebody go,
you're taking away one of the most important things that
they have, and that's their job. Do not do it lightly,
do not do it casually. And that's stuck with me.
(36:24):
And and uh, you know, there were changes that needed
to be made at the BBB. We'd probably fallen behind
on technology. So I think we've erased the technology debt
deficit there.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
And I think that's a really important lesson because I've
been in situations where people were let go and it was, hey,
we don't need you any more, clean out your office
and go. Uh. And I've been in situations, you know,
where people were leaving or were going to be let go,
and they were given the opportunity and radio this doesn't
happen all the time, given the opportunity to say goodbye
(36:56):
to the audience and have a last show. And that
is so much better for everybody involved, because there is
a sense of loss, not just for the people losing
their job, but there's a sense of loss for anybody
who's worked with them. Also. I would imagine even in
a construction crew, you know, Joe's been working with you
for the last thirteen years. All of a sudden, Joe's
(37:17):
not going to be around anymore. There's a sense of
loss that goes with that.
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Change causes uncertainty. Uncertainty leads to fear, and you know,
as you get older, you hopefully gain a little bit
of that nuance. Those soft skills. I definitely did not
have those when I was younger. Yeah right, I thought
I was it, you know, a young guy attorney. I
had so much to learn, so much to learn, and
I'm glad. I'm very thankful for the mentors that I
(37:44):
have when I was young.
Speaker 1 (37:45):
So now that you're at the helm of the BBB,
how long has it been, like a little over a year?
Speaker 3 (37:50):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (37:51):
No, it's coming up on three.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
Oh is it really already three?
Speaker 2 (37:54):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (37:54):
You send out a weekly Monday newsletter, all right, which
I used to on the air this week about local
scams and things that are going on right now. You
need to be aware of the newsletter that they dropped
off at the booth over the weekend. Looks like that's
gotten an.
Speaker 2 (38:10):
Overhaul, complete overhaul for color. Yeah, more pages, more content.
And then, by the way, we still have Dick write
an article for it. So yeah, we publish it every
other month because it's quite a bit more expensive. Most
bbbs only do electric electronic newsletters through email. And I
made a pledge when I came here because I loved
Dick's newsletter. It had a sort of a hometown feel
(38:32):
to it, and I wanted to keep that. I wanted
to keep that because I felt like that was part
of what set us apart from other bbbs and other businesses.
Everybody does an electronic newsletter, right, so I wanted.
Speaker 1 (38:43):
To keep it.
Speaker 2 (38:43):
But for color is a lot more expensive, so we
went to every other month, and so I love it.
I think it's great gets that every member business, every
one of our five and forty eight member businesses.
Speaker 1 (38:58):
And what does it take. You mentioned that Dick left
you in a really good place. What does it take
to go out and recruit more businesses? Because for a
long time when I was growing up, probably same thing
with you. You'd walk past the store on your way
to the library, whatever, and everybody had a BBB sign.
It was like the thing to be in the Better
Business Bureau and in the Chamber of Commerce, and those
(39:21):
things have kind of gone away after a while. How
do you pull those people back in and convince them
being a member of the BBB is important not just
for them but for their clients.
Speaker 2 (39:31):
That's a great question, Fred, because I'm the host, you're
the host with the most All across the country, service
organizations and membership organizations are struggling. The American Bar Association,
which if you think about it, has no competition. If
you're an attorney and you want to be in a
national organization, the ABA is it. But their membership since
(39:54):
COVID has down something like forty five percent.
Speaker 3 (39:57):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (39:57):
And so you pick a service organization in your community,
most are struggling, and so engagements. The expectations of society
are different now than they were. So for us, what
it takes is constant, unrelenting physical presence in our community.
We're big believer in our twenty four counties. We want
(40:19):
to be physically present, not just electronically present. Right. So
I have a staff of account executives. They're very experienced.
So the vice president has been there twenty five years.
Other sales members and that's what they're doing is a
form of sales have been there ten fifteen years or
they have a lot of experience in being an account representative.
We believe in personal, face to face relationship. Somebody makes
(40:45):
an application, then we vet them very thoroughly.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
But besides, above and beyond that, because in our sales department,
I know there's always this question about value added. So
what is the so I run, you know, le Fever's business.
What is the value to me to bother joining the BBB?
Other than I get the plaque that says you know,
I'm a BBB member and whatever goodwill that might bring.
(41:08):
What do you bring to the table.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
For Oh I wish you could be in a zoom
meeting with the other ninety one CEOs of bbbs across
the country. I think if they put us in a
physical arena, it would be a cage fight. There are
different philosophies about the value really Oh yes, yes, it's
a hot debate. So clearly the BBBS were founded based
on a principle, which is to improve marketplace trust by finding, vetting,
(41:35):
and promoting the most honest and ethical businesses. That's a
core concept I have. By the way, I'll bring them
in sometime. The original articles of incorporation, signed here in
nineteen nineteen on parchment with an ink quill Pen and
some of the names of the companies you would recognize,
and some of them have passed on, right, so I
still have I'll bring that in sometime, but the papers
(41:57):
not super sturdy, so I'm careful with it. So you know,
for many businesses that join today, one of the things
that being in the BBB does give you is sort
of like a level of instant credibility. Okay, right, And
credibility in business doesn't necessarily get you leads. It's not
a lead generating type of thing. You don't get asked
(42:17):
out on dates because of being in the BBB. I
mean you do to some extent, but when you are
selling to a customer and they have choices between you
and a non BBB business, we believe the reason why
you get the yes, why you get the kiss at
the end of the date, not the cheek, is because
you're in an organization that does care about credibility. We're
not perfect on that, but it is an important core benefit.
(42:40):
We also have a lot of other ones too well, and.
Speaker 1 (42:42):
That's one of the things that with the Pro Home
and Garden Show, everybody in there has been vetted. They
don't get the Pro unless they've been vetted.
Speaker 2 (42:52):
Not only that, Fred, you don't even know this. They
have to be a member of the Better Business Bureau
to be in the PRO.
Speaker 1 (42:57):
Well, I didn't know that, but I was just about
to say, but everybody around me, all the booths around me. Also,
we're displaying, and I mentioned it when I talked about
it on air, we're displaying their BBB symbols on their booths,
on their booths at the event. So and I didn't
realize they had to be a BBB member to be
(43:18):
a PRO member.
Speaker 2 (43:18):
Yeah, that's something that was worked out long ago between
the two organizations. That's why the PRO when it comes
to construction and remodeling, really, the PRO is the best
of the best.
Speaker 1 (43:27):
Yeah, they really do know what they're doing. So a
final question, where do you want to take this? How
long do you expect to be around it? And where
do you want to be in five years with the BBB?
What do you want them to look like?
Speaker 2 (43:40):
I hope I'm still employed in five years. I'm not
an early retirement guy.
Speaker 1 (43:43):
You have a contractor you just serve it?
Speaker 2 (43:45):
Will I both? Probably? Okay, Yeah, I have a contract.
So you've mentioned many times. I've heard you say it
I think on air and off air, as long as
you're having fun and you feel like you're contributing, you're
not interested in retirement now. And I feel exactly the
same way. So I'm sixty and I, you know, stayed
till he was well into his seventies. I won't do that.
(44:06):
But as long as I'm contributing, I will. I will
be there as long as they want me there. My
goal is to leave the Better Business Bureau in good
financial security and with a lively, vibrant and energetic brand
and presence in our twenty four counties. And probably one
difference about me is I'm trying to build a team
and a staff and I am I think I don't
(44:28):
want to be based on the cult of Lane Monts.
Like you know, I won't be there so long that
I become synonymous with the BBB. Sure, I think is
stronger if I build a culture and not a cult.
And so that's what I'm trying to do.
Speaker 1 (44:40):
Excellent, I like that again. On that said, that's where
we'll end. You've been listening to a heart for business.
That's one of our hosts, Lane Monts. He's actually the
what do they consider you President's CEO.
Speaker 2 (44:54):
There's a lot of names for me, Fred, those are
okay to use on air.
Speaker 1 (44:59):
I'm Fred Lafie. Each week we bring you a brand
new episode of A Heart for Business. You can find
it wherever podcasts are heard. We would prefer that you
go to the iHeartRadio app. You can also find us
on Facebook, Instagram and all over the internet. Be sure
to subscribe and listen every week to A Heart for
(45:19):
Business with the BBB
Welcome to A Heart for Business. I'm Fred Lafever and
along with Lane Mons, President CEO the Better Business Bureau
of Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan, we'll highlight a local
business weekly. You'll discover why these small local business owners
have a passion for what they do and why the
(00:26):
Better Business Bureau has a heart for business. Now here's
Lane Months.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Well, welcome everyone, Welcome to the program, episode number seven
of the Better Business Bureaus A Heart for Business Podcast.
I'm Lane Monts here in the WSPD command Center, working
under the watchful eye of my commanding officer, Fred Lafever, who,
among other things, does not let me touch the equipment
and make sure I do not spill coffee on the
(00:53):
big board.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
And I'm supposed to have coffee in the studio. I
could get fired for that, I remember, and rule number
one is don't touch my stuff.
Speaker 3 (01:00):
Now.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Our guest this week is Josh Luck, who I just
had on last week before the Pro Home and Garden Show.
So when we talk about a passion for business, I
don't know if you've ever talked to Josh before. Yes,
stand back all right, because the passion comes through and
hand movements and bouncing around and voice volume and everything else.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
I already took some CBD before.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
Start slowly, but go ahead.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
And start it, all right. I'm gonna hope. We have
to put the choker chain on Josh sometimes, and I
got a little buzzer here to shock you if he
gets too lively.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
If he gets out of hand, you'll hear me go.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
I do want to say to the audience, be sure
to like, follow, and subscribe to our BBB Facebook page.
That's the Better Businesspeer of Northwest Ohio Southeast Michigan. Also,
if you're listening to the podcast, we've already trapped you,
please hit the follow button on the platform so that
you will be automatically notified of new episodes and you'll
be forced to listen to them whether you want to
(01:59):
or not.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
And that drops every Wednesday, all right, Wednesday morning, early
in the morning. When I get here.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
At four o'clock long, that's early Fred, Josh, welcome to
the program.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Lane, Thanks for having me. Super excited to be here
back in the radio station here with the Manfred and
excited to be on the podcast.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
Josh.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
I think you're super excited when you put a pillowcase
on your pillow.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
I wake up enthusiastic and excited. That is absolutely correct.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
So, by the way, that's infectious. And the first time
I met you was at a home show a couple
of years ago. I don't know if everyone here is
from Toledo, but Toledo has a professional remodelers organization and
a fantastic pro show. That's a shout out to Claire
and the pro organization. Yeah, they put on a fantastic show.
It really has come to life since COVID. To be
perfectly honest, and I noticed your setup at the pro show.
(02:51):
It's a little bit front and center, like it's the
largest display that you have. Didn't you say you start
working on that Monday before the weekend.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
Yeah, Monday mornings thirty am all the way until the
show starts Friday at three and we can stay till
ten pm. It's an incredible amount of work, but it
also is our opportunity to really showcase Lane who we
are and what we can do. Every year, I set
the bar higher and higher. Claire continues to give me
(03:19):
more and more space to use, and I love the
opportunity to put together the coolest display in the Glass City.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Cet I think your display probably gets more video taken
of it and photographs taken of it than any other
display in the place. And someone told me that this
year's if I had come over to you and said,
you know what, I love this I want at my yard,
it would have been five hundred thousand dollars. You invested
that much in that.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
It was enormous this year, you know, Fred, we want
to go above and beyond and building the coolest backyards
possible is my dream and my passion. So we had
a fifty by sixty booth. We put together a twenty
five thousand gallon water feature. It was basically a swimming
pool Forred.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
We did you have flamingos or swans?
Speaker 3 (04:12):
It was like the Bellagio, right. We brought in about
eighty tons of rock and gravel, built an incredible waterfall
water wall, Fred Lane, This was the most epic home
show booth ever in the history of Ohio, hands down, guaranteed.
Check out our YouTube channel.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Was Yeah, now do you do? I'm curious because that
took so much time and everything. Do you do other
home Are there other home shows in the state that
you do? You know? Fred?
Speaker 3 (04:40):
The Glass City Center, the Pro Home and Garden Show
is the only show that we've ever done, and every
year more and more customers approach me and say, Josh Cleveland, Columbus.
So I think, I think my intentions are and my
aspirations are to get to a larger show and put
(05:00):
an even better display together.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Oh Josh, do other cities have professional remodelers organizations? That's
separate by the way, if you're listening in, who are
listening in? It's different from the home Builders Association. It's
basically all for remodelers, and so it is a different
it's a different kind of show. Do you know if
other cities have chapters like ours?
Speaker 3 (05:21):
I'm not sure on the professional Remodelers organization side, but
I am very inspired by other cities garden shows. I
think what really separates the Home and Garden Show from
other shows in our area is not only the professional
Remodelers organization and the great team, but really the focus
on outdoor and gardens. Right, That's where people want to
(05:44):
become motivated and inspired through nature, and that's where the
garden aspect of the show has become even more popular.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
Is that because people, you know, they look at well
like me. Every day, I look out at my backyard.
So you look out at something your front yard, your backyard,
and you think, you know what if I could just
brighten that up a little bit, even with just like flowers.
You know, you talk to the you'll have extension of
people and stuff like that, and you look at maybe
putting new sod down or things like that, and then
(06:13):
you work your way up to something like you would
do for somebody's backyard. Is it because they can actually
see the change right away.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
Well, it's the simple things in life that bring the
most fulfillment, right connecting with nature, finding a place to pee,
finding a place to escape, to find peace, rest and relaxation.
You get that outdoors, you get that on the beach,
you get that at the park. You get that in nature.
And that's where our bodies were meant to connect with nature.
(06:43):
And that's really our philosophy, Fred is we want our
customers to experience and connect with their landscaping, and we
want to bring them that place of peace, rest and relaxation.
The most satisfying and fulfilling moment all weekend at the
Home and Garden Show, where the children that came to
the booth running and were absolutely captivated by the water,
(07:04):
or so many customers that came and sat on the
bench and just lost theirselves for five minutes, ten minutes,
thirty minutes.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
So you know, there are a lot of remodelers that
do windows and roofs and doors and siding and all
that's necessary. I think it's you have a little bit
of an advantage. I think it's harder to connect with
your roof, right, and it's harder to connect with your windows.
You got to do it, and you look great.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
There's real love for your room.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Yeah, but when you're sitting outside in a well designed,
well conceptualized, well executed exterior living space, that is something special.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
You know, Lane, I started in this industry eighteen years
ago cutting grass. I've done every service for every type
of customer and project, and over the years, the most
fulfilling and satisfying part is seeing the look on customers'
faces when you're able to create an amazing place for
them in their face family. That sense of fulfillment is
(08:03):
what inspires me to say, you know what, we're not
going to be like the rest. We're not going to
offer some of these smaller services. We're going to focus
on really the gold and silver that we have to
give our clients and creating these incredible spaces.
Speaker 1 (08:18):
So going back to when you started, because I just
I have a hard time believing that you were this excited,
probably more about showing up at my house to cut
the lawn. So was there a point in time when
you were doing that? Were you doing it for someone else?
Speaker 3 (08:40):
No, I was doing it for myself.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
Okay, when you were doing that that a light bulb
went off and said, you know what, this is fine.
I'm I'm doing the best job I can. I love
what I'm doing, but there's gotta be more for me.
You know.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
My roots and foundation, Fred Lane were in serving customers
a servant's heart and mindset, and and bringing value to
the marketplace. As we grew in experience, as we grew
in knowledge, and as we grew as a company, understanding
who we were. I understand that some of the work
became toll booth work. Okay, And I couldn't sit on
(09:15):
a lawnmower all day. My mind was racing creatively. I
had visions for these unique spaces, and I had the
aspiration to want to go and to always the next
project could potentially be the best project, the biggest project,
and cutting grass on a day to day routine basis
(09:36):
every week, thirty weeks out of the year, the same houses,
the same Where do you find the fulfillment when you
leave the lawn mode?
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Right? You can only mow it?
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Whoa who you know, I took I was to gratification.
I like to mow it twice in opposite directions. And
that's the neighbors that shake their head. They're like, he's
going to mow it a second, well, ma'am. Yeah. So hey, Josh,
you you talked about starting you say, fourteen year, seventeen.
Speaker 3 (10:06):
Years eighteen, eighteen years ago.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
So I want you to tell that story because again
this is about your origin story. You told me you
walked out of high school and were and started work
that Monday following or something like that.
Speaker 3 (10:17):
Absolutely, So, you know, Lane, entrepreneurship has always been in
my blood and heart. I recall the ice cream truck
coming down the street as a kid and hearing that
nostalgic sound and running to my mother and saying, Mom, Mom, Mom,
can I can I get an ice cream cone? Do
you have a few bucks? And her saying, son, you
can go earn a few bucks to buy yourself an ice.
(10:40):
Your mother told you that, and I'll tell her what
It was one of the most inspiring moments in my childhood.
And I recall saying, you know what, I have the opportunity,
I have the potential. So Lane, I was eleven twelve
years old, and I was taking a rake and a
snowshovel and a lawnmower down the street, knocking on doors
to find any opportunity to bring a level of service
(11:04):
to the marketplace. Lane, I recall high school, my mother
would take me to Sam's Club. I would buy in
bulk candy. I would take it home and break it down,
and I'd walk into school with a duffel bag of candy.
I took the vending machines all bagged up. I took
the vending machines out of business because I realized that
(11:25):
if I could have a better variety and I could
offer it at a better price, that I was selling
a product that didn't really have intrinsic value to it.
It was just a product.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
You know, you don't see. It's times of change. That's
a cliche, but it's very true.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
So I did.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
I started mowing lawns in fourth grade for my neighbors.
Ten bucks to mow a lawn in fourth grade back
in the eighties was a big deal. Yeah, and I
just kept doing it. I added more lawns. I did
a few other things here and there, because I wanted
a particular car. Of course, I wanted a convertible like
every high school kid.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
Does hopefully afford.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
Well, okay, yeah, I mean Triumph spitfire from Britain.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
There.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
It ran on two squirrels, yeats, two peanuts. It broke
down all the time, all the time, but it was
pretty good for getting dates, so I'm not going to complain.
But but so, you don't see kids mowing lawns and
neighborhoods anymore. You just don't see it. I live in Slovenia, Ohio.
A lot of lawns in Sylvanne, Ohio, well kept lawns,
but not children. I I love the message because I
(12:29):
do think parents should make a little bit of an
effort to get kids back to learning things like, hey,
how do you fix a lawnmower? How do you start
a lawnmower? How it's been it's lost knowledge. My kids
did not.
Speaker 1 (12:42):
Well, I'm the one of the things I noticed at
the Home and Garden show. Is I think you had
like your whole family there with your glue word because
I saw your kids. One of your kids was running
the drone, wasn't.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
He don't say that out loud, Okay, yeah, he was
running the drone in there. And you know, four boys,
and they've all grown up in this business. My wife
and I started this company in a trailer park eighteen
years ago with black and white flyers printed off of
our little HP printer and sticking three hundred and seventy
(13:13):
black and white flyers to all the trailer park doors
in the entire park, and then realizing that people didn't
like stuff stuck to their door.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
And so then you sell them. You sell them trash
door removal services.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
But Lane, you know, my family has been a part
of this business since the beginning, and my family is
my motivation, and really my mother to this day is
my inspiration and motivation as well. She helped form that
entrepreneurship mindset, and she helped me realize that anything that
I put my mind to, anything that I put my
(13:47):
heart to, and anything that I put my hands to,
I'm able to accomplish.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
And we need to have her on the program, Josh,
because you probably wore that poor woman out and she
deserves some free area.
Speaker 3 (13:58):
I'll tell you what. My mother is an amazingly strong
woman and continuing to inspire me daily. But that's where
it started. As a kid, Lane and going to school,
sitting in a classroom was not my strong suit. I
was in the National Junior Honor Society. I got great grades,
but my attention was not in the books and in
(14:20):
the studies and in the class I wanted to be outside.
I wanted to connect with nature. The day I turned
eighteen years old, I signed myself out of high school.
The next week, I got online and formed my LLC,
and then I started mowing in the trailer park for
seven dollars a long. And that's really how I began
(14:41):
right out of high school. But what I realized several
years ago, Lane Fred was my passion for this industry
really started as a child getting off the school bus. Really,
and what I mean by that is when I got
off the bus as a kid, I didn't run to
the front door to go inside. I ran to the
(15:04):
side gate. Lane. I ran to the side gate and
I opened up the gate and I'd walk into the
backyard because I could guarantee that's where Mom was. Mom
was out tending to her garden. She was out sitting
by her choy pond. She was out on the patio,
she was cutting flowers and bringing them in. Now, Mom
worked two jobs as a single mother. We didn't have
(15:26):
a lot, right so going to Toledo public schools, growing
up in Toledo, we didn't have wealth. But Mom found
her place of peace and rest and relaxation.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
Mom found her that was her joy.
Speaker 3 (15:41):
So in the backyard.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
Josh and I talked a little bit earlier this week,
and during show prep, I had a similar experience my mom.
My parents spent an enormous amount of time in their
landscaping and flowers and hard scaping their yard in Finley
where I grew up, and it was the same situation.
We were not in a wealthy neighborhood, you know, I say,
we were in a very average American neighborhood. And they
(16:04):
transformed that house and when they moved to Toledo at
South Toledo, it was the same situation. My mom just
loved it. She just had a passion for growing things
and making it look attractive and creating a vibe, right right, And.
Speaker 1 (16:18):
You've found enough people that are of the same mindset,
because the same thing with me growing up. I did
launch and stuff like that, but I grew up around
older Polish neighborhoods and things, and in ham Trammick. In
those days, they swept the alleys, those little old bushes,
had rose bushes, They tended everything because it was from
(16:38):
the old country. It was this is my property. It's
the only thing I own, and I'm gonna make it
look as good as I can. And we've seemed to
lost a lot of that. Are you able to find
the people who still have that?
Speaker 3 (16:51):
You say that, and I recall my great great grandfather
and my great great busha came from Poland. Okay, sky right,
So I recall as as a seven eight year old
watching my great grandfather with a pair of scissors trimming
the front lawn edging after he moved my dad.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
I tell you it, I don't feel so bad about
my personality now I feel better. But this this is.
Speaker 3 (17:21):
What, this is what stuck with me. Fred. How you
do one thing is how you do everything.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (17:27):
My great grandfather was one of the most clean cut,
well kept, well dressed, hair slicked back handkerchief in his
pocket up early in the morning, took care of his belonging,
worked hard. My great grandfather was an inspiration to me.
So that Polish heritage, that Polish background, that that hard work,
(17:51):
those those knuckles the size of golf balls, right like,
that's that's the heritage that I grew up in and
that and that's where my foundation was laid. And that's key.
That is absolutely key laying. We were speaking the other
day to why I've been able to grow and become
any level of success is because of that foundation.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
So it's it's generational. But and the way you talk
about it, I'm curious too, is there because I ran
into some guys at the home show who told me
there were faith based business. Is there a faith based
going on somewhere in the background.
Speaker 3 (18:30):
Also, I could do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.
I knew and my mom, my mom.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
We've had a track record here on the program, even
though we're only into episode seven, we've had a track
record of that bubbling to the surface. That's not planned
of certainly not a criteria for you know, selecting guests,
but it has come forward.
Speaker 3 (18:48):
So I want you to look at the back of
my shoulder blades on my jacket.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Okay, believe, it says on the back of his jacket.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
It says believe and and And that's why we do
the Home and Garden show. That's why we entered into business,
is because we have faith. We believe, but we're willing
to put hard work. We're willing to put creativity, and
we're willing to put a servant's heart and mindset behind it.
And if you have a good foundation, right, the storms
(19:16):
are going to come. In eighteen years, the.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Storms are going to come, oh, especially projects.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
But you believe that the next biggest and best project
is always ahead. And that's what wakes me up enthusiastic
and motivated. And I'm not doing the toll booth kind
of work. I get incredible opportunities to collaborate with some
absolutely amazing clients and build the coolest backyard.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
And no two projects the kind of projects you're doing.
And I know you do all sizes, but really, when
it comes to landscaping, hard scaping and soft scaping, no
two projects are ever exactly the same because no two
pieces of property are the same.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
You know, as we've grown and we've learned more of
who we are and what we do. We understand the
consulting aspect of our job and how every project is different.
Every property needs evaluated because every property is different, and
every project needs consulting because there's so many aspects of
(20:20):
what landscaping is today, hard scaping, soft scaping, water features,
fire features, construction, pergolis.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Pattiosmomingos, right water that shoots thirty feet in the air,
you know, color changing lights.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
There's so many options. In order to feel confident and
comfortable as a consumer, you need a consultant who's willing
to collaborate with you, who has the knowledge and the
know how, and also is probably more passionate about the
project in the backyard and even most of our customers.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
Well, and who has an open mind and is willing
to listen. Because there are some guys out there who
you'll go and talk to a client and who will say, well,
I don't know if I can do that, and I
get the impression that that's not you, that you're gonna go.
You know, we'll have to figure out a way to
do that.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (21:09):
Creatively, every challenge is an opportunity and its potential, and
I love and am intrigued by some of the most
challenging and creative projects. It's what keeps me up at night,
it's what keeps me going. I want to stretch, I
want to grow. If I'm not being challenged by new projects,
new challenges, then I'm not growing as an individual. And
(21:32):
that's why I had to get off the lawnmower.
Speaker 2 (21:33):
Yeah, I knew there was more potential and you know
it also, though it's not just about I don't think
it's just about the creativity. That's obviously a strong suit
of yours. The passion is clearly there. But if you're
going to be investing in a big project, and that's
what it is, it's an investment. It's an investment in
your quality of life, it's an investment in your property value. Both. Absolutely,
(21:55):
you got to have somebody, whether it's lux or somebody else.
You got to make sure that they have the nuts
bolts skills as well the hard crunchy skills, because nothing
sharpens a project like the limits of budget right. So
if you have a budgetary limit, right, then you need
somebody that can get the hard crunchy, get it to
fit fit. Like Fred was saying, you know, can I
(22:17):
do this, will I be able to do this? Here's
my budget. If that if that service of that landscaper
or that designer doesn't have those nuts and bolt skills,
it's going to be hard to fit the project within
the budget one hundred percent.
Speaker 3 (22:29):
And that's where it takes a collaborative effort. You know,
we're consulting with our customers. Every customer is different, learning
their their unique interest, their unique wants, their desires, and
then figuring out, okay, well what is a projected budget
and understanding that most customers don't understand what budgets are.
When we're talking large scale landscape design and construction, that's
(22:51):
our job, that's our opportunity.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
Well that could be a scary number.
Speaker 3 (22:54):
Absolutely right, But that's what we're here to do is
consult with our clients, give them the information, let them
consider so they can make an appropriate next step. Some
of these projects, this is the biggest purchase these customers
will make outside of their home. Oh yeah, so they
better be confident and they better be comfortable. And that's
why I think it's incredibly important to Lane not just
(23:16):
be creative and not just not just be passionate, but
also explain how tell our customers how we're going to
do it, because the how behind it, whether it's following
appropriate building code and practices, or the process that we
have in working with our clients is even more important
(23:40):
because I've redone so many projects that have failed because
they weren't done correctly. Somebody created it, somebody designed it,
somebody sold it, but they didn't have those nuts and
bolts from a know how standpoint to explain to clients
to make them feel comfortable. And therefore, when they show
up and they start working in the backyard, customers don't
(24:03):
have a sound understanding of how it's supposed to come
together and where do corners get cut? Every single time?
It's in what you don't see.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Yeah, so our job and I always want to know
when I hire somebody, whether it's to put the roof on,
which should be a simple matter, I want to know
what they're going to do, how they're going to do,
what the timeline is going to be, so that I
have some expectation. I feel a lot more comfortable spending
my money if I know where that's going to go.
I'm curious before we before we close up here, going
(24:33):
all the way back to when you were riding on
the lawnmower. Do you remember what your first job was,
the first one that you did?
Speaker 2 (24:41):
Absolute exactly what I was going to ask. I want
to hear the first time you got off the mower
in a landscape.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
So so hold on, I'm going to tell you the
first customer. Because I distributed the three hundred and seventy
something flyers to all of the trailers, and it was
Lucky Landscaping. And I found word on art on Microsoft
word of dice, and and I said, we're gonna come
up with this pitch of seven seven seven. We're gonna
(25:07):
mow your grass for seven bucks. We're gonna do your
snow removal for seven bucks, and we're gonna clean up
your leaves for seven bucks.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Oh now, mind you.
Speaker 3 (25:13):
It was one pass around the trailer. I bet you,
I hold you to that, I bet, I bet so.
So I remember the first the first phone call, and
the gentleman must have been in his sixties, and he said,
I want you to come down. I want you to
look at at my at my lawn. And I went
down there and I met with him and I said, sir,
we're looking at thirty cuts for the season. Seven dollars
(25:35):
a cut. It's gonna be two hundred and ten dollars.
Here's your contract. I'm gonna need half down. Gentlemen looked
at the contract, looked at the pricing. He said, I'll
pay you weekly, and I said, sounds good to me.
Speaker 2 (25:52):
Sounds good to me.
Speaker 3 (25:53):
And every week he'd write me a seven dollars check,
and I thought, well, I thought, I thought I had
landed the mothership. I'm getting ready to go get one
hundred dollars contract deposit for the biggest account I've ever had.
And uh, you know, but I recall the first taste
of getting off of that mower because my passion pulled
me off, and I seen customers and I seen opportunity,
(26:16):
and that's where my potential.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
Was well, and that's what I want to know. What
was the first job you did after cutting the lawns?
Was it something small like, oh, somebody wanted a rock garden,
and then you just exploded to where we're at the
Home and Gardens Show.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
Yeah, No, it took an It took a long road
in journey to get to the Home and Garden Show
eighteen years later. And it started with everything from simple
mulch beds, to small planting jobs, to trimming jobs, just
to anything that customers needed service and help with on
their landscape. I wanted to be able to offer it
to them. There was no big job at that point.
Speaker 1 (26:52):
Were you taught yourself all the way through.
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Self taught the entire time, through the marketplace right and
through all of the opportunities that we have to learn
in today's world, following other great business leaders, other great entrepreneurs,
other great businesses, and really learning my way through.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Yeah. So, Josh, I hope you want to come back
sometime because I'd like to spend a segment talking with
you about design and taking people through the design process.
I know you have your own, but you know it's
educating the public about the design of landscape from small
because you do big jobs too, obviously, but I think
people need to hear that. Yeah, they don't know. Yeah,
(27:34):
I'd like to have you back sometime when it's convenient
for you. I know your busy season's coming up. Fred
has given me the signal and one of us has
to leave. It's probably going to be me. It's probably
going to have to be me.
Speaker 1 (27:45):
Me and Fred are going to hang out for a while,
It's going to be both you because we have a
second segment coming up in just a moment.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
Did you know our area has over forty thousand businesses.
Some are old, some are new, but they all have
a story to tell about why they said. Well, how
someone took a chance once upon a time, someone with
a heart for business. Hi, this is Laine Monts, the
host of the Better Business Bureaus Heart for Business podcast.
We know a thing or two about our area's companies,
after all, we've been keeping tabs on them since nineteen nineteen.
(28:15):
Join me in Toledo radio legend Fred la Fever every
week as our BBB superheroes tell their origin story and
share a few industry secrets along the way.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
Welcome back for the second part of a Heart for Business,
the BBB sponsored podcast you're listening to on iHeartRadio and
wherever you can get your podcasts. I'm introducing this segment
because Lane Months is actually going to be the guest
this time around instead of the host. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
Well, we'll both be guests and we'll both be hosts
for what do you think of Josh? Isn't he amazing
to have?
Speaker 1 (28:44):
I love having Josh and I've had him on every
year of the Pro Home and Garden Show. He is
exactly what we're talking about when we talk about why
we're searching for a heart for business and a passion
for business. H Like many of our other guests, he
found something he really enjoyed doing, which is what I
always told my kids. Find something you like doing, then
(29:06):
find somebody to pay you for it. Exactly the easy part,
find something you really enjoyed doing. The hard part, find
somebody to pay you for it.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
He seems like he's got both parts nailed down.
Speaker 1 (29:16):
As both of those parts nailed down. Now, I'm guessing
because you've talked about your past history, you were in
remodeling and sold insurance. I think you said it one time.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
No worse than selling insurance as a lawyer.
Speaker 1 (29:29):
So I'm a lawyer.
Speaker 2 (29:30):
Construction I was in. I've been a lawyer for thirty years,
and then construction laws where I developed my specialty for
twenty five years at a pretty major fire, flood and
storm restoration contractor in this area. We're the largest in
this area, Okay, And I was there for a long time.
Speaker 1 (29:48):
Like we've done with our other guests. So you're sitting
in high school lay months he's not paying attention. Booy do.
He's waiting for recess to come along. What made you
decide to go the attorney route, because that's what you
did first? It?
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Well, yeah, I mean I went and got my business
degree in the University of Cincinnati. So the school system
in Finley, based on my testing score, standardized testing, they
pushed me into engineering. Believe it or not, really believe
it or not. I spent two years in engineering at
the University of Cincinnati. I had a four year ROTC
scholarship for the Air Force to be an aerospace engineer. Nice,
(30:25):
and now I must use a calculator to do addition.
Speaker 1 (30:28):
Why didn't you follow that since that's where they were pushing,
you know, because the school system does.
Speaker 2 (30:33):
Yeah, they do shit.
Speaker 1 (30:33):
They do push passion for did you?
Speaker 2 (30:36):
I did not, And I had what I had a
passion for at that particular time in my life was
not the hard work of the quadratic equation and differential calculators.
I don't even say, yeah, I know it's what I
had a passion for was mainly girls, alcohol and inherent laziness.
But I did like business. I did have actually have
a heart for business. So I moved over to the
(30:57):
business program, and I did that, and then the University
of Cincinnati has a co op program. They were the
first college ever to pioneer the co op program over
well over one hundred years ago, where after your first
or second year, you go and work for businesses for
a semester, then you go back to class, not an internship.
And my dad had run a pretty rough factory down
(31:18):
in Finley, a concrete pipe factory, and I worked for
him in the summers, and then I went and I
did a couple of co ops and another one was
in a factory, and I just realized it wasn't going
to be for me, and so I graduated with my
bachelor and I was in law school ten weeks later.
Speaker 1 (31:34):
Where was your bachelor's degree in?
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Then business? Sales and marketing?
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Was a sales and marketer, okay? And then you decided
after that, Okay, I'm going to be an attorney. Yes.
When you decided that, were you deciding it to be
specialized in business as a as an attorney for businesses business?
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Yeah, Although I spent the first eight to ten years
of my career as a litigator in civil litigator in
the courtroom and then I went in house. A client
hired me in house, and then I served as their
general counsel, and I also got my construction license, a
contractor's license, and ran the operations, which got about thirty
thousand projects while I was there.
Speaker 1 (32:11):
So why did you do that?
Speaker 2 (32:13):
Because I came in as a lawyer and construction is
definitely its own universe, and I had to supervise and
manage people that have been in construction for a lifetime,
and I felt like it wasn't fair or right for
me to be their boss unless I had showed some quality,
showed some knowledge. So I went and studied for it
(32:34):
and got the contractor's license, and I and threw myself
into learning construction, and now I teach it at Bowling Green.
Speaker 1 (32:40):
See and hearing that that makes perfect sense. So what
are you teaching at Bowling Green?
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Construction law? Construction law for the construction Management program, which
is a very successful accredited program and it turns out
like ninety eight ninety nine percent job placement rate. It's
a fantastic accredited program for construction management and architecture professions.
Speaker 1 (33:00):
So from all of that, how did you end up
taking Brian Epstein's job?
Speaker 2 (33:04):
Dick Keepstein.
Speaker 1 (33:05):
I always called him Brian Epstein because of the Beatles.
How did you end up taking Dick Epstein's job?
Speaker 2 (33:10):
So I had started serving there as an arbitrator for
their construction disputes, you know, between construction companies and members
of the public, and it helped resolve disputes. And I
did that for probably twenty years, and and then I
ended up on the board of directors. And it just
so happened the construction company that I worked for for
all those years, which was family owned, the founder passed
(33:31):
away and the family sold to outside private investors, and
of course they have their own attorneys. I knew that
my time would be limited, and I have nothing but
fond feelings for that organization and that family, And it
just happened that Dick announced his retirement. It was serendipitous
for it.
Speaker 1 (33:46):
And Dick did such a great job over the many
years he was there. He was on the show a
number of times. We talked about all the time, the
newsloaded they sent out and everything. So what improvements. I'm
going to say that you would call him improvement, So
the staff might because they were very excited. Seriously. I
ran into him at the Home and Garden Show, and
they said, oh have you seen this, and they brought
(34:07):
the new newsletter over and everything. What improvements have you
made or what changes have you made?
Speaker 2 (34:12):
I don't want to use the word improvements. You know,
every leader has to find their team and find their
heart for what they're doing.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
Right.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
You find, you got to find, you got to find
your groove as a as a leader and a manager,
and so just different. I mean, Dick was a fantastic
CEO and really built the BBB up to one of
the top in the nation. Were very fortunate. As I've
said before in the program, we're fifty ninth in population
and business population, but we're twentieth in terms of membership
(34:40):
really and we're number one or number two in market
share of BBB's Wow. Yeah, So he left me is
it's easy to make improvements when you already start with
good bones.
Speaker 1 (34:50):
Well yeah, but see, I've been through a number of
changes in the radio business, and one of the things
that happens is whenever you get a new boss, they
always want to put their stamp on it, and they
don't take the time like it sounds like you did.
They don't take the time to look at the program first,
and work within that program to see what works well
(35:10):
and what doesn't and what changes you might do. Where
did that come from? Did that come from your other
experience as an attorney and being an in construction.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Well twenty five years. I mean the workforce at that
construction company went from forty five to one hundred and
thirty while I was there. I hired, I did all
the hiring, and I did all the firing, okay. And
I sat in the number two chair, Fred, And so
when you sit in the number two chair, you know,
loyalty is important. Sometimes it was the hatchet man, but
in the end I yielded to the owners right business
(35:39):
their business, of course. But you know, you sit there
and there are times when you see things and you say,
I like that, I want to do that if I'm
ever in the big chair, or I don't like that,
and I won't do that. And I was very fortunate
the founder of the company was a Christian businessman, and
he I mean I was probably hard to corral when
I was young, and maybe even a little bit now,
(36:02):
but he you know, pulled me aside and tutored me
on principles of how to deal with humans and how
to how to be decent a decent manager. He always said,
lame when you if you have to let somebody go,
you're taking away one of the most important things that
they have, and that's their job. Do not do it lightly,
do not do it casually. And that's stuck with me.
(36:24):
And and uh, you know, there were changes that needed
to be made at the BBB. We'd probably fallen behind
on technology. So I think we've erased the technology debt
deficit there.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
And I think that's a really important lesson because I've
been in situations where people were let go and it was, hey,
we don't need you any more, clean out your office
and go. Uh. And I've been in situations, you know,
where people were leaving or were going to be let go,
and they were given the opportunity and radio this doesn't
happen all the time, given the opportunity to say goodbye
(36:56):
to the audience and have a last show. And that
is so much better for everybody involved, because there is
a sense of loss, not just for the people losing
their job, but there's a sense of loss for anybody
who's worked with them. Also. I would imagine even in
a construction crew, you know, Joe's been working with you
for the last thirteen years. All of a sudden, Joe's
(37:17):
not going to be around anymore. There's a sense of
loss that goes with that.
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Change causes uncertainty. Uncertainty leads to fear, and you know,
as you get older, you hopefully gain a little bit
of that nuance. Those soft skills. I definitely did not
have those when I was younger. Yeah right, I thought
I was it, you know, a young guy attorney. I
had so much to learn, so much to learn, and
I'm glad. I'm very thankful for the mentors that I
(37:44):
have when I was young.
Speaker 1 (37:45):
So now that you're at the helm of the BBB,
how long has it been, like a little over a year?
Speaker 3 (37:50):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (37:51):
No, it's coming up on three.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
Oh is it really already three?
Speaker 2 (37:54):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (37:54):
You send out a weekly Monday newsletter, all right, which
I used to on the air this week about local
scams and things that are going on right now. You
need to be aware of the newsletter that they dropped
off at the booth over the weekend. Looks like that's
gotten an.
Speaker 2 (38:10):
Overhaul, complete overhaul for color. Yeah, more pages, more content.
And then, by the way, we still have Dick write
an article for it. So yeah, we publish it every
other month because it's quite a bit more expensive. Most
bbbs only do electric electronic newsletters through email. And I
made a pledge when I came here because I loved
Dick's newsletter. It had a sort of a hometown feel
(38:32):
to it, and I wanted to keep that. I wanted
to keep that because I felt like that was part
of what set us apart from other bbbs and other businesses.
Everybody does an electronic newsletter, right, so I wanted.
Speaker 1 (38:43):
To keep it.
Speaker 2 (38:43):
But for color is a lot more expensive, so we
went to every other month, and so I love it.
I think it's great gets that every member business, every
one of our five and forty eight member businesses.
Speaker 1 (38:58):
And what does it take. You mentioned that Dick left
you in a really good place. What does it take
to go out and recruit more businesses? Because for a
long time when I was growing up, probably same thing
with you. You'd walk past the store on your way
to the library, whatever, and everybody had a BBB sign.
It was like the thing to be in the Better
Business Bureau and in the Chamber of Commerce, and those
(39:21):
things have kind of gone away after a while. How
do you pull those people back in and convince them
being a member of the BBB is important not just
for them but for their clients.
Speaker 2 (39:31):
That's a great question, Fred, because I'm the host, you're
the host with the most All across the country, service
organizations and membership organizations are struggling. The American Bar Association,
which if you think about it, has no competition. If
you're an attorney and you want to be in a
national organization, the ABA is it. But their membership since
(39:54):
COVID has down something like forty five percent.
Speaker 3 (39:57):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (39:57):
And so you pick a service organization in your community,
most are struggling, and so engagements. The expectations of society
are different now than they were. So for us, what
it takes is constant, unrelenting physical presence in our community.
We're big believer in our twenty four counties. We want
(40:19):
to be physically present, not just electronically present. Right. So
I have a staff of account executives. They're very experienced.
So the vice president has been there twenty five years.
Other sales members and that's what they're doing is a
form of sales have been there ten fifteen years or
they have a lot of experience in being an account representative.
We believe in personal, face to face relationship. Somebody makes
(40:45):
an application, then we vet them very thoroughly.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
But besides, above and beyond that, because in our sales department,
I know there's always this question about value added. So
what is the so I run, you know, le Fever's business.
What is the value to me to bother joining the BBB?
Other than I get the plaque that says you know,
I'm a BBB member and whatever goodwill that might bring.
(41:08):
What do you bring to the table.
Speaker 2 (41:10):
For Oh I wish you could be in a zoom
meeting with the other ninety one CEOs of bbbs across
the country. I think if they put us in a
physical arena, it would be a cage fight. There are
different philosophies about the value really Oh yes, yes, it's
a hot debate. So clearly the BBBS were founded based
on a principle, which is to improve marketplace trust by finding, vetting,
(41:35):
and promoting the most honest and ethical businesses. That's a
core concept I have. By the way, I'll bring them
in sometime. The original articles of incorporation, signed here in
nineteen nineteen on parchment with an ink quill Pen and
some of the names of the companies you would recognize,
and some of them have passed on, right, so I
still have I'll bring that in sometime, but the papers
(41:57):
not super sturdy, so I'm careful with it. So you know,
for many businesses that join today, one of the things
that being in the BBB does give you is sort
of like a level of instant credibility. Okay, right, And
credibility in business doesn't necessarily get you leads. It's not
a lead generating type of thing. You don't get asked
(42:17):
out on dates because of being in the BBB. I
mean you do to some extent, but when you are
selling to a customer and they have choices between you
and a non BBB business, we believe the reason why
you get the yes, why you get the kiss at
the end of the date, not the cheek, is because
you're in an organization that does care about credibility. We're
not perfect on that, but it is an important core benefit.
(42:40):
We also have a lot of other ones too well, and.
Speaker 1 (42:42):
That's one of the things that with the Pro Home
and Garden Show, everybody in there has been vetted. They
don't get the Pro unless they've been vetted.
Speaker 2 (42:52):
Not only that, Fred, you don't even know this. They
have to be a member of the Better Business Bureau
to be in the PRO.
Speaker 1 (42:57):
Well, I didn't know that, but I was just about
to say, but everybody around me, all the booths around me. Also,
we're displaying, and I mentioned it when I talked about
it on air, we're displaying their BBB symbols on their booths,
on their booths at the event. So and I didn't
realize they had to be a BBB member to be
(43:18):
a PRO member.
Speaker 2 (43:18):
Yeah, that's something that was worked out long ago between
the two organizations. That's why the PRO when it comes
to construction and remodeling, really, the PRO is the best
of the best.
Speaker 1 (43:27):
Yeah, they really do know what they're doing. So a
final question, where do you want to take this? How
long do you expect to be around it? And where
do you want to be in five years with the BBB?
What do you want them to look like?
Speaker 2 (43:40):
I hope I'm still employed in five years. I'm not
an early retirement guy.
Speaker 1 (43:43):
You have a contractor you just serve it?
Speaker 2 (43:45):
Will I both? Probably? Okay, Yeah, I have a contract.
So you've mentioned many times. I've heard you say it
I think on air and off air, as long as
you're having fun and you feel like you're contributing, you're
not interested in retirement now. And I feel exactly the
same way. So I'm sixty and I, you know, stayed
till he was well into his seventies. I won't do that.
(44:06):
But as long as I'm contributing, I will. I will
be there as long as they want me there. My
goal is to leave the Better Business Bureau in good
financial security and with a lively, vibrant and energetic brand
and presence in our twenty four counties. And probably one
difference about me is I'm trying to build a team
and a staff and I am I think I don't
(44:28):
want to be based on the cult of Lane Monts.
Like you know, I won't be there so long that
I become synonymous with the BBB. Sure, I think is
stronger if I build a culture and not a cult.
And so that's what I'm trying to do.
Speaker 1 (44:40):
Excellent, I like that again. On that said, that's where
we'll end. You've been listening to a heart for business.
That's one of our hosts, Lane Monts. He's actually the
what do they consider you President's CEO.
Speaker 2 (44:54):
There's a lot of names for me, Fred, those are
okay to use on air.
Speaker 1 (44:59):
I'm Fred Lafie. Each week we bring you a brand
new episode of A Heart for Business. You can find
it wherever podcasts are heard. We would prefer that you
go to the iHeartRadio app. You can also find us
on Facebook, Instagram and all over the internet. Be sure
to subscribe and listen every week to A Heart for
(45:19):
Business with the BBB
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