Entrepreneurship - Risky Business
Interview with Mark Rhoades - Founder & CEO of Precision Mobile Wheel Repair
The audio for this post is in two parts — here’s part one, part two is down below.
Greetings —
There are a few topics I’d like to discuss all at once. One is an interview I did with a local entrepreneur for a class several weeks ago. Another is the subject of “advance care planning” and important conversations between us and our important people. Finally, I want to talk about the beauty of a thriving community and all that we bring to the table when we rise as one.
Since that’s a pretty broad mix of subjects for one post, I’ll narrow it down and get to the rest later. I’m feeling the weight of the world this week, like really leaning into it. So, I’ll keep it light and talk about entrepreneurship. I need to shift my focus for a bit.
Let’s talk about business today, shall we?
Some background — I am a nurse. I work in nursing professional development (nursing education in the workplace). It’s a job that’s a mix of remote and in-person, with a lot of time spent by myself in front of a computer screen. I’ve realized over time that the conveniences of remote work are tricky to balance with the social isolation and excessive screentime that come with it. Figuring out how to fill up my social cup has taken time — and I think I’m getting those needs met now (which has felt so much better throughout the past year).
Part of my path forward is/was deciding to become a fitness instructor. I enjoy exercise, I want to help others find that joy in their lives, and I love the idea of building a community around healthful movement across the age and ability spectrum. I’m taking classes at my community college to get me there. One of the classes was “Entrepreneurship”. My expectations were high, the class was fine, I really enjoyed the book, and I especially enjoyed our final project. We had a lot of freedom to make the project what we wanted, and I chose to interview an entrepreneur and apply concepts from our class.
I had to first make a decision: who do I want to interview? I have several friends who have started businesses, an act that I am still figuring out how they get from “idea” to “plan” to “business”. Mind-blowing, in this day and age. Seriously. Mind-blowing, but essential. For humans to decide to start a business, then do it, and work towards their own success — the phrase “pull yourself up by your own bootstraps” comes to mind.
Folks have access to different means — social circles, finances, business connections, etc. that can augment their success or failure. And there’s their own human abilities, strengths, and opportunities for improvement. Starting a business is a scary thing to admit to myself that I see myself doing. But there it is.
With that said, my husband suggested reaching out to a friend we’d met a while back at our neighbor’s birthday party. We’d spent the evening talking with Mark Rhoades and his wife Kimi about everything across the spectrum of music, business, baking, and parenting. It was a delightful conversation, and we both felt a warm connection to this couple that was really refreshing. Making friends as an adult is… hard to do??! Yeah, it’s hard.
Anyway, I appreciated the suggestion because Mark is an entrepreneur, has seen success in his own business, and has ideas for the future that resonate with us. I’m going to copy/paste the paper I wrote (with some minor revisions for space/time), and narrate over it for my audio friends out there. I’m sharing this because I learned a lot in my interview, and continue to ponder how to apply this to my own business aspirations. I hope you enjoy!
Off we get —
Entrepreneurship Interview Summary — Mark Rhoades
Here’s the second section of audio for those listening today:
As the Founder and CEO of Precision Mobile Wheel Repair, you might think that Mark Rhoades has always been in the automotive industry. In fact, Mark began his entrepreneurial journey in a band called The Fold in the early 2000’s. The Fold is an indie rock band from the Chicago suburbs that rose to fame over a decade ago when their music was used and made popular in the Lego Ninjago movies and TV shows (give them a listen below).
Mark and his bandmates considered their band their first business. Because of their professional attitudes and collaboration, they learned about management, marketing, scheduling, pricing of merchandise and tickets, recording, and the legal aspects of intellectual property while they made music together. Mark appreciated that they had a lot of creative control on how to run their band. Eventually he decided this was not his long-term career goal. As the hype died down, they each pursued their individual careers in a variety of industries.
After The Fold, Mark explored a few different companies and ended up in automotive wheel repair. He worked for a few companies that did mobile wheel repair, bringing equipment on-site to repair wheel rims on cars. He didn’t like the way some companies were run and thought he could do it better. They didn’t run the finances well, didn’t pay employees on-time, and the companies were not well-run. He thought he could improve on this model, so he decided to start his own business. When he looked at the local market for this type of business, he realized there were no other competitors in the area.
He sought mentorship from the parents of one of his former bandmates and received great advice on next steps in starting his own business. He found out how much capital he would need to get started, his breakeven point, and his minimal viable product. He calculated an income statement potential for the “best” and “worst” case scenario with the hope of someday starting a family. Mark emphasized the importance of “running the numbers” and ensuring a business venture is feasible. He encourages aspiring entrepreneurs to calculate all the spends, the best- and worst-case-scenarios for sales, and see what the bare minimum is to survive.
To get started, Mark borrowed money and invested in equipment. He began small, developing his clientele and doing the jobs himself. The service he provided at the beginning was simply mobile wheel repair. He brought equipment on-site to the customer to perform repairs on metal wheels. Mark knew there was a niche market for this service. He observed that people with high-end cars and extra disposable income would pay extra to have a service come to them. He marketed on the internet, social media, and word-of-mouth to let people know about his business. Clients would also refer others to him after a job well-done, further bolstering his growing business’s success. He called it an “open air business” and was able to find potential clients with open air showrooms. He would go to their general manager, explain what he does, how much for the service, and offer a demonstration. He talked to them about how much they were paying for their current service (if any), and how much they’d be willing to pay him. In these conversations, he was able to establish relationships (social capital) and pricing with future clients in a practical and easy-going manner.
As his business grew, he was able to hire employees and one of his former coworkers came to work for him. It was at this point that Mark learned a complicated lesson about non-compete clauses. Fortunately, Mark had never signed a non-compete contract with his previous company and hadn’t had any issues himself, but his former coworker and new employee did. He experienced backlash from the owner of the previous company, who he had previously considered a friend, and they could not reach an agreement. Because of this, Mark was sued for noncompete infringement.
He went to court over whether or not the new employee (and Mark) had violated the non-compete agreement. What Mark learned was that most non-compete contracts are poorly worded, and his lawyer was able to help him win the lawsuit. Though he would rather not have ever had to deal with this situation, he said it made him thoroughly learn about the laws, contract verbiage, and how to manage intellectual property in future endeavors. He noted that the non-compete laws in Illinois are becoming more open, and in the future business won’t be able to force employees to sign or abide by them. It was an unfortunate situation, but Mark saw it as a learning opportunity early in his business journey.
Mark saw success in his business. He eventually expanded to offer other services like dent and bumper repair and other body work, all on-site for the convenience of the customer. They do more than just wheel repair now, but also offer that original service to customers. He is in the process of expanding to be able to offer professional automotive photography, in addition to mobile wheel and body repair.
It takes different types of intelligence to start a business. You have to know the product or service you hope to offer, identify a market you intend to serve, get the word out about the product or service, and begin to offer it at a price that’s affordable for your customer but also earns you enough money to earn a profit and become sustainable. It also takes emotional intelligence and knowing people. Mark considered all of this when he got started, and was fortunate to have had the success he did with his previous business (The Fold) before going on to his next entrepreneurial adventure. He also recognizes he has a strong moral compass and business ethic, which are both essential in running a good business.
I don’t walk in knowing it won’t go right… I walk in knowing it could all go wrong.
Mark offered the following advice: learn from your mistakes. He said that every mistake he’s experienced made him a better business owner and a better person. He said now he goes head-first into mistakes to get them over with. “I don’t walk in knowing it won’t go right, I walk in knowing it could all go wrong”, he said. He’s found balance between caring enough, but not stressing about spending or trying something new. He knows he can adapt quickly and suggests that aspiring entrepreneurs be ready to pivot.
When asked about mentorship, Mark said it’s helpful to have a phone call with someone who’s “miles ahead of you” on the entrepreneurial journey. He didn’t suggest paying for a formal mentor, like what’s offered through different consulting companies, because then you’re paying someone to give you nuggets of advice over a long period of time. But he does see value in seeking advice from someone who has experience in your area of interest, and who has seen success in their own business. Again, seeking advice from someone who’s ahead of him on the trail has helped him realize success thus far.
He’s heard it said that “sometimes you just need someone outside of yourself to give you a nudge” in the next direction, and a good coach is going to ask you questions that lead you to your own answers. Questions like: “what do you think”, “what would you do”, or “what would your next step be”. They help stimulate your own thinking, which is inspiring in itself. Currently, Mark gets that type of inspiration from the people who work for his company. They seem to know when he needs to talk something through, then they listen and give ideas. It sounds like a good work culture and a collaborative environment for Mark as the CEO and the people who work there.
Mark did suggest possibly investing in more formal advice later when you’re able to hire experts in different areas. For example, when your business is at 20 employees, hire a bookkeeper/accountant with experience in a business with 100 employees. It helped his business shine and identified opportunities for growth. Regardless of when you decide to hire people or grow your business, Mark emphasized the importance of being decisive. Decide what you want to do, then do it.
While Mark is enjoying the success of his own business, he always has his sights set on the future. He continues to keep an eye out for growth opportunities, like the recent addition of professional automotive photography. He also has a few ideas for something that’s a “work of heart”. He’s interested in programs and businesses that promote mental health and wellbeing, in a casual and less-structured manner than formal therapy. He said he’s always wanted to open a café that specializes in mental health, emphasizing the importance of baristas who are relationally or emotionally intelligent. The challenge with this idea was figuring out the numbers. Anyone who’s educated in self-care or mental wellbeing (like a therapist) is likely already making money in that field as a therapist. “Coffee couldn’t pay for therapy”. Regardless of the direction he takes, he knows that his moral compass will be his guide.
Mark Rhoades may not have known the direction his life would take when he started a band in the early 2000s, but it sounds like the creative energy and support of friends and family have served him well on his entrepreneurial journey. He started a business, watched it grow, and is now looking forward to his next adventure, wherever that may take him. Maybe we’ll see him somewhere in the Chicago suburbs, improving the mental wellbeing of our communities in new and innovative ways.
Thank you for joining me on this side-quest today. Hope you’re getting some sunlight today.
Love,
Jessie