In 2011, Steven Montgomery called his boss and said, “I can’t work for you anymore, tomorrow I am doing my own things.’ And with that, he abandoned his day job and his college studies to focus on his passion.
H e had no goals. Just wanted something to get by.
The son of a professional painter, Steven apprenticed at his father’s feet, helping him work his painting jobs after school as he dutifully learned the ropes. As age and exhaustion caught up with his father, Steven decided to carry on with this painting legacy that placed food on the table for the family.
Consequently, he founded a company he named That 1 Painter, a vehicle he intended to use to continue pursuing his passion for painting.
Initially, he recruited a few friends with whom they started painting homes in Austin, Texas, only thinking he could make enough money for himself to keep him afloat.
Amazingly, with grit and determination, he has built a painting services giant that now operates in over 40 States with over 261 franchises and is poised to be the premier painting service company in America. Business analysts say this could be the fastest growing home services franchise ever.
The Inspiration to Start his own business.
As he painted houses with friends, Steven also immersed himself in reading business books. He wanted to own the biggest painting company in Texas but didn’t know how. One of the books that gave him the inspiration to start and take the next calculated steps was The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership : Follow them and people will follow you by John C. Maxwell.
It dawned on him that if he could lead people better, he could achieve anything he laid his focus on.
Therefore, he formed his company, That 1 Painter and hit the road running, never looking back until work started coming in and with it increased revenues.
He graduated from individuals painting to one painting crew, eventually developing to 3 painting crews that served the greater Austin, Texas and its environs. Incidentally, at this formative stages, he had no systems but to his credit he documented his process which he now shares with other upcoming entrepreneurs.
The first jobs
Registering a company was the easy job, getting his team engaged with work was the most difficult task. To get his first painting jobs he did the following;
- Talked to friends
- Family
- Phonebook – he literally reached out to everybody in his phonebook.
Getting the name of his company, That 1 Painter, out to the Customers
Once all systems were up and running, the challenge was how to get more clients for increased revenue. It helped that he good ride on the goodwill of his father and the work he did, but he needed to carve his own niche. And expand beyond the dreams of his father whose business was localized.
It was time for rubber to meet the road and the budding entrepreneur would soon realize that one of the things you cannot delegate in a startup is marketing. He therefore employed the following strategies to draw leads. He would remark that a business is like boxing that you really need to be in the ring with both fists to make a mark.
The Five Rs and Digital marketing came to the rescue as a strategy he employed to attract and retain clients;
Five Rs of Revenue
- Real Estate Agents – to get painting gigs you have to develop relationships with real estate agents.
- Referrals – Your work should speak so well and so loudly that you gain new customers through referrals.
- Reviews – A good start-up and a continuing business need good reviews to give potential clients the confidence to book.
- Repeat Business – In the service industry, nothing is as attractive as a repeat client. Not only is it a vote of confidence, but it is also a source of recurring revenue for the business.
- All other Relationships that make customers happy like communication, follow up, thank you messages, responding to their concerns among others.
Armed with these five Ps, combined with Digital marketing ( Facebook, Google Ads, Facebook, Yelp and Thumbtack etc.) Steven notes, you can go out and fight to build a modern business.
Other methods Steven recommends to attract and retain customers
- Interestingly, Steve says, the old school handshake, smile and a business card still works wonders. Meet people, give a warm smile, introduce yourself and your business in a few words and flush out your business card.
- Get out of your way to do a good job.
- Wow your customers with your warmth and memorable, exceptional service.
Scaling Up
Steven challenged himself and gave himself a dream that was well beyond him. As it is often said, if your dreams don’t scare you, they aren’t big enough. He wanted to build the largest, most recognizable painting company in America. And to his surprise, he is on his journey there;
2011 – founded That 1 Painter
2018 – doubled revenue for his startup company
2021 – doubled revenue again
2021 – Announced the beginning of franchises of That 1 Painter.
When on the advice of friends, he announced the onset of franchises for purposes of scaling up and taking the company to every corner of America, he managed to sign up the first two franchises. These first tow came in within the first 30 days.
By the end of 2023, there were 244 franchises across America.
In 2024, there are now 300 franchises, taking the company’s name to over 40 States in the United States of America and significantly increasing revenues.
The company continues to attract interest from investors and clients alike. To show the extent of his dreams, Steven says, “the biggest project in the world will be ours. We can even paint the White House.”
Stepping into even more success
In 2024, a leading voice in small business and entrepreneur Codie Sanchez partnered with That 1 Painter, Pinks Window Cleaning Services and a garage installation service business, Garage Up, to create ResiBrands, and craft one of the leading home services companies in America.
This new partnerships and Codie’s influence and expertise will further help grow revenues significantly for That 1 Painter now and into the future.
Memorable quotes and lessons in business from That 1 Painter Steven Montgomery
Proudly, steven has managed to steadily build a monumental enterprise from the isolated jobs he did under his father to a sought out company in over 40 States. The baby steps to the painting behemoth he leads today has come with considerable learning and experience.
Some of his memorable quotes and lessons;
- I didn’t have any money for ads, no money for good branding. Nothing like what we have here today. But I had drive.
- There is a lot of power in just getting started. Do not procrastinate, start.
- You should have goals that stretch your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
- If you provide quality, quantity (revenues) will come).
- Wake up knowing what a win looks like every single day.
- Move fast. Take risks. Work hard. Build legacy.
Conclusion on the Meteoric Rise of That 1 Painter to a leading home service company in America.
In conclusion, the rise of That 1 Painter to a household name in many States in America speaks to the vision, tenacity and attitude of its founder Steven Montgomery. From his formative days as an apprentice painter under the wings of his father, his hard decision to leave employment and college to founding his company, he is no doubt a hustler extraordinaire.
Painting services have been with us for thousands of years, but one determined man decided to take it to the next level. His focus on training, branding and scalable process as enabled him to successfully sign up over 300 franchises, in effect taking the company all over America.
When determination, innovation and strategic focus meets unmatched passion just as Steven possesses, great things happen.
And it is a good thing that Steven now gives back through helping people build million-dollar businesses through resibrands.
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