The Snow Generals dig in to grow their snow removal business
By Oscar Gorall
The Glebe Snow Generals is undoubtedly the largest challenge I’ve faced in my young life and, for the exact same reasons, the most rewarding process.
I am the 16-year-old co-owner with my partner 17-year-old Nick Crichton of a snow-removal business. What began as a far-fetched idea with some jotted notes on lined paper has grown into a plethora of incredible experiences shared with many of our neighbours in the Glebe.
When we started two winters ago, it was immediately clear we would need to set ourselves apart in some way, given that we considered our youth to be a disadvantage. We asked ourselves, what does the snow removal business lack? After discussions with neighbours and family friends, it seemed as if nobody in the business cared about their clients – the big companies overflowing with clients had distanced themselves from the very people who allowed them to exist!
That helped us come up with the core values of our fledgling business – communication and flexibility. Our existing clients have heard it before but no matter what the request, we do everything possible to make it happen. We also make sure our patrons are completely in the loop on our operations, by updating them often on our plans to deal with storms. Along with these values, there are rules to which we are bound by being high-school students – we shovel by hand and come to do it after school.
The first winter flew by, teaching us a tonne. We learned the importance of staying organized, so we didn’t miss a home. We learned how vital it is to go the extra mile for every client. As our second year rolled around, we were fuelled by our success and excited to implement our newly learned lessons. Expansion was on our minds.
Despite our eagerness to grow, we were kept grounded by the need to stick to the values we started with. As we started our search for clients with an initial email, we were joyfully shocked to see that all 17 of our first-year clients were returning. If all our clients were happy to stick with us despite our first-year errors, then once we cleaned up the mistakes, we knew we’d have something special on our hands. As we searched for new clients, it was shocking to see the number of people who mentioned one of our original clients and passed on glowing testimonials they’d been given about our work. We virtually doubled our clientele in the second year from 17 to 33!
It proved to us the importance of creating and maintaining a relationship with each and every client. By doing something that big companies sometimes don’t, we were able to grow exponentially early on. Our second year was more of the same, struggling early on with the new-found responsibility and adapting as we went. We have learned perseverance in the face of seemingly unsolvable problems and broke through mental barriers that may have been holding us back because we doubted people would trust teenagers. We’ve learned lessons that will stay with us the rest of our lives.
We can’t express enough our gratitude to everyone around the neighbourhood who has supported us and to everyone who will support us in the future. This entire venture would not be possible without such kindness.
Speaking of the future, the Glebe Snow Generals 2024-25 season is on the horizon. And we have new spots opening up! While sticking with our core values and promising a personal relationship with every client, we are opening eight new spots in the Glebe and, for the first time, five spots in Old Ottawa East/South. Expansion is a natural part of running and growing a business, and we are excited about it. We will build on lessons from our first two seasons to provide the best service possible.
If you’re interested in being served by the Glebe Snow Generals, please reach out through the contacts below. We can’t wait to be serving the Glebe for another year and hopefully meeting many more of you in the process!
Phone: 613-981-8215, Email: Oscar.gorall@snow-generals.com, Website: https://www.snow-generals.com/
Oscar Gorall is a high-school entrepreneur who launched the Glebe Snow Generals snow-clearing service with partner Nick Crichton. They look forward to a successful third year with a growing clientele.
