Jim Huston: State of the Industry

Jim Huston

As I travel around North America pulling my Classic '83 Airstream Excella trailer, I've had the opportunity to visit the offices of more than 60 green industry contractors so far this year.

Most of the companies that I've visited were actually doing reasonably well, in spite of the depressing and deteriorating economic environment surrounding them. While the financial state of the industry tells one story, the personal, or "personnel" state of it tells quite a different one.
 

The Economic SOI. The economic side of the equation for our industry hasn't changed much during the last six months. In fact, I'd have to say that it's worse than ever because there's simply no end in sight to the current economic doldrums.

Combine the dearth of new home sales, lack of credit for small businesses, the unprecedented debt-load added onto our markets, yada, yada, yada ... with the deterioration of the global financial markets in Asia and Europe and you have more uncertainty than ever facing today's entrepreneur. It is this uncertainty that is killing businesses both large and small.
 

The Personal (or Personnel) SOI. The real story is about the men and women who fuel the small-business engine that propels the economy and the green industry forward. There is a dichotomy as to what we see in the overall economy compared to what we see in the hearts of small business entrepreneurs. Perhaps never before in modern times have small business entrepreneurs faced such challenging business conditions.

But it is these very conditions, and the response to them, that has proven once again why the small business entrepreneur is not just vital to our economy, but is the central foundation that supports it and upon which it is built. The tough times that we are in have brought out the very best in the men and women in the green industry. They have proven, once again, that they are tougher than any "tough" times thrown at them. That is why small business entrepreneurs are not only the foundation of our economy; they are the backbone of who we are as a people. Our very identity is embodied in the small business entrepreneur. The morals, ethics and values – essentially the character of the small business entrepreneur is what makes them and us great.
 

Be Prepared and Get Ready. Now's the time to scrutinize and work upon your value system. When the economy begins to improve (I believe toward the end of 2012), you'll be ready for it. Now is the time to build your team and build your systems.

Understand and embrace the current dichotomy within the green industry and global economy. Realize that tough times produce tougher people if responded to appropriately. Green industry entrepreneurs are probably better prepared today than at any time in the last 50 years to face the current business threats and to take advantage of future business opportunities. This is the real state of the economy. Individuals who prepare and are ready will come out of this economy more confident and more profitable than ever. For this we can thank the tough times that we are currently facing. The lesson is clear: Continue to prepare and get ready for better times.