Family Growing Every Day
Generator Supercenter of Heartland celebrates four grand openings
DuringtheweekofAugust1st,ourcorporateteamtraveled to Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama to join the GSC of Heartland team in celebrating four grand openings in just three days. These new store openings bring the total number of locations to eight for Brian Jeans and his team, with plans to open four more stores soon. The events were marked by ribbon-cutting ceremonies, photo opportunities, and celebratory dinners. We are incredibly proud of what the Heartland group is achieving and are confident that even greater success lies ahead for this dedicated team.
Welcome GSC North Seattle
In August, Generator Supercenter officially broke ground into another new state! Tyson O’Neil and his wife, Chantel Keller will be opening their 1st GSC in Northern Seattle early next year.
Tyson and Chantel are a true power couple and own, several other successful businesses in the Seattle area. Their three restaurants: Mammoth Burger, Jasmin Asian Bistro and Rockaway Bar & Grill are all widely popular in the Seattle Foodie scene.
We are all happy to welcome you both to Team GSC and cannot wait to start providing alternate power options to customers in Washington. We look forward to achieving great thinkg together.
Family-Owned Franchises Power Up New England
This month, we’re excited to spotlight two standout franchises: Generator Supercenter of New Hampshire and Generator Supercenter of Maine, both owned by the Sanford family. FatherSon duo, James and Matt Sanford have built these thriving businesses together, starting with the launch of Generator Supercenter of New Hampshire in 2020. Following its success, they expanded their reach by opening Generator Supercenter of Maine in 2022.
Matt Sanford is a respected member of the Generator Supercenter Dealer Council, where he works closely with the corporate team to enhance operations and improve service for customers. The Sanfords’ franchises are widely recognized for their adherence to the Generator Supercenter blueprint, consistently delivering excellent service and reliability.
Matt took the time to answer some questions for all of you this month. Read on to discover the secrets behind their success.
Q. How did you first hear about Generator Supercenter?
James had recently finished his corporate career and while exploring potential business ventures, he came across the franchise listing for GSC. Moments after completing the request for information, he received a call from Doug Dixon and the rest is history.
Q. When did you know you wanted to be part of the Generator Supercenter family?
After developing a relationship with Doug, he asked James and I to fly down to Texas to see the operation and meet the team. While we had mixed feelings before the trip, once we had the opportunity to meet Wes, Matt, Steve, Mike Sherman, Mike Grosz, Doug, and the rest of the team, we were convinced we wanted to be a part of the GSC future. Not only were we excited, but we also felt that if we did not join the team, it would be one of those opportunities that in hindsight, we’d regret missing out on.
Q. What skills from your past professional careers have been helpful in operating a successful GSC?
James had a long and successful career in a leadership role within a large corporation. Before his career, he earned a master’s in psychology from UVA. I completed my degree in Finance and
began a Financial Leadership rotational program with a defense contractor. While our corporate experience was valuable James’ more so than mine I think we would both agree that the robust understanding of team dynamics gained in collegiate athletics was the best preparation for running a GSC.
Q. What does GSC of New Hampshire do differently that might be helpful for other franchises to incorporate into their operations?
We had prior exposure to the value a recurring revenue program could bring to a business's stability. From the onset, we adapted the landscape credit to become the GenMonitor Maintenance Plan discount, allowing us to begin collecting recurring revenue to support business operations and manage startup turbulence. Additionally, our installation crews came up with the idea to utilize a truck, trailer, and Toro compact skid steer for trenching and setting. This efficiency enabled our install teams to expand our installation capacity without doubling our workforce.
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Q. What is the biggest obstacle you two faced getting GSC of New Hampshire up and running? And how did you overcome it?
From day one we felt like we were met with challenges, being that we opened our NH location the same week as the initial COVID shutdowns. From the 54-week, aircooled lead time, increased costs, labor shortages, and installation complications, each challenge has given us the opportunity to grow and strengthen. Most importantly, dynamically solving installations were not something that GSC had seen yet. For the first year, we were pickaxing throughfrozen ground that was stronger than concrete. Through the implementation of heating blankets, a Toro mini skid steer, and incredible installation team, we took a barrier from entry in our market, and turned it into one of our competitive advantages. We now install in the winter, almost at the same rate as we do in the summer.
Q. Do you have any “getting started” tips or lessons learned you wish to share to newer franchisees?
First, we recommend getting out there with the team to trulyunderstand each position within yourorganization. This will help you run yourbusiness more effectivelyand create strong bonds. We were able to get started with a limited crew and developed leaders who understood and could perform multiple roles. In the beginning, I would advise focusing less on margin and more on getting work on the calendar. You will burn more money with an unproductive workforce than you will by selling jobs at a discount. Build a base of maintenance customers and use the recurring revenue to cash flow the business. Hold on through the inevitable ebbs and flows, and trust that before long, you'll have more leads than you know what to do with.
Q. What is your fondest memory from time spent with the GSC family?
The question says it all- exactly that, the GSC Family. From our initial meeting in Tomball, each annual conference, and the family we create within our own organizations, the culmination of the memories made with these people are what we will continue to reflect most fondly upon. Not to mention, I was fortunate enough to have a role model for a father, and I am thankful for the opportunity to continue to make memories together on this venture.
we were pickaxing through frozen ground that was stronger than concrete.
We all know strong teams build strong businesses. What would you like to add about your team members and how they step up to the plate every day?
I could write a paragraph about every member of our team here in NH and Maine. People are a fundamental aspect of this business. Without our customers, we wouldn’t have a business, and without the amazing people who make up our organization, we wouldn’t have the capability to serve those customers. One individual, Alex, who has been with us since day one, had his first baby in November of 23’ with his wife Maddie. Their son Dawson was born with Tetralogy of Fallot (rare heart condition), Stenosis of the Trachea, and Tracheomalacia.
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After three different bypass surgeries to his heart and airway, 3 ambulance trips, months on the ventilator, and 9 months in Boston Children’s hospital, they were finally able to bring their son home last week. Words cannot express the admiration we have for the courage that Alex and Maddie have shown throughout this process through their commitment to Dawson, one another, and our family at GSC. While Alex had much more important obligations to tend to, we are grateful that he was still somehow able to work as much as he did through this process. Alex is a central part of our installation department, and our entire team came together to step up in his absence. His dedication is a testament to his character and the values we hold dear at GSC, and the mission statement that we all strive to fulfill.
Now that they are home, we againare reminded ofhow important the work we all do is. Dawson has critical equipment that simply cannot go offline. Although we have not told Alex at the time I am writing this, as a small gesture to Alex and his family for our appreciation for all he has done, we will be providing a generator/installation for their home once they have had a chance to settle in. We hope this brings them some semblance of the peace of mind that we all provide our customers with daily.
I wanted to include a link to the GoFundMe that Alex and Maddie have set up to help pay for some of their medical expenses, and continued care for their son, Dawson. Any support would be truly appreciated.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/mqn2k-dawsonstrong
– Matt Sanford
LEVELING UP WITH THE LOWE’S PROGRAM
Did you miss out on the Lowes Program Webinar? Have no Fear! It is available on the link below and also in the Franconnect Library. There is also a Step-By-Step user guide.
https://tinyurl.com/LowesProgramCall
Lowes Also offers Q & A Sessions twice a week for anyone who has any questions pertaining to their programs. After watching the training, you can log in and speak with them directly every Wednesday and Friday on the links below:
https://tinyurl.com/Wed3pmEasternLowesCall
https://tinyurl.com/Fri9amEasternLowesCall
DON’t forget about your mandatory monthly closeout reports:
The link to the reports is on the main page of the HUB in the Quick-links section. For any questions about the reports please reach out to your regional territory managers or check out the How-To in the Franconnect Library
New Manager for our NorthEastern Stores
Generator Supercenter is happy to introduce you all to our newest Regional Territory Manager for the North-East USA, Eric Colamarino.
Eric’s professional career began in law enforcement where he gained skills in service and protection. He then embarked on a new path in retail sales. He has a passion for managing and leading teams to success. Eric has embraced challenges presented by both small business and big box stores
Eric proudly calls Pennsylvania home and pledges allegiance to the riveting sports scene of Pittsburgh He is excited to begin building relationships with our Franchisees in his territory.
