Don’t just enjoy the busy season. Use it to buy your future

If you’re a $1 - 3m business, you’ve probably noticed things are starting to move. (Wish it bloody started in September like we were all hoping.)

But I’m hearing it from clients, leads and people in the community across construction, hospo and retail. All good indicator industries.

After the last couple of hard years, recession, election and winter a lot of Kiwi businesses didn’t make it.

Around 6,500 shut their doors last year alone. That number is still climbing.

But one of my roofing clients just went from $60k months (ouch!) to $100k in September and is tracking toward $130k+ in October. Yes, that’s 200% increase.

Not luck. Execution. Hunting.

We’ve been preparing for this Spring and Summer lift for months:

• Tightened up on marketing (didn’t quite get the 4:1 ROI I wanted)

• Held off hiring until the numbers stacked (but lined up recruits for when it did)

• Doubled down on follow-ups and relationships through winter

Stripped back to profitable.

Prepared for growth.

Only 30 days ago we were in survival mode.

Cutting costs.

Understaffed.

Doing too many jobs.

Wondering if we’d make payroll next month.

Still hunting though. Every lead, every quote, every follow up… every week. Because when times are tough hunters eat. Passengers starve.

Now that things have turned a little bit, we’re hunting hard through the busy season. Maximising profit, building working capital and planning for the next phase in April 2026 when things will slow again.

School holidays. Easter. Winter. 2026 Election.

We’re already prepping for it:

• Investing surplus into marketing, lead gen and brand awareness (Google, radio, print and retargeting where our ideal customers actually are)
  

• Hiring sales support, admin and accounts to free the owner up for follow-ups and big commercial work
  

• Watching the signs, cranes, diggers and excavators back in motion
  

The market is moving. Don’t just ride the wave. Use it.

- Build working capital.

- Invest in leverage, partnerships and lead generation.

- Extend your runway.

- Use this busy season to build for next winter.

- The work you do now can buy you more capacity next year and get you ahead of your more passive competitors.

If you’re still struggling, here’s 3 quick checks you can do now:

1. Pipeline: Every quote followed up within 24 hours. Speed closes deals.
   

2. Cash: Park 10 percent of every job into a “slow season” account now, not later.
   

3. Capacity: Audit where the owner is still the bottleneck. Delegate one task today.
   

Small moves. Big compound effect.

Happy hunting.