A Big Change of Plans
How a Latino Went From Wanting to Be an A/C Mechanic to Co-owning a Multi-million Dollar Business
Hi everyone 👋... Let's get this work week kicked off with inspiration, info and practical advice, shall we?
First, though, I'd love to have you subscribe (for free) to keep these issues coming.
Please share this article if you know someone who could benefit (share button is at the top).
Today's Tip Jar advice is provided by Ruben Capo. He shares how much of a financial cushion he thinks you'll need when you go out on your own and who's going to play into your final decision.
But first, get to know Ruben.
I'M ALL SET, THANKS
“I didn’t want to go to college at the time. I was going to become an air conditioning mechanic because I had done some technical stuff in high school. And I said, oh, I’m set. This is what I want to do… for life.”
But Ruben Capo’s high school girlfriend, who is now his wife, had other plans for him.
Wedding Day: Ruben Capo and his wife
INDUSTRY: Engineering (Regulatory Consulting/Compliance Services)
STARTED BUSINESS: June 1996
LATINO/HISPANIC CONNECTION: Born in Cuba, family is Cuban
EDUCATION:
Florida International University – Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering
DREAM JOB AS A KID: “Air conditioning mechanic. That was my high school dream job…I guess, like every kid, I wanted to be a ball player.”
BIGGEST GOAL YET: “Retirement is in the near future. We’ve been actually working at building the company to a point where it doesn’t need us anymore. You know, that we would be expendable. That’s our three to five year goal right now – to make sure that BioTeknica can continue to move forward, with or without us.”
THE 10-YEAR PROGRAM
Ruben's hard-earned college degree: Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering
She persisted in trying to convince him to go to college.
Eventually, she wore him out. He went to college.
He explains, “Everybody does it in four or five years. I was on the 10-year program...”
Capo went to school at night while working during the day to provide for his wife and kids.
LAUNCHING A BUSINESS OVER BREAKFAST
Ruben's Business Partner: Jorge Rodriquez (Principal & Co-Founder of BioTeknica)
He worked at a company for several years. And then, one day, Capo was having fried eggs and café con leche for breakfast at Sergio’s with his buddies, Jorge Rodriguez and Braulio Ortiz.
Ruben's Partner: Braulio Ortiz (Principal and Co-Founder of BioTeknica)
That’s when they decided they should go into business together.
Granted, Capo had started another business three months before. He closed that one and the three men, who had been friends for 14 years, became partners in their newly-formed firm, BioTeknica.
“We literally came out of that breakfast meeting with a plan to move forward with no lawyers, documentation, paperwork or anything. Nobody signed anything on the dotted line until many years later.”
Even though the chemistry was right and the partnership worked out for them, Capo says he was lucky. He would not recommend doing it that way to others.
THE STARS ALIGNED
There was another stroke of good luck.
Capo says the stars aligned for them because, just six months later, the company he had left closed its Miami facility. Suddenly, they could hire the engineers they’d known for years from there.
“At an instant, we had available resources that were well-trained and were ready to hit the ground running.”
That made a big difference in the company’s growth.
FOCUS ON A NICHE
There’s another reason why Capo thinks the business did well: they found their niche.
“Our business isn’t general engineering. It’s not design. It’s compliance.”
They serve medical device and pharmaceutical companies that have to abide by federal regulations.
CASH CRUNCH
What Capo and his partners didn’t count on was having sufficient cash flow in the early days.
“We didn’t know at the time it was going to be three years before we saw a significant paycheck.”
He dipped into his nest egg and he and his partners used a tool called factoring to help them cover payroll (Note: Factoring helps with cash flow when you’re waiting on invoices to be paid. It involves selling your invoiced receivables to a funder who then pays you a large percentage of those accounts receivable at a premium. You get the money you need to cover business expenses almost immediately and the funder collects the accounts receivable, plus a fee from you).
They ended up having to pay the funder 10%. But it helped them get through the cash crunch.
No loans and no one had to take out a second mortgage.
NO BIG DREAMS, NO PROBLEM
Today, BioTeknica has about 25 full-time employees and a resource pool of about 40 contractors. Capo says annual revenue is about $28 million. The original partners have also now added two minority partners to the team.
Not bad for a guy who admits he didn’t have big dreams growing up.
He never grew to like college. When he graduated with his Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, they asked him if he was going to attend commencement.
“I said, no. Just mail me my diploma. I’m good.”
THE TURNAROUND AGENT
In the end, he credits his wife for turning him around and being the big difference in his life.
Without her, he says he probably wouldn’t have gotten his first engineering job nor met his partners. “I guess I wouldn’t have been here. My life would’ve been totally different. You wouldn’t have been calling me, I don’t think. Maybe I would’ve made it big in the air conditioning world. Who knows?”
Ruben with his wife and daughter
THE TIP JAR (tips passed out courtesy of Ruben Capo)
STARTING OUT: “You gotta make sure, financially, you can support it. Because the biggest problem you’re going to end up with is putting food on the table. If you’re going to be causing stresses because you don’t know where that next check is going to come, then you’re not ready to make that jump – unless you have some other form of capital.”
Capo recommends having enough money to support yourself for at least six months to a year without any income.
STEEPED IN SKILLS (mid-career): “That’s kind of my example, right? I would say, you need to do what, you know, fulfills you… And that first step is… it’s that walking off that cliff. You don’t know what’s going to happen. You don’t know if you can fly - or you don’t know if you’re going to fall like a rock. But, if you’re prepared for that, you need to take that step. You need to walk off that cliff and see what else is out there for you. It’s the hardest thing to do.”
“The other thing I would say is, you gotta make sure you have the support of your spouse. The last thing you want to do is create tensions at home just because you want to do something different.”
STARTING OVER: “I would say, go for it! That depends on... if you’re talking about someone in their 30s. You have time to recover. And that was my mindset. If this fails, I have time to recover. If I were in my 50s, and I was in this position, I don’t think I would do it.”
I’LL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN: “As our business progressed and we had capital ourselves to invest, we [my partners and I] started ventures with other folks. And I would say, beware when you do that…”
BEST ADVICE FROM “LA CASA”/BEST “HOUSE” ADVICE: “Honesty. We try to do right by our people. But my dad passed away when I was very young. In fact, my mom… took care of us. And her advice to me was always, you know, you gotta be honest in this world. Don’t try to cheat anybody because… it’ll come around and bite you. And we live by that motto, both me and my other two partners. We try to be very fair with our folks.”
(left to right) Ruben's brother-in-law, niece, sister, mom & Ruben
NO NEED TO GO IT ALONE
HELP ON THE OUTSIDE...because we can all use a helping hand:
Federal Government Contracts: A Primer
Did you know the federal government has a goal of awarding at least 23% of its contracts to small businesses? I didn’t. I’ve discussed the availability of federal government contracting opportunities before. If you missed one of the webinars in the past, here’s your chance to catch the SBA’s latest presentation and learn whether it would be a good idea for you and your business.
Federal Government Contracting: Is It Right For You?!
Wednesday, February 2, 2022
4:00 p.m. EST – 5:15 p.m. EST
Online Webinar
FREE
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/is-federal-government-contracting-right-for-you-tickets-235308111897
WORKING ON THE INSIDE...because we know our culture has a hard time asking for help:
Mental Health Help
This nearly 35 minute webinar from the NSC (National Safety Council) highlights the need for even more leadership on helping people cope with mental health issues during COVID-19. The speakers discuss support for people, even if they haven’t been diagnosed with depression or anxiety, facilitating access to mental health benefits and even the importance of verbal hugs. Here’s the link to the on-demand webinar:
National Safety Council
Supporting Employee Mental Health: Actions for Leadership
INSPIRATION FOR THIS ISSUE:
Most people I interview say that, even at a young age, they knew they’d be entrepreneurs. Most of them seemed to be quite deliberate and hyper-focused on the goal.
Ruben Capo’s story fascinated me because he was quite content taking the path of doing air conditioning repair and not going to college.
I’ve discussed this before. But, once again, I believe the importance of who you choose as a life partner really is the “make or break” in life. Capo’s story and the influence of his now-wife really demonstrates how critical it can be.
Capo told me he doesn’t consider himself an entrepreneur.
Sure, people use “entrepreneur” and “small business owner” interchangeably. I do it myself, sometimes.
But I actually think there’s a distinct difference. Entrepreneurs seem to be more “risk-oriented”. They’re willing to go for broke, if they think the potential payoff is worth it.
Small business owners, on the other hand, are more conservative in their decision-making. They’re the people who are far more careful with the risks they take.
Capo seems to fit that personality type. He didn’t have any debt when he started his business at the age of 35. He told me had paid off everything (that’s impressive).
Notably, he also said he probably wouldn’t have started a business if the opportunity had presented himself at the age of 50 instead of at 35.
I appreciate his candor.
In the end, you have to do what makes sense to you in your situation. No one can understand what factors come into play for you and your family. That’s why I provide different categories for people who are in different stages of their life.
Whatever you decide, whether it’s successful or just a step in your personal and professional journey, I hope you feel fulfilled.
As a final thought, Ruben Capo told me something I found really interesting. Not only was he able to give a job to his former colleagues. He told me he was even able to hire his former boss at BioTeknica. How many people can say that?
(left to right) Ruben, daughter-in-law, granddaughter, son & Ruben's wife
🌴 Before you go, did you subscribe?
🌴 Want to share this article to inspire someone else? By all means, go ahead (the share button is at the top).
🌴Let's stay in touch on social media. Take your pick or connect on all of these platforms: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
🌴Make it a phenomenal day and week!