Some chapters of life are easy to close.
Others stay with you forever.
Berry Plumbing Services will always be one of those chapters for me.
In 2019, I started Berry Plumbing Services with a truck, some tools, a passion for plumbing, and a dream of building something I could be proud of.
I believed that if I worked hard, treated people fairly, offered competitive pricing, and did good work, everything else would fall into place.
And in many ways, it did.
The phone started ringing. Customers told their friends. Families recommended us to their neighbors. One job became ten, ten became a hundred, and before I knew it, we had served thousands of customers throughout Northeast Ohio.
There were long days, late nights, incredible people, and moments I’ll never forget.
I was proud of what I had built.
But behind that success was a reality I wasn’t prepared for.
Berry Plumbing Services grew faster than I knew how to manage.
We didn’t have enough capital. We didn’t have enough trucks, the right staffing, or the administrative support needed to handle the volume of work coming through our doors.
The phone rang constantly. We were so busy trying to keep up with the next call, the next appointment, and the next emergency that I even failed to collect payments for work we had already completed.
That wasn’t a customer’s fault. That wasn’t an employee’s fault.
That was my responsibility. And I fell short.
I knew how to be a plumber. I knew how to work hard. I knew how to solve problems in people’s homes.
But I hadn’t yet learned how to build a business that could grow beyond what one person could carry.
And eventually, it became more than I could carry.
The Part I’m Not Proud Of
There came a point when I became so overwhelmed that I did something I never imagined I would do.
I turned my phone off.
The calls kept coming, the responsibilities kept piling up, and I reached a point where I couldn’t bring myself to answer another call.
Sometimes I’d turn my phone back on, listen to the messages, and turn it off again.
I knew people were trying to reach me.
I knew some of them needed help.
And I knew I wasn’t giving them the service or communication they deserved.
That’s something I still carry with me.
Because behind every missed call was a real person. A family. A homeowner who had trusted me with their home, their money, and their time.
Some of those people had supported me from the very beginning.
And I let them down.
To those customers, I am truly sorry.
I don’t expect an apology to erase the frustration, inconvenience, or disappointment I may have caused.
And I’m not asking anyone to pretend those things didn’t happen.
But I am asking for something.
An opportunity to earn your trust back.
Not through a letter. Not through a promise. Not through a new company name or a new logo.
Through action.
Through consistency.
Through showing up, following through, and giving you the experience you deserved all along.
I know that trust isn’t something I can ask you to hand back to me.
It’s something I have to earn.
And I’m willing to do that work.
To Everyone Who Was Part of Berry Plumbing Services
Some of you loved us.
Some of you were disappointed in us.
Some of you recommended us to everyone you knew.
And some of you probably told people never to call us again.
I understand both sides.
To those who believed in me, supported my business, left kind reviews, referred your friends, and welcomed us into your homes, I cannot thank you enough.
You gave a young business owner an opportunity to build something he once only dreamed about.
You helped put trucks on the road, supported families, and gave me experiences I’ll carry for the rest of my life.
And to those who had a different experience - those who were frustrated, who felt ignored, or who believed I could have done better - I want you to know something.
Your criticism wasn’t wasted on me.
Some of the hardest things I’ve heard about myself and my business were also some of the things I needed to hear most.
They forced me to look at the difference between having good intentions and actually delivering on them.
They taught me that hard work alone isn’t enough.
That being a good plumber doesn’t automatically make someone a good business owner.
And that a customer’s trust is worth far more than any single job.
I don’t want those relationships to end with disappointment.
I want the opportunity to change the way you remember doing business with me.
And if I ever earn another opportunity to serve you, I want the experience to speak for itself.
What Those Years Taught Me
Berry Plumbing Services taught me how to work.
It taught me how to lead, sometimes by showing me exactly how not to.
It taught me the importance of having the right people around me, of being financially prepared, of communicating, of following through, and of building an organization that doesn’t fall apart when things get difficult.
Most importantly, it taught me that a business is not built on trucks, tools, or the number of jobs it completes. It’s built on people.
The people who work there.
The people who trust it.
The people who believe in it.
And the people who hold it accountable when it falls short.
Those lessons weren’t always easy.
Some were painful. Some were humbling. Some came at a cost I wish I could go back and change.
But I wouldn’t trade what they taught me.
Because I know today that those experiences have made me a better leader, a better business owner, and a more thoughtful person.
A New Book. A Higher Standard.
Today, as I close the chapter of Berry Plumbing Services, I’m not walking away from those lessons.
I’m carrying every one of them forward.
But I’m not starting over with just another truck and another phone number.
I’ve built better systems.
I’ve surrounded myself with the right people.
I’ve invested in training, communication, customer support, and the structure necessary to serve people the right way.
I’ve taken the time to understand not just how to grow a plumbing company, but how to build one that can stand the test of time.
And most importantly:
I will show up.
When things are going well.
When things are difficult.
When we make mistakes.
And when someone needs us to take responsibility.
That’s the commitment I’m bringing into FLO Plumbing Group.
FLO isn’t simply Berry Plumbing Services with a different name.
It’s a new company, built from years of experience, lessons learned, and a renewed commitment to the people and communities we serve.
A company built around faith, hope, love, accountability, and a belief that we can make better normal.
I know I can’t rebuild trust overnight.
But I can start by doing what I should have done all along.
Showing up. Listening. Taking responsibility. And doing what I say I’m going to do.
One Last Thank You
To every customer who ever called Berry Plumbing Services, whether your experience was wonderful or disappointing, thank you for being part of my journey.
To those who believed in me when I was just a young plumber with a dream, thank you for giving me a chance.
To those who stood by me through the difficult times, thank you for your patience and your kindness.
And to those who challenged me, criticized me, or expected more from me, thank you for reminding me that I had more to learn.
You all played a part in this story.
And I hope, someday, you’ll see the good that came from it.
Berry Plumbing Services gave me a beginning.
It gave me a livelihood, relationships, memories, successes, failures, and lessons I will never forget.
But perhaps its greatest gift was teaching me what it truly takes to build something that lasts.
So I’m closing this chapter with a grateful heart.
Not with resentment.
Not with regret for having tried.
But with humility for the mistakes, gratitude for the opportunities, and hope for everything still ahead.
Berry Plumbing Services was a chapter of my life.
FLO Plumbing Group is a whole new book.
And this time, I’m not just writing a story about building a successful plumbing company.
I’m writing one about building something worthy of the people who believe in it.
To everyone who was part of the first chapter:
Thank you for helping me become the person who gets to write the next one.
The best way I can thank you now is to do better.
And that’s exactly what I intend to do.