The vision for G.H. Condit, Inc. is to see every small business achieve success. After many years of letting the wind of fate take me where it would I realized that what I lacked was a clear and well defined vision for my business. In 1997 when the housing market decided it wasn’t going to produce any more houses, I decided it was time for a change. I was a mason, and a pretty good one too. After a 4 year stint in the US Army and marrying a great women, I landed in Boise, Idaho in November of 1995. I immediatley went to work for a local mason. For a year and a half I learned all I could, and suddenly found myself getting side work. Soon the sidework turned into a business, and two years later G.H. Condit, the masonry company, was born. I built foundations, laid concrete and brick paver driveways and sidewalks, intalled beautiful decorative privacy walls and custom patios, and even carved sandstone sculptures. I had employees and things were going along pretty well, until one employee of mine decided not to show up for work one day.
After that I decided that if I was going to be my own boss, I wouldn’t leave any of my responsibilities to someone else. I sold all my concrete forms and tools and went to work as a tile setter. I was skilled, yet I was really nothing more than contract labor. In 2005, I was going non-stop from new house to new house installing tile showers, countertops, floors, glassblock, and fireplace faces. I didn’t see the housing bust coming and in 2007 the work dried up. Here I was, more than 10 years a “business owner” with no business.
I made another change. I had to. I went back to school. In 2008 I received a Masters in Business Administration form a local Boise University. I finally learned what I needed to be a business owner. I excelled at strategic planning. From my own experience I realized that a business cannot survive on the talents and skills of just one person. To really grow and thrive you need a vision, and a plan to see that vision come alive. That is why I am dedicated to helping small business not make the same mistakes I did.
I was pretty lucky. Most businesses don’t last as long as I did. My mistakes were covered by a booming economy, and my skill as a mason. Without the booming economy, a business cannot survive on skill alone. You need an “envisioned future.” You also need a road map to get there. You also need help from other people.
It has become my mission to ride shotgun for the small business owner. They say most businesses fail in the first five years. My vision is to reverse that trend by offering solutions and pathways to help all you skilled folks out there become more than just contract labor.
Your success is my mission!
Thanks for visiting,
George Condit
