She Started a Niche Business in Her Basement with $10,000. Now It Does $113 Million in Sales: ‘Took Off Like a Rocket.’

Colette Bell and her husband, Andy Bell, began a handyman enterprise in Denver, Colorado, in 1998 after figuring out a singular want. 

They discovered that massive specialty contracting corporations didn’t need to do small tasks for householders. For instance, if somebody had one sticky window and referred to as a window firm, the agency wished to promote them 25 new home windows for his or her home. 

“We discovered that householders had a extremely exhausting time discovering any person skilled and dependable for small tasks,” Colette tells Entrepreneur in a brand new interview. “That was the area of interest market we constructed this enterprise to serve.”

They knew instantly that they’d struck gold. Their first 12 months in enterprise, the corporate “simply took off like a rocket,” Colette says.

They ended up franchising the enterprise, referred to as Handyman Issues, in 2001. Andy led the enterprise as CEO whereas Colette took on a number of management roles through the years, together with chairman of the board. In 2018, they linked with Ace {Hardware}, which acquired the enterprise in 2019. 

“That is the one profession I’ve had my entire life,” Colette says. “For 28 years, I’ve been engaged on the handyman enterprise.”

Andy is now the CEO and president of Ace Handyman Companies, and Colette is the vice chairman of franchise improvement, a place she has held since 2019. She continues to guide growth, serving to the model develop from 119 territories on the time of its 2019 acquisition to 383 territories as of April this 12 months, greater than tripling its footprint.

Ace Handyman Companies grew by 12% from 2024 to 2025, with whole gross sales exceeding $113 million in 2025.  

The next interview with Colette has been frivolously edited for readability and concision.

Development ways

What had been the primary components that allowed the corporate to develop so rapidly? What did you do to facilitate development?We set precise appointment instances and coach our workers that “should you’re not early, you’re late.” They should arrive on time, look skilled and put on logoed shirts. In the event that they stroll up and see the trash cans nonetheless on the curb after pickup, we coach them to maneuver the cans again up the driveway — little issues that present we’re there to assist with the entire home, not only a single challenge.

We do intensive follow-up: calling the day after to verify the shopper is glad, and once more at 11 months as a result of we provide a one-year guarantee. Including that top stage of customer support to a low-tech, fragmented trade made an enormous distinction.

Getting issues proper with franchising

Wanting again at that 2001 determination to franchise, what did you get proper about franchising, and what did you underestimate about how exhausting it might be?We underestimated all the pieces. However we did get a few essential issues proper. One was creating protected territories for franchise house owners delineated by ZIP codes. ZIP codes are clearly outlined by the submit workplace and have accessible demographic information, so we may construct territories utilizing that information. Franchise house owners then had protected territories and didn’t have to fret about competitors from neighboring house owners. We did that from day one.

The opposite factor we did proper, which was extra unintentional, was our billing mannequin. Despite the fact that we’re a handyman enterprise and building typically estimates tasks as mounted greenback quantities, we determined to invoice prospects utilizing a time-and-materials format. Time is common — an hour is an hour in every single place. Pricing, alternatively, varies considerably between, say, Connecticut and Arkansas or Illinois and California. As a substitute of attempting to drive one common worth construction throughout the U.S., we made time the fixed and allowed every proprietor to decide on their very own hourly charge. 

That made the enterprise far more possible in several markets. About 85% of our work is labor and solely about 15% is supplies, as a result of we concentrate on small repairs and restorations, not giant remodels.

Selecting franchising over company places

What satisfied you that this concept would scale higher via franchising than via company-owned places?We discovered that firsthand after we expanded to California. At one level, we had been successfully operating six company places — three in Colorado and three in California. We rapidly realized we couldn’t give each worker, and subsequently each buyer, the time and management they deserved.

It was clear this enterprise mannequin needs to be out there throughout the U.S. Each house owner deserves knowledgeable, dependable handyman service for small tasks, however there was no method we may construct that nationally as a purely company chain — particularly since we began in our basement with $10,000, each little bit of financial savings we may scrape collectively. 

The franchise mannequin made nationwide growth doable as a result of it depends on native house owners rooted of their communities. Handyman companies are very community-centric; you’re principally working to your neighbors. Franchising suits the mannequin completely.

The most important shock about franchising

What’s one thing about franchising that stunned you?The most important shock — although everybody tells you this upfront — is how a lot the success or failure of the enterprise mannequin is dependent upon the connection between franchisor and franchise house owners. Till you’ve lived it, that doesn’t totally sink in. This relationship needs to be sturdy and reciprocal. It could’t simply be the franchisor giving and the franchise house owners taking; franchisees additionally must contribute concepts and suggestions.

Early on, we had franchise house owners with incredible enterprise concepts we by no means would have developed on our personal, they usually had been keen to share them so we may roll them out systemwide.

A fantastic instance was throughout Covid, when the entire nation shut down, and nobody may enter prospects’ houses. We spent that downtime on convention calls with franchise house owners, determining the way to make the enterprise as touchless as doable.

For example, we used to take buyer signatures on invoices. Throughout Covid, we shifted to studying the contract language aloud and recording “verified by voice” as an alternative of a signature. 

Franchise house owners helped design new commonplace working procedures, which we rolled out to everybody. So after we had been designated important in April and will return to houses, we had safer, smarter procedures in place. That stage of help and collaboration is vital in franchising.

The best franchisee

For an entrepreneur evaluating Ace Handyman, how do you outline the best franchisee when it comes to background, expertise and mindset?Our house owners come from all types of backgrounds. Considered one of our high franchisees is a former horticulturalist. We’ve individuals from finance, advertising, plant administration, numerous veterans, former academics, and former coaches and mentors.

The via line is a ardour for enhancing their group and powerful management expertise. As an proprietor, you don’t go to each buyer’s home; our quantity is simply too excessive for that. The best way you ship nice service is thru your workers, which implies you have to be a superb chief. That features paying good wages, offering coaching and mentoring and providing actual development alternatives. Management is on the coronary heart of our most profitable franchisees.

For us, a pink flag is when a potential proprietor focuses extra on cash than tradition and folks. Our enterprise has sturdy numbers — you don’t develop in any other case — but when the first focus is monetary, it usually isn’t a great match.

How a lot does it value to begin an Ace Handyman franchise?In our 2026 franchise disclosure doc, Merchandise 7 exhibits startup prices starting from $132,200 on the low finish to $226,000 on the excessive finish. That features a $70,000 franchise price.

Lengthy-term imaginative and prescient

If you think about Ace Handyman Companies 10 years from now, what does success seem like for the model, for particular person house owners and for the shoppers they serve?First, success means our present franchise house owners are nonetheless right here. Longevity is essential in franchising. Ace has all the time believed in generational companies; many {hardware} shops have been handed down from great-great-grandparents via a number of generations.

In our system, we have already got franchise house owners who’ve been with us 24 years. I’m very pleased with that. They caught with us after we had been younger and figuring issues out and contributed concepts, ardour and options. We’ve seen transitions the place a father handed the enterprise to his daughter and uncles handed places to nephews.

My objective for the following 10 years is that we’ll not solely develop to cowl maybe half of the U.S., but in addition see extra of our places turn out to be generational companies, with youngsters taking on for his or her mother and father. That type of longevity can be an actual measure of success.

Colette Bell and her husband, Andy Bell, began a handyman enterprise in Denver, Colorado, in 1998 after figuring out a singular want. 

They discovered that massive specialty contracting corporations didn’t need to do small tasks for householders. For instance, if somebody had one sticky window and referred to as a window firm, the agency wished to promote them 25 new home windows for his or her home. 

“We discovered that householders had a extremely exhausting time discovering any person skilled and dependable for small tasks,” Colette tells Entrepreneur in a brand new interview. “That was the area of interest market we constructed this enterprise to serve.”