I’m at the WWETT Show in Indianapolis as I write this. You may be a few months removed from attending the very same show as you read this.

I’ve been to the WWETT Show several times since starting at COLE Publishing in 2014, but this is my first visit in a few years and my first time as Cleaner magazine editor.

This is a buying show. That’s a line I heard from an equipment financing company on site, ready to immediately assist any attendees making a big purchase at the show. People come to the WWETT Show with the specific goal of upgrading equipment or buying a new tool that will allow them to expand their service offerings or improve operations.

Even when simply window shopping people can be tempted by the impressive display of equipment and new technology. I ran into Steve Allen, owner of Allens Plumbing in Hawaii, featured in the February issue, who was at the show with several members of his team. As busy as he already is, he said he was having difficulty walking the exhibit hall without feeling like he needed to get into every type of service he was seeing equipment for. The pumper trucks were catching his eye. After all, Hawaii has a decent number of cesspools and septic tanks, he said.

I don’t know how serious Allen was about actually branching out into the pumping business, but in a general sense he was clearly maintaining an opportunity-focused mindset at the WWETT Show and thinking about ways he could potentially reinvest in his company.

Sometimes you have to spend money to make money, as the adage goes. That principle is on display with one of this month’s contractor profiles. RDZ Plumbing & Drains in San Diego is still a fairly young company, having just started up in 2018, so the $60,000 it spent on a pipe lining system last year was not an insignificant expense. But other companies were doing it and customers were asking about it, so owner Salvador Rodriguez Jr. says he knew it would be a wise investment into the future of his business.

“I look at it as good debt,” Rodriguez says of the money he borrowed to finance the purchase. “I’m not at all scared by the debt because I knew that once we received the proper training, we’d make good money with the pipe lining system. Sure, it was a big expense, but the profit margins are very good.”

Also in this month’s issue is a Money Manager feature focused on business loans and credit lines and what you can do to ensure you’ll receive a positive response from financial institutions for any lending requests on those big equipment purchases.

Have you added anything to your company’s toolbox recently? Maybe you’re one of those companies that views the WWETT Show as a “buying show” and have had your new purchase out in the field for a few months now. I’d love to hear how it’s working out for you and improving your operations. Call me at 715-350-8442 or email editor@cleaner.com.

Enjoy this month’s issue.