Today we’d like to introduce you to Nigel Costolloe.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Nigel. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Painting was pocket money during a high school summer, then a way to pay for college (back when college was still affordable….) A graduate degree in Political Science seemed a perfect launch pad into the entrepreneurial world of contracting so I started a small company in Berkeley CA while I waited for my ‘real’ job to show up.
Fast forward to 2018, I am proud to own a company that hires only the best, delivers beautiful work to delightful customers living in the Boston area. We travel from the Cape to New Hampshire and Vermont for our customers, as happy to paint for 8 hours as we are to paint for 2000 hours. Our objective, each and every time – to delight our customer!
Has it been a smooth road?
Being a liberal arts major did not prepare me very well for the rigors of the profit and loss statement, hiring and firing staff, writing business plans or dealing with economic recessions!
But an open mind and a passion for learning has helped me succeed.
In reality, every mistake we’ve ever made has been my mistake – hiring too quickly during the busy season, discounting too much in the winter, failing to recognize the red flags that come with jumping into complex and time-sensitive projects we were not equipped to manage. I cannot think of a better crucible for forcing personal change than running a business!
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Like so many companies, we like to say we specialize in high-end work – this is true much of the time but we count regular folk as ‘high end’ too – retired teachers living on a fixed income, for example.
What we promise is the same ‘high touch’ service and attention to detail to all of our customers. We’ve won the Angies’ and Houzz awards, and a national award for a restoration project. But Yelp and Google reviews are probably where the rubber hits the road these days – real-time assessments, unvarnished, of our ability to deliver what we promise.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Boston and its metro area is an amazing place for business! People here are educated, inquisitive, intellectual and interesting – almost everyone is from somewhere else and they’ve come here to pursue an opportunity – academic, professional, personal – this makes us more open and engaging.
Bostonians are sophisticated and fair – when presented with information they will weigh carefully the source, evaluate both sides of an issue then make a prudent decision based on rational thinking – I love that. It makes us all much more predictable, regardless of our background. It also what makes Boston such a magnet for young people.
Boston could improve by encouraging more manufacturing businesses to locate here – we are top heavy with tech, medical, etc – there is an underemployed segment of the population that learns and succeeds kinesthetically – learning by doing.
Pricing:
- We charge $65 per hour but discount in the slow winter season. This buys you a trained and experienced painter!
Contact Info:
- Address: 93R Border Street Newton, MA 02465
- Website: www.catchlightpainting.com
- Phone: 617.734.1696
- Email: nigel@catchlightpainting.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catchlightpainting/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CatchlightPainting/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/catchlight-painting-newton
- Other: https://www.bostonpaintingcontractors.com
Image Credit:
Damianos Photography
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