How Metron Went from Surviving to Thriving!
“These days when you become a Metron client you are impacting not just your own business but also impacting other entrepreneurs around the world!”
The Good Old Days
I remember when we bought our first business in 2005 in Canmore, Alberta. It was a waste management company and we had NO IDEA what we were doing. It operated 3 days a week (residential and commercial pick up of recycling) and profited $18,000 a year. Not a whole lot when you live in Canmore and have 2 babies. We had to make ends meet with extra income streams. I took a job driving School Bus part time so we could bring in extra income and still allow me to be a stay at home mom and Mike had a full time IT job at a local shop. Still, there were days when checking the mail was filled with anxiety hoping there was a payment so we could buy diapers for our baby boys! THE WHY is to pay your bills and make somewhat of a life for your family.
When you start the process of launching and building your own company the first goal is survival!
3 Years later we didn’t work the waste management business anymore – we had a 5 day a week – Residential/Commercial company that had a full-time staff running the business. This allowed us to open our 2nd business Metron Technologies which then proceeded to grow and become our main focus for years to come. THE WHY changes from survival to lifestyle enjoyment.
We had 1 and 2-year-old boys and we built the two companies with our family as the top priority. I say the good old days because they were! Hoping that when I buy my groceries the machines does not say “insufficient funds” and having YEARLY hair appointments because that’s the most we could splurge on self-care. We made it work and it was fun, challenging and at times very risky. We made LOTS of mistakes and did not manage money well, but we learned so much. These are the days you learn, grow and become a wealth of knowledge for others who decide to venture out into the world of self-employment.
“Honestly to pay those monthly bills with your own business was the accomplishment.”
The Risky Successful Days
Eventually, we sold the waste management company and focused on the IT aspect which grew into a full-service Online Marketing company – which has now become Metron.
Being an entrepreneur is a big task – it’s rarely an overnight success and those who try to make it happen overnight often find out an “overnight success” is from week in and week out actual working in and on the business for an average of 1-3 years. We almost lost our marriage during the building and expanding time and we made some tough decisions to stay together. These are some of the risks. But in the end, you cannot let the business become a higher priority – because then you have it all without anyone to enjoy it with. We look back and we have some pretty deep roots that keep us grounded and feel super blessed to enjoy it together despite the hard times.
My husband took over the development of our company a few years back and his planning, getting to know his numbers and BIG DREAMS have brought our business to a whole new level. THE WHY is now bigger than us!
When your WHY extends past your own self and your own family this is when life gets exciting and feels like your living a dream.
The Dreamy Successful Days
As Metron grew so did our team. Our goal was never to work inside the business day in and day out – although we are very hands-on with our clients – the actual work is not done by us. We have 4 teams. One in India, one in the Philippines and one in Toronto along with local Calgary team members for photography, copywriting and client care. Our vision is global, and we know that we can pay double the going rate in India and the Philippines and impact peoples lives and so we choose to hire outside Canada. We also love to support local companies, so we maintain our team members here in Calgary as well as in Toronto.
Having systems and teams in place gives us the very thing we need to dream big – TIME and RESOURCES.
These days when you become a Metron client you are impacting not just your own business but also impacting other entrepreneurs around the world! You see, when your family and business have a budget, a REAL budget, (a budget that includes all the extras like vacations, shopping, hobbies, eating out etc.) the reality is that once that dream budget is met anything else that comes in is gravy and for us that does not mean buying a bigger house or purchasing that nice boat for lake days. For Metron it means we have resources that others don’t have access to, that can create change and enlarge vision and resources for generations to come.
In October of 2016, my husband began dreaming of the Philippines again. We had moved to the Northern Philippines when we got married in 2000 and did youth outreach and feeding programs with a local church there for 3 years. We moved back to Canada, had 2 babies back to back and became entrepreneurs. We thought that was the end of the story. My husband and I would have no idea how Metron would begin to impact people around the world! We returned to the Philippines in October of 2016 for 3 weeks and again in 2018 for 2 months which confirmed our connection and love for the people there.
Below are our first local projects that we have launched or are in testing phases before we scale and take to market in the Philippines.
- ESL Online Training School –
An online English as a second language training school with Filipino teachers that will allow students to learn English at their own pace and receive world recognized certificates. This school was envisioned by a Filipina women who dreams of owning her own successful business to give her family a better and secure life. We have helped with a website and are now marketing it to schools in China, Taiwan and even local Canadian corporations with front line workers who need assistance with their English. You can find this company here
- Aquaponics – (soon to be known as “The Salad Company”) –
This is in the test phases and has had remarkable success this first few months. Investing for a very small scale they have successfully grown lettuce, cucumbers and are now working on tomatoes. This amazing process grows vegetables using no dirt and 10% of the water compared to a regular farm. With unstable conditions such as rain and heat this growing method would revolutionize the farming industry and create consistent income for 2 local families and what could be hundreds of employees in the years to come when it goes nationwide.
- Strawberry Jam and Candies –
This is a very small-scale business that hopes to gain momentum when the season is over and have enough stock of strawberries to create candy in the low season and sell at a premium. It is the Strawberry Capital and it’s very popular with tourists. Helping the owners learn about cash flow and production has been the main focus. Some challenges are the competition and availability of the strawberry rejects to produce the candy and jam as well as have the capital to float the investment until the sales begin in low season months later. This business is a great learning experience of owning a small business, watching cash flow, production as well as company sales and marketing. We have been very proud of the brother and sister who took this on.
Metron Marketing and IT has become a top service company for all online marketing needs and business IT solutions. Branding ourselves as the Home of the Free Website with our 6 month start up enables companies to have realistic expectations but have something to show for it online and sees a positive impact to their bottom line. This also enables us to have residual income that allows us to plan and prepare for months to come – which includes dreaming big and using our resources to help others dream big and change their families lives forever.
