Dave Lytle - Traverse City, Michigan

Dave Lytle is no stranger to the appliance repair entrepreneur role. He went to work for Yeske’s, a self-servicing appliance retail shop, in 1991. Over the next few years, Dave learned all about the appliance industry. When the owner decided to retire and close down the business, Dave bought it from him and continued to expand it over the next 11 years before converting it into a Mr. Appliance franchise.

What was business like before you invested in a Mr. Appliance franchise?
It was challenging, certainly. We had a lot of different challenges in a lot of different areas. It definitely kept me on my toes.

Why did you buy a Mr. Appliance franchise?
I wanted to take what I had and organize it better. It occurred to me that in order to get the growth I wanted to see this company have, I would have to get back to the basics and build the company’s foundation the right way. Mr. Appliance offered a lot of support so I could focus on growing the company, not just running it, which I’d done in the past.

How has Mr. Appliance changed the way you conduct business?
It has made our business more efficient. We’ve been able to reduce the office staff and increase the average values of our calls. The Mr. Appliance systems have streamlined our overall operations.

What is the biggest benefit of owning a Mr. Appliance?
There’s not any one specific thing. I think everyone wants to pinpoint one thing that was the turning point for them, but I don’t think that’s true. It’s really just a million little things, and when you put them together, they make the whole package work better. It’s just all the little things that make the difference to me.

What are the biggest challenges in your business now?
Running this business is really a lot less challenging than it was before I bought the Mr. Appliance franchise. My challenge now is getting my business to grow as fast as I want it to. I think we can handle growth at a more rapid pace, so I want to force that to happen as quickly as possible. I think I’m a fairly aggressive individual – I’m never satisfied to think that business is pretty good but could be better. I always want my business to be the best.

What advice would you give to a new appliance repair business owner?
Build it right from the start. I think a lot of entrepreneurs are really focused on their vision of their business and where they want it to be some day. They overlook some essential details and find out too late they should have done some things differently to build the foundation better.

What do you see in the future for your business?
I see some unprecedented growth. I don’t see anything that can keep us from continuing to grow quickly in the future.

How is life outside the office different now?
It certainly is a lot more laid-back and less stressful. I’m not focusing nearly as much energy on running the day-to-day business as I was previously. I’ve got a bit more free time, and I’m more in control of it.

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