The COVID-19 pandemic is probably the scariest thing facing you, your family, and your cash flow right now. These are extraordinary times with every industry being affected, and business owners are being hit extra hard. The world of commerce will be forever changed.
If you are a forward thinking entrepreneur or considering becoming one, you are probably already figuring out ways to make up for the lost revenue once this thing goes away. Fortunately, there are some types of businesses that do well in recessions and Christmas light installation services is one of them due to several key behaviors:
1. People desire experiences rather than material possessions because people feel experience differentiates them. So, anything that can enrich their next holiday season will be looked upon more favourably. This of course includes Christmas lights.
2. People seek simplicity. As you know, installing Christmas lights can be deceivingly complicated, especially when your soon-to-be client’s cheap store-bought product is failing. Offering a simple and clear Christmas light installation service meets this demand.
3. People often spend more time at home during recessions and therefore want to enjoy their home more. Decorating it at Christmas greatly enhances this enjoyment and as we all know, that is already happening with the #lightsforlife movement.
4. Families celebrate the holiday spirit more intimately because they want to give more thanks for what they do have. A by-product of this is more lights hung on homes.
5. People are more risk-averse, which includes limiting the physical risk of climbing a ladder to hang lights. It’s times like these that homeowners will leave ladder work to professionals like you.
We operated a successful Christmas light installation business through the last recession in 2008 and 2009 and not once did we ever hear the “R” word. In fact, the business grew. Granted that some commercial clients like hotels and restaurants held onto their cash tighter, it was the residential installations that had an uptick in demand. Admittedly, this recession is forecast to cut much deeper than the last, but it will also be much shorter. Therefore, the behaviors listed above will be even more prevalent and provide a great opportunity to make up for lost ground in 2020.
For businesses such as painting, window washing, gutter cleaning, pressure washing, or landscaping, our thoughts are with you during this difficult time as we enter your peak season. However, where there’s a loss, there’s also an opportunity. Take this new-found time for reflection while waiting out the pandemic and consider shifting your focus slightly for the next year.
If you've recently lost your job and are looking for ways to supplement your income, consider hanging Christmas lights either part-time or full-time in 2020. The barrier to entry and financial risk are extremely minimal.
If you are established in the Christmas light installation business already, make this your biggest year yet. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how eager customers are to get their lives back to normal in the months leading up to Christmas and they’ll be looking for you to help them celebrate.
How Big Star Lights is Responding
We are forecasting the upcoming season to be almost as busy as originally planned. This is because a lot of the end-users of Christmas lights are homeowners exhibiting the recession induced behaviors above. Commercial spaces also have a significant amount of revenue to make up for and there’s no better way of attracting shoppers, once robbed of life’s certainties, by offering a warm and joyous atmosphere that makes COVID-19 seem like a distant memory in the same way their parents or grandparents spoke of the Great Depression.
Due to commitments with our factories, we will be keeping a very healthy supply to meet what we feel will be a similar demand for product had there not been a pandemic. You can count on us to offer the same great product (plus some new ones) at the same competitive prices from the same experienced staff. It will be business as usual at Big Star Lights come this season.
AVOID COSTLY MISTAKES! Contact a Personal Pro-Installer Consultant
Our talented and experienced consultants have worked for many years as professional Christmas light installers themselves in the most demanding projects. They’ve made expensive mistakes that you’ll have the luxury of avoiding. Our consulting team is available to answer business questions, technical questions, help pick which products to order and start the season out with, and more. Don’t know how many lights to put in a tree for a certain look? Simply send a photo of the tree and we’ll tell you! Our consultants will be one of your greatest assets, particularly if you are just starting out, and they will ensure that you achieve the most success from the very beginning via phone, on-line chat, or in person at our Vancouver, Canada warehouse all season long.
So make 2020 not just the year of COVID-19, but the year you ‘sleigh’ Christmas with holiday lights!