|
 hen
Hurricane Andrew blew through Florida in August
1992, it took a disastrous toll on Dade County residents.
Brenda Hill-Riggins thinks of it as a windfall.
About a year before the hurricane hit, Brenda Hill
met Marcus Riggins, a plumber who had come to fix
her faucet. Little did she know then that one day,
she would marry the plumber and build a business
empire.
"Marcus
wanted his own business. He also wanted to be the
largest plumbing company in the state of Florida.
I told him I could show him how to make a million
dollars," Hill-Riggins says, adding, "Although I'd
never made a million dollars, I knew I could if
I tried."
The
couple launched the Miami-based M.A.R.S. Plumbing
Contractors Inc. in 1992. They immediately found
success by tapping into minority quotas on public
works projects.
"The
first year, we secured a $1 million contract," Hill-Riggins
says.
M.A.R.S.'
first job was for an Army Corp of Engineers project,
setting up trailers for the people left homeless
by Hurricane Andrew. The job paid $13,000. Since
that time, the company has worked on such projects
as the American Airlines Arena, Miami International
Airport, the Raymond James Stadium, and Crandon
Park Marina.
In
2001, M.A.R.S. Plumbing Contractors had revenues
of nearly $5 million and ranked 23rd in the Inc.
magazine list of Fastest Growing Private Inner-City
Businesses in America.
As
president of the company, Hill Riggins handles the
business aspects of M.A.R.S., and her husband manages
the jobs. "The company grew as I planned," Hill-Riggins
says. Because of the business strategy she developed,
M.A.R.S. found success quickly, and experienced
a sales-growth rate of 636 percent over five years.
In
the early years, Hill-Riggins focused on procurement
opportunities, and the company experienced sufficient
growth through 1999, with sales totaling $15 million
over a nine-year period. However, during that time,
the sales average reached the maximum set by the
county Community Small Business Enterprise (CSBE)
program, and M.A.R.S. was forced to graduate from
the program.
In
2000, sales dropped, and it was then that the leadership
of the company began to restructure the business.
"If
we were to continue to grow at such a rapid rate,
M.A.R.S. would be doomed," Hill-Riggins explains.
"We stepped back and took a look at what we had
done well and not so well. Knowing when to overhaul
is critical to success. We are now focusing on growth
management and infrastructure development. Our goal
is to build a strong foundation with a continued
focus on performance."
Hill-Riggins
says the emergence of intense local competition
at a higher level made it clear that M.A.R.S. had
to position itself to form strategic alliances and
take its business to the next level. M.A.R.S. has
prepared itself for the next rung by forming a strategic
alliance with Codina Construction Corporation, a
larger construction company.
Making
Her Own Way
The daughter of a small building
contractor, Hill Riggins grew up in the construction
industry in New Jersey and saw first-hand what the
future could hold.
"I
began working for my father when I was 10 years
old," she says. My father exposed me to the industry
and taught me much about the business. Even then,
I could see that there was money in construction."
Hill-Riggins
also gathered work experience in the insurance and
real estate industries, learning the importance
of product knowledge and how to make cold calls.
In 1991, prior to moving to Miami, she worked as
a state of New Jersey contractor, shopping for handicapped
people living in group homes.
"I
earned $5,000 a week," she says. "It was my first
taste of success."
Like
others who know her, Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce
President Dorothy Baker is a fan of Hill-Riggins.
"Brenda
is a very progressive young woman," Baker says.
"When she sees opportunity, she goes for it. She
is curious by nature, and she loves to learn new
things. She's also tenacious, works very hard, and
is definitely not afraid of challenge. Brenda will
tackle anything to meet her goals. Last year, she
launched her motivational speaking career."
The
success and growth of M.A.R.S. has not been without
struggle. Hill-Riggins speaks about glass ceiling
barriers on every level that have hindered the growth,
expansion and participation of her company and other
minority-owned construction companies in Dade County
economic development.
Although
she doesn't dwell on it, Hill-Riggins says that
sexism and racism are a silent threat to her business.
Even though M.A.R.S. has an excellent reputation
and credit rating, she has been unable to get her
company bonded for more than a $3.9 million single
job. Being bonded for larger amounts would allow
her to bid on larger projects.
"The
glass ceiling is made up of prejudice, self righteousness,
and fear of the strength of other cultures," Hill-Riggins
says. "It was ironic that once we entered into the
strategic alliance with a larger and well-respected
company, the glass ceiling was smashed. I could
feel the pieces of resistance shattering all around
me. I exhaled!"
Like
many other women entrepreneurs, Hill-Riggins faced
a major obstacle - access to capital -
when she started her business.
"Initially,
we didn't have cash to invest or equity to capitalize
on," she says. "I learned early on that what the
company needed was a relationship with a banker."
Building
a relationship with suppliers presented another
stumbling block.
"Miami
is a very diverse community, and each entity only
helps its own," Hill-Riggins explains. "In 1992,
there were no black suppliers that I was aware of,
and this is still true today. We even looked at
trying to purchase a supply house in 1998, but our
efforts were blocked by other supply companies and
competitors."
Hill-Riggins
has learned from the hard knocks she has endured.
At the core of the strategic alliance that MA.R.S.
has formed with Codina Construction is an "arms-length"
contract in the form of an approved U.S. Small Business
Administration's Mentor-Protégé relationship that
will enhance the effectiveness of the competitive
strategies of both companies. The companies' first
project together involves a $50 million bid at the
Port of Miami.
Hill-Riggins
says that, with this new business strategy, she
expects to secure $13 million to $15 million in
revenue by December 2002.
"The
focus of the alliance is on the good of many," she
says. "The underlying philosophy is that there is
sufficient business for everyone, and that by sharing
the pie, it gets bigger, not smaller."
Although
most of the affirmative action programs have ended
for M.A.R.S., there are new programs, such as the
Miami-Dade County Community Small Business Enterprise
program, for which the company is still eligible
- at least for the time being. The Miami-Dade County
program assistance is based upon the gross sales
of the qualifying company, and firms that no longer
qualify "graduate" from the program. That's fine
with Hill-Riggins.
"When
we graduate from these programs, we should be self-sufficient
with a strong infrastructure and have established
relationships with bond agents, bankers, as well
as a list of credentials that would speak for us,"
she says.
The
Secret of Success
So, after all she has faced and
all she has accomplished, what does Brenda Hill-Riggins
think it takes to build an empire? The answer, she
says, is that it takes more than just money.
"It
takes a sense of responsibility to family and community,"
she explains. "It also takes a healthy dose of guts,
vision, a sense of purpose, and a plan."
Her
dreams for the company going forward are as bold
as the accomplishments she has already amassed.
"I
know I've only scratched the surface of what I'm
going to do in Miami," Hill-Riggins muses. "I plan
to secure a contract with NASA (working on the mission
to Mars), and one with the White House in Washington,
DC."
"Of
course," she concludes, "I'll settle for a construction
contract with Oprah."
JUDIE
FRAMAN is senior editor of Enterprising Women
magazine.
|
