National Small Business Week
The Greenhouse joins in the national effort to acknowledge, appreciate, and uplift small business owners in our community. For National Small Business Month, we are excited to highlight students making waves in our current Entrepreneurial Academy cohort.
Meet Mark Trujillo with Home Smiles Tampa Bay:
GH: Tell us a little about yourself and your business!
MT: HomeSmiles Tampa Bay provides preventive annual maintenance to property managers, real estate agents, tenants, and homeowners. We provide peace of mind so that your house and family are safe even if you lack experience in home maintenance. Having worked with senior healthcare, I know ladder and home improvement accidents are common. I’ve also seen more of our younger generation who don’t want to spend time learning to care for houses. HomeSmiles provides the one-call/one-click solution for home maintenance at any age. As a father of 4 children, I love that this business will give people more time with those they love.
GH: What inspired you to start your business/What is your “why”?
MT: I’ve seen first hand the challenge of finding maintenance professionals and I’ve seen my own time with family limited by tackling DIY home improvement projects. HomeSmiles unlocks the joy of home ownership by minimizing the headaches of home ownership. My ‘why’ is to strengthen relationships, in the community, among co-workers, and in the home. I trust my business will directly impact the relational and financial well being of our community by providing excellent, time saving services.
GH: What advice would you give to others looking to start/grow their business?
MT: Look up Ikigai, it is a Japanese term that describes the sweet spot between who you are, what you are passionate about, and what the world needs. Make sure your business achieves both and don’t settle for a business that just makes money or just allows you to pursue your passion. Keep reading and researching until you find something that will check all your boxes.