Small Business On the Up: Former Olympian Willy Benson's PortaSkip journey in Hawke's Bay
I approached a business mentor who turned into my business partner, just pitching ideas and growing my knowledge. I was running a swimming club at the time and wanted something on the side that was a long way away from swimming. And then I did a few feasibility studies, went back and forth and was pretty happy to come up with PortaSkip.
I saw something similar in Australia. The guys at Bunnings hire out skips, but they were bins on trailers that had to be forked over the back of the truck. Wanting to run a small business, we didn't want to have to invest in that sort of capital, so we came up with our skip bins that have a hydraulic ram underneath.
It just requires a ute, and it can run pretty simply, meaning we could fill a gap in the market that wasn't really there in terms of something a little bit more nimble and mobile.
PortaSkips are perfect for homeowners and landlords who are clearing out a property that requires getting into a tight space.
How was the transition from a life as an Olympian to running a business?
I was lucky that while I was training for the Olympics, I was also at Massey studying a business degree and ended up majoring in business management. So I'm probably one of the few people who actually got out of university and managed to use their degree.
I didn't really know what I wanted to do when I stopped swimming, but I was lucky that I had the tools to go and find things that interested me and challenged me.
I think especially when you're starting a new business, it's a little bit like my swimming, I had a goal to represent New Zealand, and that was four years away, but you've just got to keep chipping away for something. It can seem like a bloody long way away in the future, but if you trust the effort and you're genuine and you keep chipping away, there's a chance that you'll get to where you want to get to.
I think there's a pretty strong crossover between starting a new business and your sporting goals and dreams in that regard.
What was it like working during Cyclone Gabrielle?
It's still unbelievable every day when you drive down the expressway thinking about that thing under water. That was tricky, certainly. My family home that I grew up in was under water, so we're digging silt out of mum's place and pulling out a bunch of our possessions that we grew up with.
Meanwhile, we were running around like maniacs trying to turn around as many skips as we could for everyone trying to get stuff out of their homes and businesses that were under water as well. It was wild, wild stuff and hopefully stuff that I'll never have to see again.
I think honestly coming out the other side of the cyclone and just sitting back and looking at what we were able to do for people, the amount of stuff we moved and being able to see people at the lowest point in their lives and know that you played a little part in just making that super tough time a little bit more manageable for them, I think that's been a big highlight though.
PortaSkip co-founder Willy Benson remembers trying to supply bins for everyone in need following Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawkes Bay.
Where do you want the business to be in the next few years?
I think the biggest piece is just expanding it to other areas, like Palmerston North and Wellington, and to keep it growing.
With any business, it's a challenge to get established, and then once you have an established business, it's like tough to keep that momentum and keep it going and not fall off or just plateau. I think the goal over the next two to five years is to have the business throughout New Zealand.
What would be your advice to other budding entrepreneurs wanting to start a business?
Just do your homework initially and make sure that everything lines up, and then just work hard and trust yourself. There are times when growth is pretty slow going, but if it's genuine and you trust yourself and you've got a good plan behind you, you're most likely going to come out the other side where you want to be.
Having a mentor and having someone to bounce ideas off of and help vet things is massive too, whether that's experience from previous jobs that you can translate into a new business or just along the way having another person to help you troubleshoot when you've hit a wall, I think that's massive as well.
Tom Raynel is a multimedia business journalist for the Herald, covering small business, retail and tourism.
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