5 Principles for Building a Business That Thrives When the Economy Doesn't

These five principles helped me grow my business during one of the worst recessions in our lifetimes.

- BY MIKE FEAZEL

Tough economic times are scary for businesses and consumers, but the solution isn't to take your foot off the gas. I opened the first Roof Maxx dealership in 2019, just one year before the Covid-19 pandemic. Today, it's a nationally recognized residential roof restoration brand with an annual revenue of nearly $200 million in 2025.

Here are five key principles I used to guide my business decisions during those difficult years.

1. ESSENTIAL PROBLEMS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN ASPIRATIONAL ONES

A lot of founders focus on flashy, dramatic solutions that dominate headlines, like getting humanity to Mars or being the first to create AGI. But sometimes, those are solutions to problems that don't really exist — or at least, that don't exist urgently for everyday people.

Most people aren't worried about whether they'll ever set foot on the surface of the red planet. They're worried about what will happen to this planet in their lifetimes, because they're worried about their homes.

So when my brother Todd and I started our business, we didn't shoot for the moon — or Mars. We focused on helping people extend the lifespan of their asphalt shingle rooftops and avoid the waste created by replacing them prematurely. It was a simple problem, but one we saw impacting homeowners all over America. That meant we had a nation full of target customers from the start.

2. AFFORDABLE ALTERNATIVES TO BIG-TICKET ITEMS CAN CREATE NEW MARKETS

One of the biggest challenges we faced during those early years was that no market existed for our product. Roof restoration already existed in commercial roofing, but it was for metal and flat roofs only. Everyone in the residential space was selling replacements at the time, and there was no alternative for asphalt shingles until we invented one.