Episode Details

Thank you to our Sponsors!

Basic Capital: https://basiccapital.com/tothepoint

Chiirp: https://chiirp.com/

Contractor Commerce: https://www.contractorcommerce.com/ryno/

Bluon: https://www.bluon.com/get-demo?referral_code=ToThePoint

Avoca.ai: https://avoca.ai/r/tothepoint

In this episode of To The Point, Chris sits down with Ryan Lee, founder of Majestic Outdoor Lighting, business coach, and creator of the Light It Up Expo to unpack what it really takes to build, scale, and systemize a high-margin project-based business.

What started as a hot tub conversation about $4,000 lighting jobs turned into an 8-figure journey in the landscape lighting industry. Ryan shares how he built a profitable company, exited, and now coaches contractors to scale smarter not harder.

But this conversation isn’t just about lighting.

It’s about:

• Turning high-ticket projects into long-term relationships
• Creating lifetime customer value (LTV) in a “one-time sale” industry
• Building recurring revenue in a project-based business
• Leveraging referral networks instead of fighting over Google leads
• Thinking differently about growth vs. profit in the early years

If you’re in HVAC, plumbing, roofing, landscaping, electrical or any home service industry this episode will challenge how you think about scaling and margins.

⏱️ Episode Timecodes

00:00 – Chris kicks off solo + “Sink or Swim” origin story

03:00 – Ryan’s journey from MBA to lighting entrepreneur

08:30 – What is landscape lighting (and why it’s not landscaping)

12:30 – The three pillars: Landscape, Holiday, and Permanent lighting

17:40 – Margins, average ticket size, and real profitability

22:00 – The power of Lifetime Value (LTV) in project-based businesses

25:00 – “Maintenance” vs. “Protection” plans (language matters)

27:00 – Selling wants vs. selling needs in home services

30:00 – How Ryan would build a $1M lighting company from scratch

32:00 – Leveraging referral partners over cold marketing

💡 Key Takeaways

✔️ Average landscape lighting jobs range from $10K–$20K+

✔️ 65% gross margins are achievable in this niche

✔️ 20–30% net margins are possible with strong operations

✔️ Recurring revenue doesn’t always mean subscriptions it can mean retention

✔️ Referrals from adjacent trades can scale you faster than paid ads

Ryan breaks down how understanding customer lifetime value completely changes how much you’re willing to spend on acquisition and how to turn one project into multiple revenue opportunities over time.

📌 Resources & Mentions

• Landscape Lighting Secrets (Ryan’s coaching community)
• Light It Up Expo (Industry event for lighting pros)
• Majestic Outdoor Lighting (Ryan’s former company)

🎯 Who This Episode Is For

• Home service business owners
• Contractors looking to add high-margin services
• Entrepreneurs building project-based businesses
• Anyone trying to scale past the “owner-operator” phase

If you’ve ever thought:

“How do I build real wealth in a project-based business?”

This episode is for you.

🚀 Enjoying The Show?

If this episode helped you think differently about growth and profitability:

👉 Subscribe to the channel

👉 Leave a comment with your biggest takeaway

👉 Share this with another contractor or business