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How This 24 YR Old Tree Service OWNR Grew $400k to $850k
Description
Colby McArthur bought Clifton Tree Service at 22 years old and ran it as a solo owner operator for the first year — climbing trees, answering calls with a headset at 100 feet, estimating on weekends. He finished that year at $400K. One year later: $850K. In this episode, Colby breaks down the three things that drove that growth and what he's focused on as he targets $1.3M in 2026.
What you'll learn:
- Why undercharging is the most common and most costly mistake owner operators make — and how to fix it fast
- The first hire Colby made that changed everything (hint: it wasn't a climber)
- How to build an opener/closer sales model even when you're still in the field
- How Colby uses Claude and ChatGPT to build a pricing tool, estimate from photos, and build SOPs
- What Colby would tell himself at $100K if he could go back
To contact Colby McArthur: colby@cliftontreeservice.com
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