Imperial Forces
The truly ambitious entrepreneur has but one goal, one drive, one prime motivating factor: the desire for empire.
Brenda L. Hill-Riggins was waiting in line for food stamps in
1992 when she got the news that her Miami plumbing firm had won its
first big contract. Unfortunately, her staff wasn't big enough
to supply the 10 people the client needed. No problem. Hill-Riggins
pulled two people out of the welfare line and hired them on the
spot.
An auspicious way to start an empire? Maybe not. But
Hill-Riggins cleared $2 million in 2001 and expects a series of
high-profile contracts to pan out this year to the tune of $9
million. "I have the vision to grow this company, and I'm
the type of person who wants to win," says the 43-year-old
president and co-founder (with husband Marcus A. Riggins) of
M.A.R.S Plumbing Contractors Inc., which has moved past
leaky-toilet calls into installing plumbing systems for the Tampa
Bay Buccaneers' Raymond James Stadium and the Miami Heat's
AmericanAirlines arena.
A divorced mother who didn't finish high school,
Hill-Riggins proves it doesn't take an MBA or an entrepreneur
in the family to build an empire. What does it take? If you said
"money, money, money," you'd be wrong. If you said
"guts, vision and a plan," you'd be closer.
Content Continues Below
While there isn't an exact formula for empire-building
(though wouldn't it be nice if there were?), we've mapped
out some guidelines for you to follow, as well as posted some
warning signs about the kind of bumps you might encounter on the
road to success.
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