From Wall Street to Water-Damage Warrior: How John Majeski Scaled Four SERVPRO Franchises—and Aims to Top the Northeast by 2034
- S3E202
- 43:13
- May 15th 2025
Lifeguard buddies turned blue-collar founders Jason & Jeremy Julio reconnect with longtime friend John Majeski—once a Manhattan finance analyst, now the force behind four thriving SERVPRO franchises across New Jersey. John breaks down the gritty first three-year slog, the culture playbook that powers his team, and the BHAG that keeps everyone rowing: “Be the #1 SERVPRO in the Northeast by 2034.
You’ll hear:
- Career 180° – ditching Wall Street for sewage back-flows and never once looking back.
- Buying, Not Building – why acquiring an eight-month-old franchise beat starting from scratch.
- The ‘World’s Strongest Man’ Analogy – John’s trick for pushing past those brutal year-one cash-flow dips.
- Decentralized Command – Jocko Willink–inspired leadership that lets techs solve problems in real time.
- KPIs That Matter – estimate-conversion, labor spend, and the charity challenges that magnetize talent.
- Road to #1 – four territories in Monmouth, Bergen & Hudson Counties—and the expansion filter he uses before every new deal.
Stick around for Dylan’s quick CTA to Paul Giannamore’s Private-Equity Masterclass playlist—before you sprint, paddle, or pedal to your own big, hairy, audacious goal.
From PE Teachers to Pest Control Owners: The Julio Twins Share Their POTOMAC Experience
https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulgiannamore
Produced by: www.verbell.ltd
Timestamps (podcast.co-ready)
00:00 – Cold-open: John on culture (“You’ve got a culture whether you admit it or not.”)
00:35 – The Blue-Collar Twins’ welcome their “lifeguard brother” to the Buzz
01:40 – 28-year friendship recap: beach stands to boardrooms
02:30 – Finance burnout & the call to entrepreneurship
04:00 – Picking SERVPRO over Rainbow & PuroClean: brand power wins
06:00 – Mentor Larry Levy’s push: “Quit, build something of your own”
08:00 – Year-one reality check: 7-day weeks, $1.5 k left in the bank
11:00 – Acquiring an eight-month-old franchise (father bails sons out)
12:00 – Fire, water, mold 101—explaining restoration to homeowners
14:00 – Delegation pains and the first full-time hires
15:30 – Sandy & other storms: moments that forced scale-ups
16:10 – Learning on the fly: history major → KPI geek
18:30 – Athletics → entrepreneurship: training, planning, grit
21:00 – Community marketing: beach clean-ups, charity paddles, Eli Manning match
22:45 – Extreme-challenge rundown: 17-mile paddle, 216-mile bike, next 100-mile ultra
27:00 – Four-franchise footprint; city-versus-suburb logistics
29:30 – Building culture: decentralized command & trust lattices
33:40 – BHAG revealed: #1 SERVPRO Northeast by 2034
38:00 – Exit philosophy: build it right and every option stays open
39:00 – Most fulfilling metric: techs who go from basement to first home
40:30 – Core KPIs: estimate conversion & labor as % of sales
41:40 – Wrap-up, Paul's Masterclass CTA & closing credits
The Boardroom Buzz: Grow, Sell, or Exit
Boardroom Buzz is the straight-talk playbook for owners who built their service businesses from the crawlspace up and want to master the next move—whether that’s doubling down on growth or preparing for a life-changing exit.
Hosted by Jason & Jeremy Julio—“The Blue-Collar Twins” who turned a service-truck start-up into a multimillion-dollar success—and mentored by veteran deal-maker Paul Giannamore, the show turns boardroom finance into stories you’d swap over a tailgate. Expect 40-minute deep-dives that unwrap one real transaction and one valuation lever you can pull today, plus quick “Market Pulse” riffs that flag shifts every operator should watch.
If you’re a majority or significant-minority owner eyeing the $5 M–$100 M revenue range, tune in for gritty war stories, step-by-step tactics, and the confidence to choose your own endgame. New episodes every Thursday. Presented by POTOMAC M&A.