Meredith Shines the Spotlight on…Mina Fies
Name: Mina Fies
Business Name: Synergy Design & Construction
My husband and I believe that everyone should Renovate Happy™. We launched Synergy D&C at the height of the recession in 2008 committed to making a difference in the residential and commercial design and remodeling business. As a premier Design/Build firm serving Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia, we have already garnered recognition through several Master Design and Contractor of the Year awards and have been featured on HGTV’s “Bang for your Buck.”
Our mission is to be the most trusted renovation and design firm in the industry, committed to excellence in customer service and innovative strategies for remodeling success. We use our proprietary Renovation Roadmap™ to help clients create the design, and plan for the exact costs, timelines, and schedules, resulting in a seamless renovation that is on time and on budget.
Tell us three words that describe yourself:
Adventurous, creative and hard-working
Who are your mentors and why?
Dottie Allen was my first boss. She was the new HR Manager and I was a “floater secretary” for a defence contractor. She met with me, asked me about my passions and goals I wanted to achieve, then proceeded to tell me that no one should be a “floating” anything. She promoted me to her assistant, gave me a $5k raise and taught me the value of self-worth hard work and how to treat people with disabilities as equals.
My grandmother. She raised me since the age of 9 and taught me how to believe in myself and that anything was possible. Most importantly, she gave me the freedom to find my way, make my own mistakes, and always had my back when I faltered.
What’s next for your business?
Continuing to grow our team and increase production capacity. I am completing my book called “The Renovation Roadmap” and will focus on the speaking, training and consulting side of my business.
Current business challenge:
We have been blessed with an influx of business and are thrilled to be working on some of the largest projects to date. The challenge is learning to balance the work load and to know when to hire the next team member.
What are your thoughts on how you view your competition?
I believe it’s important to maintain an attitude of abundance. There are plenty of projects out there for all of us and it’s important that every client be a fit for the contractor they choose. When we come across a project that would be better suited for our competition, we refer directly to them. It’s all about how we as collegues can work together to elevate our industry and be the best we can be.
How do you live your brand?
My passion is the home. Although my company is focused on residential and commercial renovations, for me it is much more than that. Creating a space that nurtures your soul and fuels the energy of your family is the most important thing we can do. I am always talking to women about making sure they have their own space (I call it their “spot”) within their home where they can read a book, journal, meditate or just listen to music. It’s not always about replacing your kitchen countertops, it’s really about creating a place where you can ground yourself and gather your thoughts in the midst of a busy day. I live that everyday in my own home so that I can pass on that passion to others.
Favorite way to build buzz, create celebrity and change the world:
Speaking and writing! I cannot imagine a better way to get your message out to the world, allowing you to expand your reach and make a difference with more than just your local market. I’m also a huge fan of press releases, they create great website traffic and have opened up doors to larger opportunities I never saw coming.
Best business decision:
To invest in our website and branding from day one. We spent 3 months developing our brand before we even opened the doors. We knew it would be a competitive edge against our competition and would allow us to tell our story and our mission to the world.
Hardest lesson learned:
Walk before you can run and take the advice your peers are giving you. Early on, we felt we needed to hire a highly compensated employee to our team, even though we were just starting to have the business to support it. Against the advice of a very seasoned executive, we decided to bring the person on and six months later decided to part ways. We were struggling to support the salary and she was not being challenged with the work she wanted to do. It was a very costly lesson, but one we vowed never to repeat.
Guilty pleasure: Popcorn. I know it sounds harmless, but I could eat it 7 days a week and usually crave it right before bed.
Favorite hobby: Golf
Favorite book or movie – Why?: “Seat of the Soul” by Gary Zukav. It helped me undertand myself and others in a whole new way – finally realizing there was nothing to “fix” about myself and those around me.
Pet peeve: Inconsiderate people who can only focus on themselves and the trivialities of life.
For lunch today: Quinoa salad with sesame dressing
Snow or Beach: Beach
Pen or Pencil: Pen (but NEVER with black ink)
Lastly, where can we find out more about you?
Web Site: SynergyDandC.com
Twitter: @SynergyDandC
Facebook: facebook.com/SynergyDesignandConstruction
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/minafies
You Tube: youtube.com/user/synergydandc
© 2012 Meredith Liepelt, Rich Life Marketing
Meredith Liepelt is a Brand Strategist specializing in creating visibility for experts. For branding and marketing insights, challenges and inspiration, visit www.RisingStarPublicity.com.
This article may be reprinted when the copyright and author bio are included.
The best business decision I have maid is to open my Trenton, NJ roofing company. I was a challenging time doing the first two years. But after that is gets easier. I am 30 years in the business and still going strong.
I like how the best decision was investing into the brand and seeing the success and progress from that. Starting a business and knowing what to do is very complicated.