What does it take to go all-in on a business, grow it faster than expected, and keep looking for the next opportunity?
In this episode of Inside the Box, we sit down with Alex and Nicole of Prime Moovers to talk about the story behind one of Springfield, Illinois’ growing moving companies and everything that has happened since they decided to bet on themselves.
Prime Moovers officially started in May 2024, but the road to launching the company started long before the first truck hit the road. Alex and Nicole share how they met while working in banking, Alex’s eventual move into the moving industry, and the frustrations that ultimately pushed them to build a company of their own. That decision meant putting their house on the line, maxing out credit cards, and figuring things out as they went.
Since then, Prime Moovers has grown quickly, expanded its team, completed moves across the country, and started looking beyond moving alone. Alex and Nicole explain their bigger vision of creating a group of services that can make the entire moving process easier, including junk removal, cleaning, and potentially even more services in the future.
They also take us behind the scenes of the Prime Moovers brand, including how the Highland cow mascot came to life, why branding and marketing were priorities from day one, and how they wanted to create a moving company that felt different from the traditional industry.
The conversation gets into the realities of running a growing service business, from hiring and training employees to seasonal demand, moving regulations, equipment costs, customer service, estimating jobs, packing services, preventing damage, and knowing when to turn down a job. Alex and Nicole also share some of the more unusual things they’ve been asked to move, including a Picasso, hot tubs, pianos, pool tables, gun safes, and more.
Later, we talk entrepreneurship beyond Prime Moovers, including businesses Alex tried when he was younger, the bar Alex and Nicole nearly opened before COVID, their partnership in SmallCakes, and what they’ve learned about operating multiple businesses together as a couple.
From a new 15,000-square-foot location to the possibility of eventually expanding Prime Moovers into another market, Alex and Nicole are still thinking about what comes next.
If you’re interested in small business, entrepreneurship, moving companies, marketing, business growth, customer service, or the Springfield, Illinois business community, this episode offers a candid look at what it takes to build a company while you’re still figuring things out along the way.
00:00:53 – Expanding Prime Moovers into cleaning and additional services
00:02:20 – How Alex and Nicole got started in the moving business
00:04:14 – Going all-in: risking their house and maxing out credit cards
00:05:48 – The surprising regulations behind running a moving company
00:08:50 – Growing the Prime Moovers team and dealing with seasonality
00:10:08 – How the Prime Moovers cow mascot and brand came to life
00:15:12 – The biggest challenges of rapid business growth
00:18:35 – Same-day moves, advance bookings, and making moving easier
00:22:54 – Wild moving jobs, a Picasso, hot tubs, safes, pianos and more
00:28:09 – Prime Moovers’ new location and outgrowing previous spaces
00:35:28 – Long-distance moving and expanding beyond Illinois
00:46:35 – How marketing helped accelerate Prime Moovers’ growth
01:03:48 – Automation, customer service, and how Prime Moovers creates estimates
01:11:03 – Running businesses as a couple and partnering in SmallCakes
01:27:31 – Future growth, potential expansion, operations, and what’s next for Prime Moovers
1 h et 41 min
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50 min