061: From Waterboy to Biz Owner… How Andrew Didier grew Agora NW.

Background on Andrew Didier Agora Refreshments:

Andrew Didier is the Founding Partner of Agora NW. The company is located in Tukwila, WA (right outside of Seattle). Agora sells bottle-less water systems for institutional break rooms. It also sells coffee and tea, services its machines and accessories, and strives to go over the top with customer service. The Agora team works with each of their customers to create a flexible program that matches client’s needs and budget with the best overall solution. They move companies to an environmentally friendly alternative to plastic bottles, while at the same time impacting their bottom line.

Time-Stamped Show Notes:

[1:16] Andrew is the Owner of Agora NW, a locally owned company that provides premium coffee, break-room supplies and water purification technology.
[2:12] Andrew learned a lot working as a salesperson in a copier company.
[2:30] He quit his job and he and his father started PureWater Technology in Puget Sound Region.
[4:05] Puget Sound is located along the northwestern cost of the State of Washington.
[5:30] Andrew started cold calling, he initially contacted his old copier customers and offered their services.
[6:56] It took him over a month to create an effective approach to get more clients.
[8:40] “Rejection is just kind of the name of the game. And you can’t take it personal, in my opinion.”
[9:38] Andrew believes that the key to being a good salesperson is just a numbers game.
[10:49] The company has 21 employees, in the previous year they did $2.5 million in revenue and projected to make $4.4 million this year.
[11:38] Andrew prefers hiring inexperienced people and influence them to develop into a good salesperson.
[12:25] “You learn something new every time you hire a new person.”
[15:29] His company gathered opinions from customers about the coffee service, asked guidance from people whom are successful in coffee services and developed a program out of those ideas.
[18:45] In his first 5 years, Andrew was embarrassed to tell people that he is offering water services.
[20:25] Andrew’s 2 biggest challenges are:
– Not making enough money to pay the bills.
– Having people that does not have the drive to work hard for the growth of the company.
[23:40] Andrew met a training consultant, who became his mentor, that motivated him and made him realized he wanted to be a manager.
[26:55] “You definitely need someone that you can get learning instructions from as far as how to run a business, how to grow business, how to manage people and how to attract people, I think that’s the biggest thing.”
[27:21] Andrew makes sure that they have a fun working environment to attract people to work for the company.
[30:17] “If you’re onto something and you have a really good idea and you know it’s a winner, you’re going to have those rough days for sure and you’re going to have some rough years, but if you stick with it, it’s going to pay off”.

Fabulous 4 Questions:

📖📚 Favorite Book(s)? American Icon: Alan Mulally & The Fight to Save Ford Motor Company by Bryce Hoffman.
🙌😎 Favorite Amazon.com purchase? Not an Amazon Person.
🌱💸 Favorite Tool that's GROWN your Business? Par Level.
💭💡 BIGGEST Challenge keeping your Business from GROWING? Scaling with the right people.

Key Point from the Interview:

“You learn something new every time you hire a new person.”

Resources Mentioned:

Email: [email protected]
Coffee achievers work water into Mix – Biz Journal
IEA Partner – Andrew Didier
Agora NW – Inc Profile