SmallBiz: Outdoor lighting company brightens homes and businesses

Friday, January 1, 1904

photo Davis Woody, left, watches Joe Bozich, owner of Outdoor Lighting Perspectives, install landscaping and architectural lighting at a home in Harrison. The company was wiring and positioning more than a dozen outdoor lights in front of the Pierpoint Drive home in Harrison.

Name: Outdoor Lighting Perspectives

Contact information: 423-710-8645, chattanooga@outdoorlights.com, www.chattanooga.outdoorlights.com

Products/services: Energy-efficient, environmentally friendly outdoor lighting installation and maintenance for homes and businesses. The business also designs, sets up, takes down and stores holiday lighting.

Cost: A lighting system for the average home costs between $2,000 and $3,500.

Age: Owner Joe Bozich brought the franchise to the area last year.

Startup investment: Less than $100,000

Why get lighting? Residential customers get lighting systems to create outdoor living spaces, highlight landscaping and increase safety and security. Business customers are often looking for increased security and an energy-efficient alternative to traditional lighting. Outdoor Lighting Perspectives offers LED and other energy-efficient lighting options that are more expensive to install, but pay for themselves in energy savings over a few years.

Lesson learned: Networking is important not just for finding new customers but for anticipating problems and avoiding mistakes. "You can't do it all yourself," Bozich said. "You have to delegate. You have to also listen to others and rely on people for advice and direction."

Franchise benefits: Bozich owns the franchise rights for Outdoor Lighting Perspectives from Charleston, Tenn., to Kennesaw, Ga. Buying a franchise costs a little more money up front, but Bozich said using a successful, established system helps him avoid problems. "It pays for itself," he said. "The amount of support I'm getting from them, it's totally worth it."