Busy routes don't always mean a profitable business, here’s what every pool pro needs to know about their numbers:
Full routes and steady revenue feel like success. But with labor, fuel, chemicals, and equipment costs still rising, more revenue doesn't always mean more money in your pocket. If your costs climb faster than your prices, your margins can shrink without you noticing.
Niki Acosta sat down with Ryan Marcinik, founder of Happy Pool & Spa, Conor Chang, VP of Finance and CPA at Happy Pool & Spa, and Amanda DaSilva, Director of Payments and Expansion at Skimmer, to break down the financial fundamentals every pool service owner should understand. You don't need to be an accountant, you just need to know which numbers to watch.
Key takeaways:
- Aim for 45% gross margin and 20% EBITDA. Ryan's "guiding light" for a healthy service business is at least 45% gross margin and no less than 20% EBITDA. Keep overhead (SG&A) under 15% of revenue, and closer to 10% as you scale.
- Know your true cost of service. A $20/hour tech really costs about $25.30/hour once you add payroll taxes, workers' comp, and benefits. Each truck can add almost $60 a day for the payment, insurance, maintenance, and fuel. If your price doesn't cover that, raise it or let the customer go.
- Small price changes make a big difference. In Conor's example, a 400-pool business charging $160/month is just breaking even. Adding $10 per pool adds $4,000 a month in profit, because overhead stays the same.
- Profit and cash aren't the same thing. Your P&L can show a profit while your bank account runs dry. Bill on the 1st of the month in advance, put customers on autopay, and plan for late-paying commercial accounts.
- Track tech utilization. Happy Pool & Spa expects 75 pools a week per full-time tech and aims for 95% utilization or higher. Since they started tracking it, their gross margin has almost doubled from 25% last fall.
Additional resources:
📈 See Skimmer Bookkeeping in action - book a demo here.
💸 Price Increase Toolkit, everything you need to prepare and communicate a price increase:
- Price increase calculator
- Customer price increase template - per visit
- Customer price increase template - flat rate
Keep the conversation going!
What's one number you check every month to know how your business is doing?