Today we’d like to introduce you to Juan Lopez.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I come from a family where both my parents immigrated from Mexico and all they wanted was to give us a good education and live the American Dream. My parents taught us to about hard honest work, yet we were very humble, and God always saw us through, we always had a roof over our head and food on our table.
At the age of 8 I began mowing lawns for my relatives to make money to buy new shoes. Shortly after was when I realized that the harder you work the more money you can make. From then on, every summer I would work with a family member who was needing help. I worked mowing lawns, roofing, fencing, laying brick and framing. I as grew older I focus more on school and graduated high school then attended college. Eventually I found my way to become a paramedic and started working for Dallas Fire Department as a Firefighter/Paramedic. One my days off I would mow lawns and started a landscape maintenance service where I met Bryan. Bryan was one of my regular customers, but he also had a house flipping business which was not doing well, so he reached out to me for an electrician. Little did I know I knew a lot of contractors from all the jobs I worked on growing up. Bryan and I worked on lots of homes together and I learned to become a general contractor. Eventually I would develop enough experience to go on and build custom homes all over DFW. When covid hit the building materials for homes increased dramatically which led me to customers asking for pool and outdoor living projects. For the past 5 years I’ve dedicated most of my time to pools, spas, patios and outdoor kitchens. Now I look back at the 8 yr old kid who was only wanting to buy a new pair of shoes, all those memories of how I started and what I’ve learned throughout the years to build a successful business and give my family a good life, but most of all serve as an example for my kids that being humble, dedicated and hard work will take you places you’ve only dreamed about.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has been a steady incline for the most party but, with construction we face new experiences, challenges and opportunities. The mistakes I’ve made I’ve turned into positive learning experiences. Most of all construction is not all rainbows and unicorns, but if you’re dedicated, always do work in good faith and to the best of your ability, good outcomes will come. I pray every day for good health, for the opportunities we’ve been given and place Jesus first in all my projects, The Lord will always be with us on the good and the bad days.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Caporal Pool and Spa?
Caporal Pool and Spa is a family owned and operated business. I’m a first responder as is my son who helps me manage the business. I would consider my business as a small business. My business specializes in ingound pools and outdoor living. With pools come lots of outdoor projects such as patio extensions, arbors, pavilions, fire pits and outdoor kitchens. I personally meet with customers and listen to their needs and wants. I then take their ideas/dreams and create a custom 3-D design/rendering that includes their home with all the options they chose. Once we get the design perfect then we bring the project to life. When I meet new customers, they are usually referred to me by families I’ve done work for previously. I always get recognized for not only the quality of f work but how efficiently/quickly the projects are operated. My business is known for how efficient i can get projects finished yet deliver a good quality product at a competitive price.
I’m most proud of all my childhood summer jobs and how I’ve used all those experiences to become who I am today. Although I am a small business, I’m living MY dream of taking ideas from pen and paper to dream back yards for my customers. The praises we get from my customers at the end of projects puts a smile on my faith and fills me full of gratitude.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Ther most important thing I’ve learned along the way is being honest. You have to be honest with your customers don’t over promise and underperform. Most importantly be honest with yourself, don’t take on too many projects and don’t take on things you haven’t done before without talking to your team to make sure they have the capabilities to do what’s being asked of you.
Not all projects are good projects, know your limits and learn to walk away from those projects that give you a bad vibe, your instincts will let you know when things are too good to be true.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.caporalpoolandspa.com
- Instagram: #caporalpoolandspa
- Facebook: Caporal pool, spa and outdoor living
