The long game in the fence business

It’s 2025, and Texas Deck & Fence is about to celebrate its 3rd birthday.

Starting a fence company from scratch has been one of the more humbling and rewarding experiences of my life.

To explain what it's really like, let me break it down through the lens of Porter’s 5 Forces (yes, I’m still a business nerd at heart):

Industry Rivalry: HIGH
Everyone and their cousin builds fences.
Most play the race-to-the-bottom pricing game.

Supplier Power: LOW
Plenty of material suppliers.
No one really has a chokehold.

Buyer Power: HIGH
Fences last 10+ years and buyers hate spending money on them.
They shop around.

A lot.

Substitute Products: LOW
It’s wood, metal, or brick.
That’s it.

Threat of New Entrants: EXTREMELY HIGH
All it takes is a guy with a truck, hammer, saw, and a measuring tape.
Welcome to the game.

So why get into a business like this?
Because I love building things.

Here’s a little perspective:
If you saw a $100 bill on the ground, would you stop and pick it up?

If yes, then you understand my mindset.

I don’t win every fence job.

Honestly, I lose more than I win.

My pricing is fair compared to companies like mine… but high compared to “the yard guy” who’s quoting fences between mowing lawns.

That’s okay with me.

This year I’ve only done a handful of fences.

The one in these pictures?

Over 600 feet of cedar with chain link and a 2x12 rot board.

No, it didn’t make me a millionaire, but I hit my day rate.

We delivered quality, and the customer was happy.

That’s a win.

That’s the long game.

No telling what tomorrow will bring, it could be a fence, it could be a house, it could be a hospital...... we have to wait and see.