Wired for National Women’s Small Business Month
In honor of National Women’s Small Business Month, Bear Rock Electric, Inc. (BRE) celebrates women small business owners everywhere. It is their hard work and entrepreneurial spirit that are integral parts of the bedrock of the American economy.
Today, women own 7.8 million businesses in America, with the number of women entrepreneurs growing by more than 20% between 2002 and 2007.
BRE’s own founder and CEO, Nicole C. Close is one of those women that the U.S. Small Business Administration has designated October to celebrate. As head of one of the area’s most regarded, customer-friendly electrical contractors in a very male-dominated business, Close knows what it takes to create and run a successful enterprise, balancing budgets, making payroll, and creating jobs. She built her company from the ground up, establishing a flexible and dynamic business philosophy, while identifying cost effective strategies for her customers.
Woman-owned and veteran operated, BRE is an electrical contractor that can meet all residential and commercial electrical needs. Whether it’s digging trenches to provide electricity to a garden shed or wiring a hot tub and spa, or rewiring a home’s electrical structure, or even installing light switches, Close stresses “no job is too small.” Bear Rock Electric can handle any project. We are all aware that power outages are problems that plague home owners in both summer and winter. BRE is able to provide peace of mind in these extreme weather seasons by installing and maintaining dependable generators. BRE is an authorized Generac Dealer, and offers whole house, portable and leasing options.
Both Nicole’s grandfather and father were electricians, and given the lack of available jobs for electricians in the current economy, Close founded BRE to help create more employment opportunities in the local area. BRE also has a strong link to our veteran and military families as her father, both grandfathers and her great-grandfathers all served in the United States Military, as well as many of her family members and employees.
A big reason for BRE’s success is that Close insists that every project be completed by highly trained and experienced electricians. All of the electricians that she hires are from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 26. Each IBEW electrician participates in a minimum five-year training apprenticeship, which includes 800 hours of instruction first and 8,000 hours of on-the-job training.
Having been named the 2011 Entrepreneurial of the Year for Women in Technology, Close certainly has the track record for her endeavors, and Bear Rock Electric has become the go-to company for first-rate, reasonably priced electrical work with outstanding customer service.
