Cameron Robertson of Robertson Rent-All, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Rental: How did you first get your start in the rental industry?
Cameron Robertson: My parents opened Robertson Rent-All in 1992. At the time, the company specialized in homeowner and medium-sized contractor rentals with one location in Orleans, Ontario. My brother and I started working at the shop when we were around 13 to 15 years old, cleaning equipment and helping customers load and unload their vehicles.
Neither of us thought this would be our long-term career. We both wanted to get into the construction industry, and we studied architecture. While we were attending college, we were still working part time for the company and realized that there was some serious potential to expand the small family business. After graduating from college, we decided to work full time for the business, so we took over management.
Rental: Can you give us some insight on your current company?
Robertson: We currently have three locations in Ottawa, which are a 30-minute drive from one another, giving us good coverage over the entire city. Our team of employees includes 50 to 60 people, depending on the time of year. Our fleet consists of compact excavation equipment, AWPs, material handling equipment, lawn and garden, scaffolding, fencing and general tools. We serve homeowners and contractors of all sizes, and we take great pride in our customer service and knowledgeable staff.
Rental: What have been your challenges and successes along the way?
Robertson: Trying to figure out the right way to expand was challenging. In the beginning, we were very hands on and worked a ton of hours helping customers. We wanted to make sure every single customer was getting the best treatment possible, and we wanted to be in full control of that at all times. We also wanted to be cautious and tried to keep things as lean as possible so we could keep investing in new equipment.
We were really able to expand once we realized that we could make ourselves redundant on the front line. We began putting all our effort into training and developing branch managers and salespeople. Over the years, we’ve started hiring some of the best and most experienced mechanics and salespeople in the industry.
Rental: What are you most proud of when it comes to your business?
Robertson: I'm proud of the team we've built and the way I see them interact with customers. We hear it over and over again from our customers and staff that they love dealing with us or working for us.
Rental: What's a tool or technology that's changed your business for the better?
Robertson: We started using Rouse Analytics, which is a software to track equipment utilization and rates. We can compare our rates and utilization with the rest of our market. Because of that, we’re able to make better equipment purchasing decisions and make sure our rates are where they should be.
Rental: What’s your favorite movie?
Robertson: The Shawshank Redemption.
