#WhyNotMe – In Discussion with Guy Solomon, Founder & CEO of Penguin Basements

Join us for an inspirational discussion with a young entrepreneur, who learnt from a flawed business venture to adapt his approach; enabling him to build a bigger, better and meaningful business.

Guy Solomon is the 31 year-old founder and CEO of Penguin Basements, Canada’s leading basementrenovation contractor and creator of The Second Suite Solution, a wealth-building strategy designed to help homeowners unlock the value beneath their feet.

A child math prodigy who would astound family and friends by making complex calculations on the spot, Guy worked for his dad’s window company from a young age, learning the business while ultimately earning a degree in Finance and Accounting from Carleton University.

At 24, having been steeped in the industry for years, Guy identified London, Ontario as the ideal market to launch his own windows venture. Within a year, he had built a multi-million dollar operation.  By year two, his company was one of the largest window retailers in Southern Ontario.  Although his enthusiasm was high, a lack of manpower and infrastructure caused the business to falter and fail in the face of such rapid growth.

The experience profoundly affected the young entrepreneur, sparking his determination to build an organization that was grounded and purpose-based versus fuelled by territory growth.  In 2012, after a year of planning and with the support of his father, Guy founded Penguin Basements. His mission: to bring process and professionalism to a burgeoning industry short on both.

To create a supportive and nurturing environment, Guy hired family and close friends to fill key strategic roles.  Applying his hard-won lessons and analytical mind towards creating the ‘perfect machine’, Guy sought to pre-engineer value, quality and efficiency into every aspect of his operation.  Today, Penguin can take homeowners from the pre-build, permit acquisition and materials selection phases right through to the end of construction in five meetings (versus the 18-24 required by typical contractors).  What’s more, every Penguin project is backed by the ultimate customer-centric benefit: a fully transferable, limited lifetime warranty.

Guy’s obsession with delivering value also inspired The Second Suite Solution, a strategy aimed at helping homeowners build wealth by converting their unused basement space into rental income. The Second Suite Calculator, the tool Penguin uses to equip clients with a full understanding of the cost, revenue and resale implications of such a venture, was created and developed by Guy himself.

A charismatic and knowledgeable orator, Guy is a speaker for Renomark™.  He has travelled across southern Ontario addressing consumer and industry groups on such topics as building a real estate portfolio, ethics in contracting, and the future of urban density.

Attuned to the issues facing his generation, Guy enjoys conversing about geopolitics, climate change, Artificial Intelligence and the growing socioeconomic gap within our communities. He unwinds by exercising, playing on the Penguin hockey team, and sampling new restaurants. Guy’s personal goal: to get married before his mother gives up on him for good.

TICKETS ARE FREE BUT LIMITED – To reserve please register at the following EventBrite event page

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/whynotme-in-conversation-with-guy-solomon-founder-ceo-penguin-basements-tickets-38257046857