PAINTING with PURPOSE helps homeowners as well as the community
09/13/2024 02:09PM ● By MERYL SIEGMAN
The name says it all: PAINTING WITH PURPOSE doesn’t just paint homes. It’s on a mission to end homelessness in Vermont. It all started during the pandemic, when Zach Dunn, a business major at UVM, and his younger brother wanted to fill the time they had on their hands and earn a few bucks during summer break. With the help and advice of their dad, they started a car washing business. It soon became Dunn Brothers Mobile Auto Detailing, offering home cleaning services for cars, boats, and RVs.
IT STARTED WITH AN INTERNSHIP
As a junior back at college, Zach signed up for an internship with Collegiate Entrepreneurs, the most widely used college painting service in the Northeast. It took only a week before Zach figured out he could go it alone. Before long, he became an apprentice for Job Well Done, LLC, a local painting company in Burlington. It was there that he met Josh Malek, who would become his business partner at Painting With Purpose. Offering exceptional customer service, experienced painters, in-budget pricing, and top- quality results, the company, founded in 2022, has since established itself as Vermont’s premier painting company.
Josh Malek points to a freshly painted house in Milton.IT CONTINUED WITH A LEADERSHIP CLASS
SUCCESS AT LAST
“The first winter was the toughest hurdle,” Zach recalls. “We were new to the industry and had no social media presence, but we pulled every string we could to make it through.” But after bailing the company out with his own money, Zach helped the business thrive. “We structured our company based on the mistakes we made and how to avoid them. We built a clean path from first point of contact through the job being done.”
As of the summer of 2023, Painting With Purpose had completed over 100 projects, contributing a total of $17,700 to their cause to help end Vermont’s homelessness crisis. In addition, the company won the Joy and Jerry Meyers Cup, the University of Vermont Grossman School of Business’s annual initiative to help fund the businesses of outstanding undergraduate entrepreneurs at UVM who profitably contribute to the greater economic, social, and environmental fabric of Vermont.
In August 2024, Painting With Purpose relocated to an upgraded spot on Elm Street in Winooski, sharing space with a home improvement home improvement business, a logistics company, and a Cabot Cold Storage facility. In addition to expanding the office space, Zach and Josh intend to use the 3,000-square-foot warehouse for their operations, including spray-painting small items such as cabinet doors. The office will serve as the venue for conducting interviews, meetings, and demos.
WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS
This ambitious young man wastes no time answering the question of where he plans to take his company, saying “I want to be the company that offers the best employee benefits.” He believes there’s lots of room for growth, musing that, “There are a lot of commercial painters out there unhappy with their jobs, so I’d like to start taking on commercial jobs.”
PHOTOS COURTESY OF PAINTING WITH PURPOSE
