Introduction
If you dropped a new moving company into a mid-sized market like Omaha, Nebraska, tomorrow with just one truck and a small budget, could it survive? Better yet, could it completely dominate the market?
Jaron Steen and his brother Merrick did exactly that. In this live episode of Movified Mondays, recorded at the Titan Mastermind retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona, host Mark Hirschi sits down with the founders of 10 Men Movers. They unpack the exact moment a seemingly crazy logistical idea completely disrupted the local moving industry, why avoiding the “race to the bottom” is critical, and how they built a referral network so strong that they never have to rely on traditional paid advertising.
Key Takeaways
What You’ll Learn:
- How sending 5 to 10 movers on a residential job actually expedites the process and saves the client money.
- Why you should never hire off an Indeed listing, and where to find the best talent instead.
- The danger of toxic business partnerships and how one bad decision almost bankrupted the company.
- Why speaking poorly of your competition is the fastest way to lose high-end clients.
Table of Contents
- The Genesis of the 10 Men Niche
- Building a Bulletproof Referral Network
- The Threat of Bad Partnerships
- The Golden Rule of Competition
- Why Movified Preserves These Industry Stories
- Conclusion
The Genesis of the 10 Men Niche
Like most moving companies, Jaron started with just “two guys in a truck” operating a standard, gruelling model. However, as the workload became too heavy for his small four-to-six-man team, he had an epiphany while looking at his company’s logo.
Instead of sending two guys to lag the clock and suffer through an exhausting, all-day move where damages typically occur, Jaron decided to flip the script. He began deploying massive teams of 5 to 10 highly trained movers to every job. By overwhelming the logistics of the move, his crews were able to arrive at 7:00 AM and finish a massive house or apartment complex by noon. This premium, white-glove “swarm” strategy saved his clients time and drastically reduced fatigue, allowing 10 Men Movers to operate for over seven years without a single insurance claim.
Building a Bulletproof Referral Network
If 10 Men Movers lost all their marketing tomorrow, they wouldn’t panic—because they barely rely on it.
Jaron built his business strictly through aggressive networking and word-of-mouth referrals. Rather than pumping money into Google AdWords, he leveraged his background as a bartender to physically introduce himself to people across Omaha, handing out business cards everywhere he went. He specifically targeted high-end mortgage lenders and elite real estate brokerages, eventually becoming their preferred vendor.
To build a workforce that matched this high-end expectation, Jaron avoided standard job boards like Indeed. Instead, he actively recruited strong, energetic guys directly from local gyms, treating the hiring process more like assembling a basketball team than running a standard HR department.
The Threat of Bad Partnerships
While the company is highly successful today—running 8 trucks with 30 movers—it almost collapsed in its fifth year.
Jaron candidly admits his biggest mistake was getting into business with the wrong partner. Because he was young and failed to properly define roles, expectations, and the company’s future, the resulting internal friction almost bankrupted 10 Men Movers. Jaron warns other owners that choosing a business partner is as serious as a marriage; if you misalign your values and work ethic, it can tear apart everything you have built.
The Golden Rule of Competition
Many aggressive business owners believe that dominating a market requires publicly crushing their competition. Jaron vehemently disagrees.
Even when competitors spread false rumors about 10 Men Movers (claiming their trailers were small or their speed was a lie), Jaron refused to retaliate. He argues that speaking badly about your competition is “like venom”—if a high-end client hears you trashing another business, they will immediately assume you will talk poorly about them, too. 10 Men Movers maintains a culture of aggressive growth while simultaneously wishing their competitors the best, proving that you do not need to tear others down to take the number one spot.
Why Movified Preserves These Industry Stories
Movified exists to document the knowledge that textbooks miss.
Hosted by Mark Hirschi, the show dives into the tools, technologies, and realities of running a modern moving business. Movified’s value lies in:
- Honest conversations about near-bankruptcy, bad partnerships, and personal accountability.
- Proven strategies from innovators who have found unique niches, like the 10-man swarm tactic.
- Lessons earned through real-world execution, ensuring the next generation of movers does not have to learn everything the hard way.
Conclusion
Great moving companies are not built simply because they exist in massive metropolitan markets. They are built because the people leading them make intentional, sometimes radical decisions every day. Whether it is completely flipping the traditional labor model to prioritize speed and safety, abandoning digital ads for aggressive face-to-face networking, or treating a small Midwestern city with premium, white-glove respect, success always comes down to execution. By focusing on their own operations and ignoring the negativity of their competition, 10 Men Movers proves that a relentless commitment to culture will always win the market.
