Operating system · Trades & Home Services

Price every paint job for a 48% margin — and stop bidding your crew into a loss.

A banker-grade operating system for a residential and light-commercial repaint contractor: a lender-ready business plan, 17 operating playbooks, and an editable financial model built around the one thing that sinks new painters — the "eyeball" bid that wins the job and loses the money. Most painting businesses fail not because they can't paint, but because they can't price; this bundle replaces the gut number with an estimating engine grounded in square footage, production rates, and spread rate.

What's inside

The real compliance spine, pre-mapped, not generic filler: the California CSLB C-33 Painting & Decorating license threshold — now USD 1,000 of combined labor + materials after AB 2622 (effective 2025-01-01, B&P Code §7048, up from USD 500); the federal EPA RRP lead rule (40 CFR Part 745) firm-certification and Certified-Renovator regime for pre-1978 homes; and the OSHA fall/respiratory/lead/silica standards a painter actually triggers day to day.

An editable financial model you can drive with your own numbers: blended ticket, 48% gross-margin target (crew labor + paint as COGS, owner draw below the line), USD 4,200 fixed base, a ~USD 8,750 break-even, seasonality (1.4× summer / 0.65× winter), and the scale-path math to crew #2 — change a wage or a paint price and watch break-even and profit move.

Painting-specific playbooks, not a "service business" template: a worked estimating engine (production rate × spread rate × margin floor), the dual funnel of high-margin homeowner repaint vs net-30 property-manager/commercial work, the Sherwin-Williams / Benjamin Moore contractor-account channel modeled as a real lead line and credit float, and overspray/water-damage claim prevention.

Who it's for

Built for the owner-operator launching or systemizing a one-crew repaint business who needs a plan a microlender or supplier-credit application will actually take seriously. Instant download, single-buyer license.

Choose your edition

Edition	What's included	Price
Starter	Business plan + financial model + essential playbooks	$149	At launch
StandardMost popular	Plan + model + all 12 core operations playbooks	$299	At launch
Premium	Plan + model + all 17 playbooks (core + growth & scale)	$499	At launch

Please read before purchasing. This product is an informational and educational operating system — a research-grounded business plan, operations playbooks, and an editable financial model. It is not legal, tax, accounting, financial, or investment advice, and using it does not create a professional-client relationship. Bytell Press does not guarantee any specific business, funding, or financial outcome. You are responsible for your own decisions and for consulting a qualified professional licensed in your jurisdiction before acting.