Talking Shop with Mark Martinez of Assemblies Plus

Mark Martinez of Assemblies Plus has made a career of assembling things. Martinez will assemble nearly anything in the home or outside the home -- from bicycles, playground equipment, furniture, lawn mowers and more.

Q: How has your career evolved to get you where you are today?

A: I started working for Huffy bikes. They had an assembly branch setup. When you went into stores like Lowes, Walmart or Sears, you would see items for their product displays out, and I would assemble the displays. I became an area trainer for Huffy to train others how to assemble products quickly and safely.

Q: What made you want to go into business for yourself?

A: I figured I had the tools and knowledge on how to do it, and I figured, "Why not?" I could help people out. I know there are people who need help with assembling things, and I think my service would render them good.

Q: What are some of the challenges of running your own business?

A: Getting started is hard. Financially positioning yourself is hard. Having people to service is a challenge, but once your name is out there, you're more than likely to get some more business. There's a rewarding feeling helping kids. For example, I can go to the Walmart in Sikeston, and knowing I've previously seen the bikes, I'll grab a bike and see it's OK. I can think about children riding and not getting hurt or doing things that would be hazardous. Knowing some children have gotten bikes or people have gotten furniture that have been properly assembled is a big reward.

Q: What are some of the most interesting things you've assembled?

A: Some of the larger-scaled jungle gyms children play on can be a challenge, but there aren't too many things I won't tackle. It is interesting seeing all the pieces of an item before its assembled.

Q: What are some of your long-term goals?

A: I'd like to eventually get to the point where I can service clientele like big stores. That's one of my overall goals. It would put me in a situation where I can focus more on my business rather than work another full-time job, and I can take care of my family. I would like to pick up larger clients. They have more requirements. For example, it takes more money to register with their corporate offices to even be thought about by them.

Q: What motivates you?

A: I want to help out the neighbors and the area. There're a lot of people who don't have time to do what I offer, or don't know how. I've been to houses before that have things that have been sitting in the box in the corner for years. I enjoy helping people who can't do it, like the elderly and anyone else. I'm just starting out as a business, but I'm doing what I previously did before. I'm a maintenance mechanic working on heavy machinery five days a week. I'm looking to establish a history. I thought I'd put myself out there and offer the services. I have the know-how, and I've been certified to train people to safely and properly assemble things. I thought I'd put my knowledge to use and hopefully something good can come of it.