Burton’s new venture is Getter, a startup that could fundamentally change the way trade supplies are sourced and a My Business since July 2020. 

Burton describes the concept as “the Uber Eats of tools”, providing tools and supplies to building sites on demand. Here, he discusses the risks and rewards of forging a new path unfettered by expectations.

How did you arrive at the Getter concept?

Working with my brother, I got to know a lot of people within building and trade. Then 18 months ago, a group of our business partners were complaining about how hard it was to procure supplies for a solar job they had in Sydney. Everything they needed was way out west, so if they placed an order on Tuesday, they’d be lucky to get half of it on Thursday.

You really had to plan in advance and allow for mistakes by distributors and suppliers, it just wasn’t very efficient. We decided there had to be another way. Why couldn’t we get an Uber Eats-style delivery? And the concept was born.

How quickly were you able to go from concept to execution?

We soon discovered the concept didn’t exist at that point in Australia, but we saw such a need for it. It made sense to give it a go, so we had no hesitation.

We put together a basic website which got a lot of interest. Then, we released an app in August 2019 to make it even easier to order. We’re now about to release our third iteration, and we’ve got a 50,000 item-strong product range that’s entirely located in Australia, deliverable by localised drivers specific to suburbs.

Last June, we were running around picking up supplies for the businesses we already worked with. Now, we have a client base of 600, with two to three new customers each day.

What was the greatest challenge in the beginning?

Educating the market was by far the biggest hurdle we faced. When you’re a brand new company trying to convince an industry very set in its ways that you’ve got gold, it’s difficult.

But we worked hard to get the message out: that Getter was more efficient, and we’d save them time and money. Now we can offer customers the choice of our affiliate wholesalers or their own suppliers which makes it easier to sell the concept.

In fact, for the last three months we’ve had a competitor! And honestly, we welcome the help to change the industry’s behaviour, because that’s too big a job for one company.

What was the biggest gamble you took and did it pay off?

The gamble was deciding to go beyond the initial tool taxi service concept and actually source and supply the goods. Our adversary board and some of our business partners said changing the way builders bought was too big a step to take.

We said it wasn’t, and we’ve been hugely successful proving it. It was a gamble to think we could approach an established industry and ask “Would you buy from us?”. Now, we have customers that rely on us.

How do you feel about the change in career?

I love it. I’ve never felt more engaged. It’s so much better to run a startup than to be a part of a corporate giant. It’s just so much fun.

And I’ve got no regrets, even if it fails. What I would regret is not having done it.

What is the most important lesson you learnt along the way?

Due diligence is crucial. You have to be able to map things out. Have a plan, have clear goals. The rigidity in planning I’d learnt in banking was useful – but it’s important to find the balance of rigidity and fluidity.

Did that lead to any mistakes?

The biggest mistake I made was surrounding myself with too many marketers because I had little marketing experience and such a steep challenge ahead. It ended up being a case of too many cooks, meaning too many opinions, and I felt like I was in the supermarket without a shopping list.

The marketing budget can vanish so quickly, it’s easy to burn through cash and get zero results, and all because you don’t know. But we’ve got into a much better rhythm since then.

What’s your advice to others aiming to do something that’s never been done?

Firstly, figure out a way to test your concept on a genuine customer for minimal cost. You might have a bleeding-edge idea, but if no one wants to use it, who cares?

Secondly, surround yourself with people who have skills you don’t. Get yourself a mentor and a good accountant – and ask a lot of questions.