Rebuilt, Rebranded, and Digitally Ready: How NBIC Helped a Veteran Entrepreneur Start Again with Confidence
For more than 20 years, Genma Holmes built Holmes Pest Control on something simple: solving problems others couldn’t. The idea was born when she saw a colleague’s frustration with a rodent issue at a manufacturing plant, and the jaw-dropping bill for an ineffective service.
“If they’ll pay a lot for nothing,” she thought, “what would they pay for someone who gets the job done right?”
That moment sparked a decades-long journey in an industry where reputation matters, but results matter even more.
Yet even with years of experience and a loyal customer base, Genma realized she had fallen behind in one critical area: digital skills. Her business was strong, but her digital presence, systems, and operational infrastructure were outdated.
She was working hard, but not smart, and not sustainably.
A Million-Dollar Challenge That Changed Everything
Genma vividly recalls the moment NBIC’s CEO, Angela Crane-Jones, altered the trajectory of her business forever:
“Angela called me and said, ‘When you’re ready to make a million dollars, call me.’
And I thought… what does that even mean?”
What Angela meant was simple:
When Genma was ready to embrace digital tools, systems, accountability, and the NBIC way of doing business, everything could change.
And it did.
Starting Over as a “Green Tomato”
When the pandemic disrupted her networking-driven, in-person business model, Genma knew she needed more than inspiration, she needed digital upskilling and operational reconstruction.
She describes the moment she joined NBIC’s Foundations program with complete humility:
“I literally went back to, ‘Tell me what a worksheet is. What’s a balance statement?’
I enrolled as if I was a green tomato, willing to start all over.”
NBIC met her exactly where she was.
With each class, she began rebuilding:
- Digital literacy
- Business finance fundamentals
- Online presence management
- Brand clarity & digital marketing skills
- Confidence using digital platforms and tools
Processes she never had in place were suddenly being created. Gaps she didn’t know existed were being addressed. And the business she once ran on paper and instinct was now being rebuilt with digital infrastructure and strategic clarity.
A Digital Wake-Up Call That Became a Turning Point
One of Genma’s most defining NBIC lessons came when she realized another company had hijacked her Google and Yelp listings, misdirecting customers, damaging her credibility, and costing her revenue.
With NBIC’s support, Genma learned how to:
- Claim and control her online business profiles
- Protect her digital footprint
- Reinforce her brand with consistent imagery
- Build targeted digital ads
- Optimize her online customer experience
After taking legal action, she secured a $25,000 settlement, but the real victory was understanding how critical digital tools are for protecting and growing a modern business.
“Immediately, NBIC held me accountable. No excuses. Our livelihood was at stake, and that changed everything.”
This wasn’t just digital adoption…it was digital empowerment.
Reinventing Her Business During a Crisis
When COVID-19 halted business as usual, Genma did something many entrepreneurs are afraid to do:
She pivoted.
Using the same products, she relied on in pest management; she launched specialized disinfecting services, an innovation made possible by the systems and digital strategies she learned through NBIC.
“It felt like starting over. But NBIC made it clear we could do things differently and better.”
Thriving Through Community, Accountability, and Digital Skills
For Genma, NBIC has been more than a program. It’s been a mirror, a motivator, and a mindset shift:
- Accountability: “They were not hearing excuses.”
- Community: “Iron sharpens iron. When you hear others’ stories, you think…If you survived that, I can do this.”
- Digital readiness: She now navigates online branding, digital marketing, financial tools, and operational systems with confidence.
- Motivation: She attends NBIC events not just to learn, but to refuel: “You never know who will show up or what part of their business they’re in.”
The Entrepreneurial Calling
Genma believes entrepreneurship is not a hobby, it’s a calling.
“Do it. Don’t overthink it.
One day becomes five years in the blink of an eye.
Being an entrepreneur is a calling, and you know it when you feel it.”
A Digital-Ready Legacy
Today, Holmes Pest Control stands on stronger footing than ever before.
Not because Genma returned to her old ways, but because she embraced new ones.
Through NBIC, she transformed from a seasoned operator with outdated systems into a digitally capable, strategic, growth-minded entrepreneur ready for the next era of business.
Her company is now:
- Branded with clear, modern digital assets
- Discoverable and reputable online
- Supported by operational and financial digital tools
- Positioned to scale with confidence
And Genma herself is energized by the path forward:
“NBIC gave me the tools, the accountability, and the digital skills to rebuild. I’m not just running a business, I’m running it smarter.”
Holmes Pest Control is no longer just a company that solves pest problems.
It’s a company that has solved the problem of staying relevant, resilient, and ready in a digital-first economy.
