Miles Tettemer started out "playing in the dirt" - running equipment for various companies and learning the ropes of landscaping and construction. As Tettemer worked for companies in his hometown of Barry's Bay, Ontario, and later in Ottawa, he started to see needs emerge with customers in housing developments.

"Our company wasn't offering driveway sealing for all these new houses," Tettemer says. "So I'd run the backhoe during the day and then I'd work until 8 or 9 o'clock every night sealing driveways."

A driveway sealer was the first piece of equipment that Miles bought. That eventually led to his own business, Crosstown Construction Inc., along with his own crew, new equipment and a growing demand for his work.

In a community of 1,500, Tettemer says word of a great job spreads fast and helps him keep busy in his small town and throughout the Madawaska Valley.

Tettemer says that while advertising his business does help, it is the word-of-mouth advertisement that leads to new customers, new jobs and repeat customers. "If you do a job somebody likes, they bounce the word to their friends and neighbours," he says. "We treat people how we want to be treated; it's a small town, so you really treat them like they're friends."

Miles got his start in landscaping and construction by doing odds-and-ends jobs, and the same approach is still applied in his business today. Tettemer says Crosstown Construction takes on a variety of jobs, including Landscaping, Excavating, Lot Development, Tree Removal, Property Maintenance, Septic Systems, Paving, Concrete Work, Foundation Repair, Mobile Power Washing, Snow Removal and more. "Stuff like that is definitely our forte", he says. "There's a demand for it and we really enjoy it."