Sonovus Energy

Q&A With Sonovus Energy owners, Juan & Carlo Menchaca

Saul Perez: Hello gentlemen! You invited me to come by and ask you tough questions. I couldn’t pass up this opportunity simply because I am intrigued by your story. I don’t think I’m tough enough, but I will be objective and ask thought provoking questions. So why don’t you say we get started?

Juan Menchaca: Let’s get going.

Carlo Menchaca: Come on with it.

Saul Perez: Alright fellas, lets get personal. Tell me about yourselves or something that most people don’t already know about you?

Juan Menchaca: My brother and I are first generation born Mexican-Americans and we were both born and raised in the inner-city of Fort Worth. We grew up in the North-side of town and in the 1980’s it was a dense Mexican community stricken with poverty, violence and drugs. Our parents did an amazing job shielding us from that environment and they taught us the importance of having a moral compass.

Carlo Menchaca: In retrospect, its easy to identify that we lived in poverty, but at the time, as a young and impressionable young kid, I never really noticed it. Our parents always worked hard for us and through that hard work, they definitely taught us that hard work always pays off. At the same time they always preached to us that education was extremely important. The real lesson for me was that in this life we have the option to either work hard or not, either way, in the end, we will get what we deserve.

JM: We are definitely lucky to be raised by two hard working parents and we owe it to them and to ourselves to create something that we can all be proud of. We also have a tremendous pride representing the city that shaped us to be who we are today.

SP: There is no doubt that starting a small business has its set of challenges. Not only are you guys a startup business, but you are involved in a relatively new but growing industry. What experiences or business background do you have that brought you to the idea of owning your own business?

JM: I have been passionate about the renewable energy industry and officially joined the solar revolution in 2015 by working with Solarcity/Tesla. Over the course of my professional career with Solarcity/Tesla, I started as an installer, then a roof lead, and worked hard to become a crew lead. As a member of an installation crew, I installed over 12,000 panels on roof tops across Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex, Colorado, and New Mexico. I also had the privilege of Project Managing the Sheppard Air Force Base 1.2MW project (4200 solar panels) while at Tesla. I am inspired by my old boss Elon Musk and shares his passion and vision of the future for all humanity. My true passion is to the environment and want to utilize all available technologies to get us all to a more sustainable model of energy production. I have had the honor of serving this country for 20 years in the US Army and am retiring as an Engineer Captain in 2019. My commitment to service has taken me to Ft. Bliss, TX, Ft. Stewart, GA, with overseas tours to Korea, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

CM: My role at Sonovus Energy is being highly involved in Marketing and Sales with a strong emphasis in business development. In 2002 I began my career working in sales for Sprint PCS at the local Fort Worth call center. I moved on in 2006 to take on a management position at another call-center for a non-profit organization, Money Management International. In 2009 I began my work in marketing in the dental field. Rodeo Dental and Orthodontics was a start up dental practice and I served as an executive, helping them grow to 9 dental practices throughout Texas and California. As Marketing Director at Rodeo Dental & Orthodontics, I was highly involved in the communities we served allowing me to build my business network. I also served in the 36th Infantry Division in the U.S. Army National Guard from 2002-2010. In short, the accumulation of work experiences and partnerships that I have created during my 17 year career gives me the confidence to approach my business with a tenured outlook.

SP: Specifically, how did the idea of starting up a business in Solar come about?

CM: From a young age I always had an entrepreneur mindset and I knew that I wanted to build something that I would be proud of. In my work at Rodeo Dental & Orthodontics, I witnessed what it took to start up a business from scratch and build it into a multi-million dollar business. It was truly inspiring to see the hard work come together and sit in the front row of a business flourishing from a combined team effort. As young teenagers my brother and I were mentored by a Dallas Baptist University professor, Philip Kaloki, and we were taught the basic fundamentals of marketing and sales. Through our experience with Mr. Kaloki, our family began a small cell phone business selling cell phone service and accessories throughout North Texas. Although it was a short-lived experience, I definitely enjoyed learning the world of business and getting the taste of success. Ultimately, it was through those experiences that I always felt that the best path in life was to own and operate my own business. In 2013 my brother and I experienced an “Aha-moment”, but I will let Juan tell the story.

JM: I think that at a very young age, I had this sense of duty, and desire to do something for my country. I knew from the age of 16 that I wanted to serve my country. It wasn't until I went off to war that I realized that the world was much bigger and complex. I starting thinking about more than just serving my country, but instead I set my eyes on helping humanity. After I returned from my last deployment, I returned to the bank I worked at the time and I remembered that the last year I worked there, I had this burning desire to change my career. All I could think about was the solar industry, and I kept doing research on the subject. I had the desire but lacked the courage to do something about it. God works in mysterious ways, and he gave me the push I needed. I was laid off from the bank and I knew this was it. I had done finance and banking for eight years, but I was ready to go into solar full speed ahead.

CM: In 2013 my brother and I experienced an “Aha-moment” and looking back at it, it feels like a divine moment. I was showing him something that Rodeo Dental was doing in the community and it happened to be on the local news. After the news segment was completed we were talking about our careers and our future.

JM: The "Aha-moment" came when my brother and I were talking about what are next move was going to be and a solar commercial came on TV and I remember saying "that's what I want to do!" I convinced my brother that this is the future, and this was my calling. I do it now because I feel like I have a sense of duty to our planet. The funny thing is that my favorite shows growing up were GI Joe and Captain Planet and the Planeteers. Kinda comes full circle.

SP: That’s funny because I vaguely remember watching that show as a little kid as well. In 2013 you mentioned that you had the realization of getting into the solar industry. What did you do to jump in it?

CM: One thing that most people don’t know is that Juan and I started our business in 2013 as JC Green. We both were all-in on the idea of leaving our established positions in the corporate world and we invested heavily on educating ourselves about the industry and on technical knowledge. In 2013 we completed a week long course at Imagine Solar in Austin, Texas. We were motivated more than ever because we got so much out of the course. There was no stopping us. As luck would have it, we realized that there was a bigger company out there that ruled the market with a genius financial product. SolarCity offered customers a Power Purchase Agreement, an option where consumers lease the solar equipment. This allowed consumers to switch to solar without paying any money down but still take advantage of a low utility rate.

JM: Carlo and I made the tough decision of letting go of JC Green simply because we could not compete against SolarCity. We began working for them and it was bittersweet because we gained so much knowledge and experience doing so, but at the time we felt that we lost out on our dream of owning our solar company. It was heartbreaking to say the least, but the 5 year delay was most definitely necessary for our growth as solar leaders.

SP: Anyone who follows the industry knows that Tesla bought out SolarCity. Tesla Energy isn’t the powerhouse it once was. The Industry keeps growing and the price per watt keeps dropping. Where do you see the solar industry going?

JM: You know, we are just scratching the surface in producing 1% of our energy needs from solar, and I'm talking about the US as a whole. We have a long way to go, but I see technology exploding for the renewable energy sector in the next five to ten years. I know that the cost of going solar will continue to fall due to economies of scale, more producers and installers entering the market, and competition giving us all better prices. Industry research and analysis shows that in 20 years, at the current growth rate, 20-25% of our energy needs will be coming from solar. That's only one in every four to five homes will be solar powered. If solar was a stock, it will continue to rise beyond the next 20 years!

CM: If you look at national and local trends, the market is continuing to grow at an exponential growth rate. In 2013 for example, Juan and I couldn’t find financial partners that would finance renewable energy. There were only a handful of solar distributors in the region that carried solar panels and hardware. Now, it is so competitive among the financial market and one of the reasons why costs are dropping, is simply because we can offer consumers multiple solar products from different manufacturers. It wasn’t always like that. I can truly say that the industry will continue to grow.

SP: Sounds like this a perfect time to operate a solar-based business. Where do you see Sonovus Energy going?

JM: I think that the sky is the limit. I'd like for us to be a company known for quality, safety, integrity and customer service. In this still fledgling industry, reputation is everything, and we will do everything possible to ensure our customers feel that they are getting what was promised, and not slighted one bit. I see Sonovus Energy being a premier top solar company servicing all of Texas and then going into other states as time and resources permit us to grow.

CM: 10 months ago when we began Sonovus Energy everything fell in place and took off like a rocket ship. I can’t imagine things slowing down for us as we continue to network with businesses and community leaders. It wont be too long before Sonovus Energy becomes a known business in Fort Worth. We are a business that prides itself in a positive customer experience and that is something that will resonate with all our clients.

SP: Let me switch gears here a little. If you had the power to change one thing about the world, what would it be?

JM: This is a tough one because I have a few things I would change. If I had to choose, I would have to say that I'd change the worldview on climate change. I would want everyone to understand that climate change and global warming was happening without a doubt and maybe, just maybe, we would have people and even nations called into action to do something about it. And let me be clear, I believe that even if global warming was not as we thought it was, we now have the power, technology, and "know how" to run on clean energy, so that is the way we should operate. Ethically, it's the right thing to do for our planet, and future generations. I know politics has a lot to do with it, but that's another subject altogether.

CM: I wish I would have been more prepared for this question, it’s a deep one for sure. The biggest thing for me is world peace. I don’t want to get too political with my answer, however I believe that as a smarter population, we should have learned from our history of conflicts. In almost every region in the world right now, there are some type of militaristic conflict. It is devastating to see the impact that it has on the things that matter the most. Our children, our environment, economy, and agriculture. The consequences that we all have to face is the higher prices that we pay for fuel, food, taxes, etc. You always hear beauty queens wish for world peace but as a father I now appreciate the problems war brings to our lives.

SP: Changing the world is great, but what about your community? What are you guys doing to help the community?

JM: I am all about the communities we serve and I think that we owe it to them to give back. I believe every company and business has a social responsibility to serve their communities. Our company will give back, and we will look for ways to better serve the DFW area. But yeah, I'm going to defer this to my brother because he has been real focused on community events and outreach and this is his area of expertise.

CM: Locally there is an opportunity for Sonovus Energy to make impact, not only by reducing the environmental footprint, but by getting involved with our community. Educating the masses on how renewable energy can help drive utility costs down and improve emissions in the very communities they live in, is critical. For that reason you will see Sonovus Energy involved in community fairs, school festivals, industry events and most importantly, partnering up with local businesses as well. I want Sonovus Energy to be associated with organizations that support their communities and that put their clients best interests ahead of their own agenda.