Thrust to Grow: Propellers and Momentum
Boating and aviation have been personal passions for a long time. If you’ve spent time around either, you know how much depends on the propeller. It’s one of those unsung heroes—simple in concept, but critical for moving forward.
Propellers are also a great metaphor to explain what it takes to move abusiness forward. And that’s why we named our company Propelrco.
From Two Blades to Many: How Propellers—and Businesses—Evolve
Let’s take a look back at the Wright brothers. When they took to the skies in 1903, they used two simple, wooden, two-blade propellers. And for that time, it was enough. Their engine was small, the plane was light, and the basic design got the job done.
But as airplanes became bigger and engines more powerful, two blades weren’t enough. You couldn’t just make the propeller longer, or it would hit the ground or drag too much air. So, engineers added more blades. A three-blade, four-blade, or even six-blade propeller spreads the power outacross more surface area, converting the engine’s power into efficient forward motion.
Business operates much the same way.
In the early days, most business owners wear every hat, make most of the decisions, and drive growth through sheer hustle. It works—until it doesn’t. At some point, the “engine” gets bigger. The opportunities are bigger, but so are the risks, the complexities, and the blind spots.
If the business doesn’t upgrade its “propeller”—whether that means adding new processes, leadership experience, capital, or partnerships—it can’t use all the power it has. Growth stalls, teams burn out, and frustration builds.
Helping Business Owners Use the Full Power of Their Engine
At Propelrco, we work with business owners and leaders who’ve already taken flight. They’ve built or are running companies doing $10 million to $100 million in revenue. They’ve figured out a lot. Like the Wright brothers, they’ve solved problems that others only dream about.
But now they’re asking what’s next.
- Maybe they want to optimize the business they already have so it runs more smoothly and scales further.
- Maybe they’re thinking about buying another company, but aren’t sure how to pull it off without stretching their team too thin.
- Maybe they’ve already done a deal and are struggling to put two businesses together in a way that really works.
- Or maybe they’re preparing to sell one day and want to make sure the business is in top shape to maximize its value.
In some cases, they just want another senior-level perspective—someone who’s sat in the operator’s chair and knows what it’s like to work through the headaches as well as the wins.
Adding Thrust, Blade by Blade
We like to think of it like this: many of the companies we meet are flying strong, but they’re still using a two-blade propeller. Our goal is to help them add a third blade—maybe even a fourth—so they can take full advantage of the power they’ve built.
Sometimes that means rolling up our sleeves, digging into operations, and identifying ways to improve performance and free up capacity. Other times, it’s bringing in tools, resources, and leadership capacity that helps the whole team perform better.
And where it makes sense, we can even add ownership. Whether through partnerships, joint ventures, or other structures, we look for ways to align incentives and build something bigger together.
We’re not just in it for the transaction. We’re in it for the longhaul—focused on helping owners turn growth potential into real, measurable outcomes.