The Plate Guy - Keepin' It Weird For 16 Years

Local business owner Johnny Gold, aka The Plate Guy, enjoys steady success by combining old-fashioned business with a modern touch. Started in 1999, The Plate Guy rents out niche construction safety equipment. He's unorthodox and customers like it.
 
AUSTIN, Texas - May 12, 2015 - PRLog -- The Plate Guy is celebrating its 16th anniversary this year.  The owner, Johnny Gold, opened All-States Mat in Austin, Texas after graduating from the University of Texas with a history degree.  A Houston transplant, like so many others, he came to Austin, fell in love with its charm, and knew he was home.   His company offers one simple product: steel trench road plates.

Renting the plates to a wide array of contractors for varying needs he quickly became known to them simply as, The Plate Guy.  Gold liked the moniker and, rather than fight it, officially embraced the new name in 2007.  Now, he is proud to celebrate 16 years of helping keep Austin’s construction industry a little bit weirder.

The secret to Gold’s success is his blend of old-fashioned business principles with modern know-how.  Gold is no stranger to website development, SEO, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media; however, he still relies on good old fashioned word of mouth to keep his business relevant.  A handshake, not a piece of paper, is what makes a deal.  In his mind, there is no better validation than the respect of one’s peers for a job well done.

“I have to believe in what I’m doing,” Gold says.  “It sounds crazy, but I’m not motivated very much by money.  Obviously, that is the end result, but the means to that end are what I find interesting.  For me, providing the best product and service at the best price is the most rewarding part of what I do.”

Gold’s road plates are all 1” thick and come in sizes ranging from 4’x8’ all the way up to 8’x20’ and can weigh as much as 7,000 lbs. apiece.  They are primarily used to cover holes and trenches in roads so that traffic can keep flowing during construction.

He embraces simplicity and uses that to focus and streamline his business.  Whether it is the easy to use device he and his father developed to lift the heavy plates (called Plate Dawgs), condensing his office down to a smart phone, or the near abolishment of any and all paperwork, everything is done to keep things easy for his customers and himself.  “It’s not lazy—it’s efficient,” he quips with a grin.

“I’m not special by any means,” implores Gold.  “This city is full of people like me.  You can see it in the growth of food trucks, restaurants, advertising, music, film, social media, video gaming and more.  There is so much creativity here far beyond anything I’m doing.  People who want to do things their own way in spite of what the world says they should be doing.  I love it.  It takes a city like Austin to nurture and grow that.”

Gold is reluctant to get on a soapbox, but it is clear he believes the city can, and should, do more to support and embrace small business as more and more national chains enter this burgeoning market.

“It’s good for everyone,” he says.  “I don’t think a homogenized economy fits this city’s personality, and if we aren’t careful that is exactly what we will have.  Diversity, innovation, and originality are the characteristics that will help this city thrive and it’s on all of us to support that.”

It is clear that The Plate Guy is more than stacks of sheet metal.  In an industry not known for having a whimsical side, Gold is doing his best to keep things interesting one handshake at a time.

Contact
Johnny Gold
***@theplateguy.com
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Tags:Austin, Texas, Business, Local, Construction
Industry:Construction, Services
Location:Austin - Texas - United States
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