In Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, RSR Painting Limited has become the kind of business customers call when they want a job done carefully, honestly, and by someone who takes great pride in their work.
But to get there, you have to go back several decades.
For owner Sheldon Richard, painting was first a summer job, then a family trade, then eventually a business of his own. He started in Grade 10, working alongside his uncle, a lifelong painter. At the time, he didn’t necessarily know it would become his future. He went on to college for carpentry, thinking that might be his path. But after a back injury and surgery, his doctor told him he should consider going in a different direction.
“So I went back painting,” Sheldon says, “and I am ever so happy I did.”
That return to painting became more than a practical choice. It became the work he genuinely enjoys. “I love my job,” he says simply.
RSR Painting Limited officially launched in 2011, with support from CBDC Guysborough through the Self-Employment Benefits program. Sheldon worked with Janice Crooks and Wanda MacDonald at the time, preparing the business plan and getting the foundation in place. “I swear, I don’t think I’d be here if it wasn’t for them,” he insists.
Since then, RSR has grown into a steady, trusted painting company serving residential and commercial clients. Sheldon describes the range of work with a bit of humour: “We’ll paint anything but your car.” The company handles interior and exterior painting, new construction, and kitchen cabinet refinishing, which has become one of the most satisfying parts of the work.
“Kitchen cabinet refinishing, it brings everything back to life,” he says. “A little bit of paint goes a long way. It makes a big difference.”
That transformation is what keeps him motivated. Sheldon knows the value of a finished room, a brightened kitchen, or a new home ready for move-in. When asked what he loves most about the business, his answer is immediate. “It may sound corny,” he laughs, “but the smiles.”
RSR is also very much a people-powered business. Sheldon credits his stepfather, also a painter by trade, with helping him get started. His uncle helped introduce him to the industry and to the contractors he later approached when he went out on his own. His mother now keeps the books, handling the paperwork before it goes to the accountant. His wife helped with bookkeeping in the early years and, just as importantly, understands the long days that come with the trade.
His employees matter deeply to him too. Today, RSR employs two workers alongside Sheldon. One has been with him for seven years, and another has been with him for two. “They’re not just employees, they’re friends,” Sheldon says. “We get along really well.”
The work can be demanding. At times, RSR has multiple jobs moving at once, including apartment buildings and new home construction, all with tight deadlines and clients eager to see progress. Exterior
work brings its own challenge: Nova Scotia’s famously unpredictable weather. “You can’t change it,” Sheldon chuckles. “I can’t even keep a schedule really when it comes to that.”
Still, demand remains strong and customers are willing to wait. Exterior jobs can book as much as a year in advance, and word of mouth remains the company’s strongest promotion. Sheldon also shares finished work on Facebook, especially kitchen projects where the before-and-after difference can be dramatic. As he puts it, an old wooden set of cabinets painted white can make people say, “Wow.”
There have been memorable milestones along the way. One of the company’s first big moments was painting a $3 million home, the largest house Sheldon had ever taken on at that point. Another was the purchase of a trailered lift for exterior work, making high and hard-to-reach jobs safer and more efficient. In 2021, CBDC Guysborough also helped RSR finance a truck, a loan Sheldon has since paid off.
Through it all, Sheldon has stayed clear about the kind of business he wants to run, and bigger is not always better. Although he is busy, established, and grateful, he doesn’t want to grow so large that he loses touch with the work itself.
“I’m pretty happy the way things are,” he says. “I don’t know if I want to expand a whole lot more.” If the business became too large, he says, he would spend all his time running around instead of working with the crew. “That’s not me. I’m hands on. I like to be there.”
That same grounded approach shows up in the community. RSR supports local minor hockey, baseball, and Guysborough Come Home Week. Sheldon has also donated the use of his lift for community needs when he was not using it. “If I’m not using it, why not let others use it?” he says.
The small-town connections run deep. Sheldon has painted the CBDC building, including the whole inside and part of the outside. He grew up with (CBDC Development Officer) Daphne, and Janice used to spend time with his mother. In Guysborough, as in many small towns, business relationships often begin with familiar faces and grow through trust.
Asked what he would tell another entrepreneur considering CBDC, Sheldon is clear. “Don’t hesitate,” he says. “They’re excellent. Like I said, I probably wouldn’t be here without them.”
After more than a decade in business, Sheldon still measures success in the most practical way: a steady crew, a full schedule, a job done right, and a customer smiling at the end of it. For RSR Painting Limited, growth has never been about getting too big to hold a brush. It has been about staying close to the work, close to the people, and proud of the difference a good coat of paint can make.
Thank you to the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), who collaborate with us to support small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs. Together, we will continue to build a stronger Atlantic Canadian economy, fostering job growth and strengthening our rural communities.