Small Engines, Big Future

Taylor Nolan and his small engines teammate won third place at the Area 1 career development event competition.

When 14-year-old Taylor Nolan started his business, Long Creek Small Engines Repair, in North Louisiana, he didn’t know much about engines. He had dabbled with motors in the past, but his experience was limited to one engine type: the Briggs and Stratton 900. This limitation kept his customer pool small, hurting his business. Everything changed for Long Creek, though, when Nolan joined FFA.

As a freshman at West Ouachita High School, Nolan was approached by his FFA advisor and invited to join the small engines career development event (CDE) team. Nolan saw this as a huge opportunity not just for personal growth, but for his business as well. At the start, he and his teammates had a lot to learn, and time was running low.

But with practice after practice, Nolan’s skills improved. Not only did he become more efficient at assembling and troubleshooting the Briggs and Stratton 900 motor, but he also found he could “apply everything he was learning to his business,” he says, leading to a noticeable improvement in customer satisfaction. This FFA experience played a key role in supporting the growth of his business.

However, just as Nolan started hitting his stride, he noticed a problem: many of his potential customers needed repairs on the Briggs and Stratton 950, an engine he wasn’t familiar with. This created a major roadblock for Long Creek. Nolan was losing out on business because he couldn’t service these engines, but FFA stepped in again — just when he needed it most.

During his sophomore year, a new engine — the Briggs and Stratton 950 — was introduced into the competition. This was exactly what Nolan needed. Although it was a challenge, as the 950 was new for everyone, Nolan knew that mastering this engine could significantly benefit his business. Despite the learning curve, he kept at it, and eventually became just as skilled with the 950 as he was with the 900.

By applying his new skills to his business, Nolan was able to take on more jobs, “including those involving the 950 engine,” he says. Many different machines are built similarly to the 950, so Nolan’s newfound knowledge about this motor’s make up allowed a larger customer intake. This change led to an increase in profit and, overall, positive growth for Long Creek Small Engines.

Nolan started as a novice mechanic, but through his involvement in the small engines CDE as an FFA member, he took the right steps toward growing his business and tackling more advanced repairs. He credits the success of his business directly to FFA, and encourages others to seize the opportunities FFA offers. “You never know what doors it can open for you,” he says.