OSU Junior Running His Own Business

By Helen Bebbington, Contributing Writer

KETTERING — An Ohio State University student will spend his summer learning about business by starting one.

Garrett Galen, who graduated from Kettering Fairmont High School, is marketing his new business and lining up clients for the warm weather ahead.

Galen is starting his business under the guidance of College Works Painting, which is part of the National Services Group.

“We do the exteriors of houses,” Galen said. A finance major, Galen, 21, wants to open his own business some day. This summer he hopes to learn about dealing with customers, hiring employees and the financial aspects of running a business.

“What I really want to do is run my own company,” he said. “That intrigues me.” Although Galen, a junior, is attending classes in Columbus during the week, he heads home each weekend to market the business and line up jobs.

His goal is to complete 40 paint jobs, whether houses or smaller projects, such as sheds or other buildings.

College Works Painting annually hires college students to run their own painting businesses in 23 states.

Recently Galen took his business to the Dayton Convention Center, where he ran a booth at the annual Home and Garden Show. Galen also created a presence online. He created the College Works intern blog, http://college-works-painting.blogspot.com/, to record his experiences this summer. He can be reached through the blog, at twitter.com/garrettgalen and at (888) 450-WORK (9675).