April 2025 Pro Highlight — Meet Shaqueal.

DustiO

Meet @ShaquealThomas, an Top Pro painter and one of Thumbtack's Pro Advisors. Shaq is also an active member of our Pro Community, a Pro Mentor, and regularly attends CommuniTEA sessions (so if you've been around for a bit, you've likely met him). Learn about Shaq's journey as a business owner below.

Can you tell us a bit about your business and what inspired you to start it? My name is Shaqueal and I am the owner of Courteney Paints, an Interior & Exterior painting business based out of the Massachusetts and Rhode island area. What inspired me to start the painting business was watching my dad paint and me and my brother being young and painting with him. I thought as I got older it would be a great idea to start a painting company. The name Courteney is in memory of my brother. We are a family business, and that’s what keeps me motivated every day.

What are some of the biggest challenges you've faced as a business owner, and how did you overcome them? Some of the biggest challenges I faced as a business owner was finding constant work week in and week out. In this industry finding work year around is very tough. I have been able to turn that around for the most part by connecting with platforms like Thumbtack to keep potential clients all year around. Before I used Thumbtack I didn't really work the tough months as in holiday and winter months, but now I know I can.

How has Thumbtack contributed to your business's success? Thumbtack has contributed to helping my business with success by giving us the ability to market on their site and reach clients we would have never met locally. I was able to turn my business to a full time job with Thumbtack because every week I am able to work and network for future clients all in one.

What advice would you give to new business owners starting out on Thumbtack? My advice to any owner starting out on thumbtack is make sure you watch all of the tutorial videos when first signing up for Thumbtack just to make sure you understand the basics of Thumbtack and how to navigate the app for your Industry. My next set of tips would be to sign up for the Thumbtack community to engage with other pros (optional) for any questions or thoughts you may have before going live and accepting leads even — if you just browse the community you should be able to hopefully grab some knowledge from there to help your business grow. Once you start accepting leads, start off with a small budget until you find a rhythm or routine that works great for your business, then expand your budget when you feel confident to do so.