Michael Krause, 25

Michael Krause may have only started his pool service company, First Response Pool Service, this year — but he’s not new to the industry. Were it not for a freak accident, he’d have an extra year of business ownership under his belt. 

When Krause went on a camping trip and broke both of his ankles in March 2021, he didn’t know if he would ever walk normal again, let alone run a pool business. But after two surgeries, a year of being stuck on the couch, countless hours of physical therapy, learning how to walk again and a driven mindset, he was able to start his business in March of this year.

Krause grew up around the pool industry — his stepdad owned Todd’s Pool Service — and started doing simple repairs for him when he was 15. At 18, he took on a full route for his stepdad, but then started working at the Ventura County Sheriff’s office as a records specialist. The weekend after he left the department, he took the ill-fated camping trip.

Now that Krause is back on his feet and the business is started, “I have been working endlessly to build my reputation with clients and other pool pros/companies, and grow my social media accounts,” he says. “The sky is the limit, and the only thing in the way is yourself.”