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V O L . X X X N O. X I X 52 Fact Book / Doing Business in Maine sit in a saddle-like harness hanging out of a tree. If and when huge wind turbines are built and installed in the Gulf of Maine in the coming decade, Goddard hopes to supply them with Rope Guru rope products. As business increased, Rope Guru outgrew the home garage and moved to an industrial space near the Maine Mall. e firm now operates out of a 2,000-square-foot, two-bay garage in a nondescript aluminum-sided building. eir company van sits in the parking lot, the Rope Guru logo on the side and license plates that read "Splice." Between their time at Yale Cordage and the Rope Guru, Goddard and Crowley have nearly 50 years in the rope industry. Talk shop with them and you can hear their passion as they talk about single-braided and double-braided, coated and uncoated, floating and non- floating rope. Rope can be stronger than steel and the priciest type — "big boy rope," as they call it — sells for up to $40 a foot. Products can range from just a few feet long to 25,000-foot pieces of rope with splices at each end used for electrical transmission lines. It's that expertise that draws custom- ers such as Rob Collet, a project man- ager with Cianbro Corp. who is working on the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard's multiyear drydock modernization project in Kittery. e drydocks are fabricated in pieces at Cianbro's Brewer facility and assembled at the shipyard. For the project, Collet orders a variety of lines, primarily synthetic mooring lines for barges, from Rope Guru. Other Cianbro divisions also order their specialized rope products from Goddard, he says. "ere are two main reasons we use Jamie," Collet says. "One, he has a tremendous amount of horsepower and industry knowledge packed into a small little shop. e team is next-level in terms of their knowledge. ey know their industry and their market inside and out" Furthermore, they never say they can't do something. "at word doesn't exist in their shop," he says. "Whether I'm calling for something simple or relatively technical, they'll make it happen. at's hard to find." Parker Poole, owner of Determination Marine in Portland, buys his tow lines and other products from Goddard for his four marine towing and salvage vessels. Goddard was in the commer- cial fishing and fishing supply indus- tries before he got into rope, and that experience is invaluable for him to thoroughly recognize Poole's needs. "With his background, he really understands our business and what we're trying to do," Poole says. "He'll recom- mend the proper materials and products for us to do what we're doing well." e Rope Guru's space is packed full of large spools and cardboard boxes of rope in a rainbow of colors: orange, green, blue, yellow and even a style called confetti, which looks like the colors of a kaleidoscope. Handy with the marlinspike ere are no manufacturing machines here for splicing — Goddard does it all by hand or, in some cases, uses a sewing machine. Goddard's work table has an assortment of splicing tools, the most important of which is called a fid, a tubular metal device used in the splicing process. Other tools include scissors, measuring tapes and a leather "sailor's palm," which Goddard wears on his right hand to push large needles through rope. When ordering spliced rope products, some customers say they want the stron- gest rope that the Rope Guru sells. But to make the right end product, Crowley needs to know more than that. "'What do you need it for?' is 100% the most important question," Crowley says. Five years in, annual sales are in seven figures and continue to grow, Goddard says. With the phones ring- ing, the emails coming in and orders plentiful, the company is no longer in the startup stage. "We've established ourselves," Goddard says. "We're full steam ahead. Not bad for two guys in a garage." Clarke Canfield, a freelance writer, can be reached at editorial @ mainebiz.biz » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E At Acadia Insurance, our service starts with an in-depth knowledge of your business and the local market in Maine. That perspective comes from an understanding of your operation and its unique exposures, working in partnership with your insurance agent. The insight we share together is the key to what we deliver: coverage closer to the needs of your business – and to you. A personalized perspective for your Closer Coverage SM We insure businesses large and small: CONSTRUCTION • FARMERS • FINANCE & REAL ESTATE HOSPITALITY • INSTITUTIONS • MANUFACTURING PROFESSIONAL OFFICE • RETAILERS • SERVICE TRANSPORTATION • WHOLESALERS • WOOD PRODUCTS MAINE | CONNECTICUT | MASSACHUSETTS NEW HAMPSHIRE | NEW YORK RHODE ISLAND | VERMONT It's a pretty niche market. We buy Yale Cordage's rope in bulk and turn it into stuff. We make rope tools out of rope. The uses are unlimited. — Jamie Goddard Rope Guru

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