It hasn’t been easy, but Prairie Hotshot has had a pretty good three years in business.
The company opened in August 2017 and recently celebrated its three-year anniversary. Dustin Mack and Alyshia Mantei started the business and each brings their unique experiences.
Mantei came from another trucking business and Mack had about 15 years of experience in the oilfield.
“I was on the rig end and ran downhole tools, and then I got tied up in this, and here we are today,” said Mack.
A third partner was part of the company when it incorporated, but now it’s just Mantei and Mack running the business.
Five people work at Prairie Hot Shot, including the two owners, and they have occasional help who assist when necessary.
“Things are fairly steady,” said Mack. “We started thinking we’d be exclusive to the oilfield, but as the downturn has come around, we’ve had to evolve and look at different areas in order to keep the wheels turning. We’ve done quite a bit in the agriculture area, hauling ag stuff for auction sales this summer, and it helped fill the void, but it definitely doesn’t replace what has been lost due to the downturn.”
At this time, Mack believes if you have an avenue of any sort, outside of the oilpatch, to keep your business running, then it’s something to look into. But the energy sector is obviously still a big part of their success.
Prairie Hotshot won the award for the Best Hotshot Service through the Estevan Mercury Publications Best of Estevan Awards for 2020. It’s a source of pride for Mack and Mantei, especially when they’re running a relatively small operation.
“There’s quite a few businesses out there in the same line of work as us. When you hear something like that, you think we must be doing something right,” said Mack.
He hopes the business can keep growing. They aren’t afraid to look into different industries for expansion or create a more versatile company.
Hotshot services are all that they do at this time, but they do think of expanding into other areas where they can bring their skills.
Mack said it’s hard to believe they’ve been in business for three years already. He wishes it was an easier time to have a business, but they’re grateful for the support they received.
“Our customers are great and we wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for them and the guys we got working for us,” he said.
