Light it up: Oregon man’s new holiday service brightening up homes across the Sauk Valley

OREGON – What started as a joke between friends is quickly turning into a growing business for an Oregon man.

Miller’s Festive Lights is a new seasonal service that rents and installs colored holiday lights outside of customers’ homes. Owner Jonathan Miller, who also works in the maintenance department for the Ogle County Sheriff’s Office, said the idea for the business started as a joke he made one evening.

“All my friends ask me to put up their Christmas lights for them,” Miller said. “So, I jokingly said I was going to start charging people to do it this year. I did a few of them, and it’s turned into a substantially larger thing than I anticipated.”

Miller starts taking orders in September and meets customers at their homes to take measurements, discuss display options and provide them with an estimate. Customers can either use Miller’s lights or have their own installed and enjoy them until after Jan. 1, when Miller will schedule a time to remove them.

“I like going out to their house so I can see exactly what it looks like,” Miller said. “Then, when I do my quote, I can give them multiple options. I also don’t charge more for having them installed earlier in the season. By getting them installed early, customers can also use them at Thanksgiving or Halloween if they want.”

Miller even has a way to streamline the process for repeat rental customers.

“I cut my lights to size specifically for the house,” Miller said. “That way when I take them down at the end of the season, I can label them for next year, so I know exactly which lights go where, and they’re already ready to go.”

The rapid success of the business already has Miller looking toward the future.

“We’re already starting to figure out how we can expand and make it more efficient,” Miller said. “Right now, my family helps me out here and there, but it’s essentially just me running around taking measurements, providing quotes and doing the installs. It’s a lot for one person, and I’ve had a lot of requests – more than I would have ever dreamed.”

Miller can be reached for more information at millersfestivelights@gmail.com or by calling 815-501-3395.