Bringing big city solar experience back home

Kids from small communities often leave to find something their hometowns can’t offer. There’s a whole world out there filled with opportunities for new careers, education and perspectives.

For Tony Martin, co-founder of Sonne Energy Solutions (No. 382 on the 2024 Top Solar Contractors List), leaving and learning was a necessary part of returning to his hometown of Teutopolis, Illinois — a village with a population of just over 1,600.

Teutopolis was founded by German-Catholic immigrants in 1839. Martin said it’s an idyllic town, one where he spent his childhood with his extended family, riding bikes with cousins and attending high school sporting events.

Martin worked for a decade in the solar industry before returning to Teutopolis. He and his wife, Traci, moved near Denver, Colorado, in 2009, where Tony found an internship installing solar projects. He moved to Nashville to work as a solar project manager and eventually returned to Denver as a residential lead at Namaste Solar.

“I loved the concept of solar,” Tony said. “I just never wanted to do something else. I like what it does for the environment, and it made total sense to me.”

He learned the ins and outs of the solar trade and brought that experience back to Teutopolis, founding Sonne Solar in 2019. At Namaste, he was responsible for managing a team of 50 people. At Sonne, Tony is the sole full-time employee. Traci handles a lot of administrative tasks but works another full-time job, and the only other employee works part-time. Sonne outsources project design and hires a local electrical contractor to help build arrays.

Tony handles everything else himself, including sales. Despite the lean company structure, Sonne installs about 300 kW each year. After almost five years in business, the company has completed more than 20 solar projects in Teutopolis alone.

“My mom and dad live three blocks away. On the way to their house, I think we’ve installed six systems,” Tony said.

Those ties to the history of the community drive Tony’s desire to do right by his customers. For one, the company’s name pays tribute to the city’s roots as the German word for sun.

Just up the road from his home is a building where his grandfather and great-great uncle founded a dental clinic. Sonne Energy will soon install a solar project there.

“Just knowing that they started that, and I get to take part in installing solar on that building. It’s not in our family now, but it was originally started by them,” Tony said. “I could hit a baseball from where that clinic is to my house. It’s just a really, really cool thing.”

Sonne has marketed its services in the past but has found that a referral in a tight-knit community like Teutopolis is more effective. And despite installing solar for nearly 15 years, Tony admits he isn’t the strongest salesperson, instead prioritizing honesty in sales conversations.

“I tell people all the time, I would rather you not do it than regret it,” he said. “I 100% don’t want to make a sale, install solar on someone’s house, and for whatever reason they wouldn’t be happy with it.”

Despite its population and small-town characteristics, Tony said Teutopolis is a hub for commerce and welcomes the ingenuity of something like solar. The town resides near Interstates 57 and 70 and lies about halfway between St. Louis and Indianapolis. Many businesses call the small town their home.

The Martins ultimately returned to Teutopolis to give their son a close extended family upbringing like Tony had. It’s a bonus that he’s able to pursue his passion of installing solar in his hometown and in the communities surrounding it.

“We’re small and we want to grow responsibly,” Tony said. “We want to make the business sustainable. We are here for the long-term; this is one of my ultimate passions.”

This story was featured exclusively in our 2024 Top Solar Contractors issue. See the issue and full list of top U.S. solar installers here.