S1E5 | “The Bank Owned Everything”: What No One Tells You About Starting a Trades Business скачать в хорошем качестве

S1E5 | “The Bank Owned Everything”: What No One Tells You About Starting a Trades Business

Most trades businesses don’t fail because the work isn’t there. They fail because the pressure shows up faster than the cash, systems, and leadership are ready to absorb it. In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Matt Christopherson, founder of a multi-entity plumbing and mechanical operation, to unpack the part of trades ownership most people never talk about. The early years. The leverage. The nights where one bad job can erase everything. This isn’t a polished success story. It’s a real conversation about what it takes to survive the moments that quietly break most trades businesses before they ever get the chance to scale. Matt started with nothing. Digging ditches. Six dollars an hour. No safety net. What followed were years of cash flow pressure, reinvesting every dollar back into the business, and learning hard lessons the only way trades owners ever do — the expensive way. In this episode, we talk about what ownership actually feels like when: → The bank owns everything → Cash flow is tight even when revenue is growing → One job bid wrong can put the entire company at risk → Labor problems aren’t really labor problems — they’re leadership problems → Taking care of people becomes the difference between survival and collapse For construction, mechanical, and specialty trades owners, this conversation goes far beyond plumbing. It’s about what happens when responsibility, risk, and reality collide. In Episode 4, we unpack: ✅ What no one prepares you for when you start a trades business ✅ Why cash flow — not profit — is the real killer early on ✅ The job that nearly ended the company and the lesson it taught ✅ Why reinvesting beats paying yourself too early ✅ How leadership decisions quietly shape labor retention ✅ Why taking care of your people is a profit protection strategy This episode isn’t about plumbing. It’s about ownership under pressure. If you own — or plan to own — a trades business, this is a conversation you need to hear before the pressure finds you. 🎧 Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers. 🔗 Stay Connected & Follow the Movement • Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcasts • Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn →   / ellerbrock-norris   • Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book → https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book Connect with the Hosts Andy Bassett, CPCU, CIC — CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris   / andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853   Elliot Bassett, AIP, CPCU — President & Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris   / elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515   🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/ CHAPTERS 00:00 – What no one tells you about starting a trades business 02:10 – From digging ditches to ownership 05:40 – Cash flow pressure in the early years 09:15 – “The bank owned everything” 13:05 – The job bid wrong that nearly ended it 18:30 – Why labor problems are leadership problems 23:45 – Taking care of people as a profit strategy 28:20 – Reinvesting vs paying yourself early 33:10 – Building a business people want to work for 38:40 – Final lessons on survival, leadership, and longevity