Brick & Brand

Silvina Petrate didn't set out to build a luxury empire. She started with a passion for handcrafted furniture and spent two decades quietly turning it into Nativa Interiors — a vertically integrated design company spanning custom manufacturing, interior design, and retail showrooms that redefine what a furniture brand can be.

This conversation goes way beyond beautiful spaces. We got into what luxury customers are actually paying for, why physical retail still wins when it's done right, and what it really takes to balance the soul of an artist with the mind of a CEO.

One thing Silvina said that we haven't stopped thinking about: your space tells a story about who you are.

If you're building a brand, obsessed with design, or just fascinated by what it takes to build something that lasts — this one is for you.

Nativa Interiors

Danna Pyper Haydar left a career as an attorney for the Tampa Bay Lightning to build not one, not two, but multiple businesses from the ground up, completely on her own terms.

From a wildly creative restaurant concept with a cult following, to a high-end full-service steakhouse she built and operated entirely solo, Danna has cracked the code on turning bold ideas into brands people fall in love with.

Now she's back at it, building Leoma Artisan Cheesecake, and scaling Pyper Malone, her luxury hat brand that every national retailer is talking about.

We talked about what it actually takes to build brands people obsess over, what she'd negotiate differently in every lease, and what the restaurant world taught her about the fashion industry.

This one is for every founder who keeps betting on themselves.

Pyper Malone

Leoma Artisan Cheesecake

What does it take to build a commercial real estate brokerage from scratch in one of the most competitive retail markets in the world?

This week on Brick & Brand, we sat down with Avi Akiva, Founder & CEO of Momentum Realty Group, to talk about launching his own firm in NYC, and what it takes to win there.

We cover why Manhattan retail is unlike any other market, the leap from top-producing broker to founder, what retailers consistently underestimate about expanding into the city, and how tech is reshaping brokerage while relationships still win deals.

As Avi puts it: the best brokers don't just close deals... they become the first call when an opportunity comes along.

Momentum Realty Group

Jay Siano is the Founder & CEO of SABRE Real Estate Advisors, the man behind some of the most iconic brand expansions in America. Chipotle. Starbucks. [solidcore]. Orangetheory. He was there before the hype, before the lines, and before the IPOs.

In this episode, Jay pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to build a brand that wins. How he spots the next big thing before the rest of the market catches on, the expansion mistakes that kill great brands before they ever get big, and why the best advisors aren't just closing deals, they're changing the trajectory of companies.

We also get into personal branding, building a world-class team, and where AI is taking commercial real estate — and where people will always matter more.

If you're building a business, scaling a brand, or just obsessed with how iconic companies are really made... you don't want to miss this.

SABRE

$2 billion in retail real estate deals. One conversation.

Dave Lucas built one of the top retail investment sales careers in the country — 20 years, the nation's most sought-after assets, the industry's biggest investors. On this episode of Brick & Brand, he breaks down what actually separates top producers from everyone else, how he thinks like an investor before he thinks like a broker, and where retail real estate is headed next.

This one's for anyone building a career that lasts — in CRE or otherwise.

Monarch Commercial Advisors

The best brands don't happen by accident.

They're built over decades—one decision, one client, and one reputation-defining moment at a time.

This week on Brick & Brand, we sit down with Michelle Harrison, founder of Michelle Harrison Design, to unpack what it really takes to build a business where your name is the brand. From knowing what your expertise is worth to why timeless design always outlasts trends, this conversation is full of lessons for entrepreneurs, developers, and anyone building for the long game.

Michelle Harrison Design

Growth sounds exciting.

Until it actually starts happening.

This week on Brick & Brand, we're joined by Natalie Pebbles to unpack the uncomfortable reality behind scaling a brand. Why do some concepts explode while others fall apart? Why do so many operators say they want growth without understanding what growth actually requires?

From expansion mistakes and retail strategy to social media, relationships, and the difference between looking ready and being ready, this conversation is packed with lessons for anyone building something bigger than themselves.

Part growth playbook. Part reality check. Part behind-the-scenes look at what it really takes to scale.

Pulse Real Estate Strategies

Most brokers think the solution is simple: work harder.

Need more deals? Work harder. Need more clients? Work harder. Need to get caught up? Work harder.

Until one day, that strategy stops working.

In this episode, we're talking about The Broker Plateau — that stage where your business is growing, opportunities are coming in, and from the outside everything looks great. But behind the scenes, your calendar is packed, your inbox never sleeps, and the systems that got you here are starting to break under the weight of success.

We dive into the growing pains that come with building a brokerage business, why every stage of growth creates a new set of challenges, and the uncomfortable reality that what got you to your first wins often won't get you to the next level.

Part brokerage therapy. Part business strategy. Part reality check. If you've ever felt busy but somehow stuck at the same time, this episode is for you.

This week, we sit down with the man who paved the way for us in the world of CRE — our dad, Vince Roche. Before he built one of the largest commercial real estate platforms on the West Coast, he was a college athlete scraping together tuition, getting loans from his coach just to stay in school, and leading teams despite being the smallest guy in his position.

From going door-to-door in Bakersfield as a young developer to navigating projects that nearly broke him, Vince shares the stories, setbacks, and decisions that shaped both his career and our family. We dive into the moment he walked away from development, the sale of his company, building a business that eventually spanned multiple offices, and why surrounding yourself with the right people can make or break everything.

But this episode goes far beyond real estate. We talk about raising six kids on a commission-only income, the pressure he carried that we never saw, his philosophy on leaving it all on the field, and how he quietly built a real estate portfolio while running a growing company. Along the way, he shares hard-earned lessons on leadership, entrepreneurship, family, and what success actually means after you've achieved everything you thought you wanted.

Part business masterclass. Part family history. Part father-daughter conversation. You don't want to miss this one.

This week we brought our sister, Liberty, B&B's very own CMO, onto the podcast and what was supposed to be an innocent sibling conversation turned into full-blown chaos. Growing up in a six-kid household meant everyone had a role to survive it — and in this episode, all of those roles show up again in real time.

From wildly different childhood memories to why Gen Z can sniff out inauthenticity instantly, the conversation jumps between family dynamics, retail psychology, and the uncomfortable truth that most "business instincts" start way earlier than we think. Of course, we also settle the sibling debates no one asked for but everyone has opinions on.

Part chaos. Part therapy. Part retail strategy. Completely unhinged — and easily one of our most personal episodes yet.