Builders Makers Doers: The Resilience Behind American Business

Most trades don’t disappear because they lack history.

They disappear because they can’t adapt.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with John Cox, founder of Quercus Cooperage in High Falls, New York — one of the last traditional barrel makers in America.

This isn’t about whiskey.

It’s about survival.

John didn’t inherit a booming industry.

He stepped into a dying one.

After 28 years in high-end custom interiors, burnout forced a reset.
An article about a national barrel shortage sparked a question:

What if a nearly vanished craft could be rebuilt — differently?

Not industrial.
Not automated.
Not optimized for volume.

But for precision.

For niche.

For control.

Today, his cooperage produces custom barrels, tanks, culinary vessels, and cedar hot tubs — serving clients around the world.

But the most important lesson wasn’t about craftsmanship.

It was about business discipline.

This is what you’ll discover:

• Why being great at your craft doesn’t mean you’re ready to run a business
• The hidden danger of mentally spending revenue before it lands
• How nimbleness protects small businesses during market shocks
• The real tension between control and delegation in precision trades
• Why marketing discipline determines whether revenue stays steady
• How tariffs, supply chains, and geopolitics hit small operators first
• Why dying trades struggle to attract young talent
• The difference between scaling volume and protecting margin
• How staying niche can be more powerful than going big

John also shares something every owner understands but rarely says out loud:

When sales dip, it’s usually because you stopped wearing your marketing hat.

This episode isn’t about nostalgia.

It’s about resilience.

It’s about choosing systems over ego.

And it’s about building a business strong enough to adapt when the market shifts under your feet.

If you’re an owner, operator, or builder trying to protect your craft while growing your company, this conversation will feel honest.

And practical.

▶ Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
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https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book
https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts:

Andy Bassett
CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett
President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most small businesses don’t fail because they lack talent.

They fail because they scale faster than their discipline.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Haden Polseno-Hensley, co-founder of Red Rooster Coffee in Floyd, Virginia, to talk about what it really takes to build something that lasts.

This isn’t about coffee.

It’s about restraint.

Haden didn’t come from the beverage industry.

He came from construction.
From the National Park Service.
From graduate school.
From 184 square feet and a six-pound electric roaster.

He and his wife started with a simple question:

What if we did this at the highest possible level?

Not fast.
Not loud.
Not for attention.

But for quality.

Fifteen years later, they roast 350,000–400,000 pounds of specialty coffee a year.

And the most important lesson wasn’t about growth.

It was about slowing down.

This is what you’ll discover:

• Why most “overnight success” stories are really 5–7 year grinds
• The tension between mission-driven leadership and financial reality
• How working harder than necessary can quietly damage your life
• Why constraints create discipline — and discipline creates durability
• What small-town operators understand about reputation that big brands don’t
• How culture evolves as your team grows beyond the founding core
• Why solving one real problem is better than chasing 10 shiny opportunities
• How producer debt cycles mirror the hidden fragility in many businesses
• Why going slower can actually accelerate long-term growth

Haden also shares something most founders only admit years later:

He said yes to everything.

And it cost him more time than it should have.

This episode isn’t about scaling fast.

It’s about building something strong enough to withstand time, scrutiny, and growth without breaking.

If you’re an owner, operator, or builder trying to grow without losing yourself in the process, this conversation will feel familiar.

And grounding.

▶ Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book
https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett
CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett
President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most trades companies don’t fail because they lack work.

They fail because they cut corners early.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Aaron Johnson, Vice President and Partner at Xtreme Heating & Cooling, to talk about what actually builds a durable trades business.

This isn’t about HVAC equipment.

It’s about foundations.

Aaron grew up in the industry.
Five years old, riding service calls with his dad.

He watched a company grow from a licensed side gig into a 45-person operation.

Not through hype.
Not through aggressive marketing.
Not through upsell tactics.

Through discipline.

Through reputation.
Through training.
Through doing it right when no one was watching.

This is what you’ll discover:

• Why starting “the right way” protects your business long before you scale
• How reinvesting early beats lifestyle inflation every time
• Why 80% referral business is a signal of operational discipline
• The difference between hiring technicians and building craftsmen
• Why training takes 4–5 years — and why that matters
• How communication failures destroy trust faster than bad pricing
• What the aging trades workforce means for the next decade
• How AI can increase efficiency without replacing real skill

Aaron also addresses something most contractors won’t say out loud:

The industry has a trust problem.

And the only way to fix it is through consistency, education, and reputation built one job at a time.

This episode isn’t about growth hacks.

It’s about building a trades company that can survive scrutiny, labor shortages, and economic cycles.

If you own or plan to own a construction, HVAC, plumbing, or specialty trades business, this conversation will feel familiar.

And necessary.

▶ Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn
 https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book
 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett
CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett
President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most construction companies don’t break because the work is hard.
They break because leadership pressure compounds faster than the business is prepared to handle it.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Tony Fucinaro, Managing Principal at MCL Construction, for a grounded conversation about what actually sustains a construction company as it grows.

Tony didn’t come up through a traditional construction path.
He started in the restaurant industry. High pressure. Tight margins. Real people problems.

That background shaped how he thinks about leadership, relationships, and decision-making under stress and why MCL chose a different path as it scaled from a small firm to nearly 300 employees.

This is not a project management episode.
It’s a leadership and ownership episode.

For construction, manufacturing, and specialty trades owners, this conversation goes deeper than job sites and schedules.

It’s about:

• Why relationship-first leadership outlasts low-bid thinking
• How critical thinking prevents small problems from becoming existential ones
• Why scaling gets harder when people become the real constraint
• The difference between authority and responsibility in leadership
• What owners must change as the business grows beyond them

Tony shares real lessons from decades inside MCL, including moments when the old way of doing construction simply stopped working and what had to change to protect the team, the culture, and the future of the business.

This episode explores:

1. Why most construction problems are thinking problems, not technical ones
2. How slowing down early creates speed later
3. Why leadership failures often show up as labor burnout
4. How owners quietly become the bottleneck without realizing it
5. What it really means to build a company that lasts beyond one generation

This episode isn’t about buildings.
It’s about building a business that can survive pressure, complexity, and time.

If you own or plan to own a trades business, this conversation will hit close to home.

🎧 Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn
 https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book
 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett
CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett
President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most businesses don’t struggle because the work isn’t good.
They struggle because ownership quietly becomes heavier than anyone expects.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Chuck Wiethop, founder of Design Eight Studios, for a grounded, no-BS conversation about what it really takes to build and sustain a trades business over decades.

This is not a signage episode.
It’s an ownership episode.

Chuck shares what 30 years in the trades teaches you about leadership, labor, profit protection, and the long-term consequences of the decisions owners make when pressure is high.

From starting with zero industry experience to building one of the most diverse sign and graphics operations in the Midwest, Chuck walks through the moments that shaped how he leads today.

Not the wins.
The weight.

This conversation explores what ownership actually demands when you’re responsible for people, margins, timelines, and reputation all at once.

You’ll hear how Chuck:

• Started a company without industry experience and learned by making mistakes
• Discovered the reality behind “being your own boss”
• Navigated labor shortages and the responsibility of keeping people working
• Learned how saying yes too often quietly destroys profit
• Lost money on purpose to build long-term capability
• Built resilience through systems, not hustle
• Earned trust by standing behind work when it would have been easier to walk away
• Balanced growth, capacity, and reputation over three decades

This episode is about responsibility, discipline, and long-term thinking.

Because resilience isn’t motivation.
It’s structure.
And it’s built long before the pressure shows up.

If you own — or plan to own — a trades, manufacturing, or operations-driven business, this conversation will hit close to home.

🎧 Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book → https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett, CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most businesses don’t break because the product is bad.
They break because ownership decisions collide with people, partners, and pressure.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down on site with Zac Triemert, founder of Brickway Brewery and Distillery, for a raw conversation about what happens when everything you build gets taken away — and you decide to build again anyway.

This is not a craft beer episode.
It’s a resilience episode.

Zach shares the full story of growing Nebraska’s largest brewery, giving away equity too early, and being escorted out of his own company — overnight. What followed wasn’t a comeback tour. It was a hard reset.

Cash flow pressure.
Starting over from scratch.
Making decisions differently the second time.

This conversation explores what ownership really demands when the market shifts, competition explodes, and the rules change mid-game.

You’ll hear how Zach:

• Lost control of the business he founded
• Rebuilt with tighter ownership and clearer guardrails
• Navigated an industry that went from 800 to 10,000 competitors
• Adapted as customers started drinking less, not more
• Managed years of cash tied up in inventory he couldn’t sell yet
• Shifted focus to survive saturation and market contraction
• Built a team that stayed through uncertainty and pressure

This episode is about patience, discipline, and long-term thinking.

Because resilience isn’t grit.
It’s structure.
And it’s built before things fall apart.

If you own — or plan to own — a trades, manufacturing, or operations-driven business, this conversation will hit close to home.

🎧 Watch the full episode and subscribe to Builders, Makers, Doers.

Stay Connected & Follow the Movement

• Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts
• Follow Builders, Makers, Doers on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book → https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett, CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most trades businesses do not fail because they lack work.
They fail because growth outruns people, systems, safety, and discipline.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with leaders from a fast-growing excavation company to talk about the side of growth most contractors never slow down enough to confront.

Not hype.
Not vanity revenue.
Real decisions that protect the business.

This conversation goes deep into what happens after acquisition, rapid headcount growth, and higher-risk work enters the picture.

More jobs do not automatically mean a better company.
Sometimes they expose everything that was barely holding together.

This episode is about restraint, discipline, and leadership under pressure.

You will hear how this team:

• Grew headcount from under 100 to nearly 300
• Improved safety while scaling operations
• Walked away from good work because resources were not ready
• Evaluated risk before bidding, not after losing money
• Discovered that back-office capacity can quietly cap growth
• Learned that hiring is still the biggest constraint in the trades

This is not an excavation episode.

It is a leadership episode.

For contractors, builders, and specialty trades owners, this conversation applies whether you run five people or five hundred.

In this episode, we unpack:

✅ Why saying no can be the most profitable decision you make
✅ How safety culture shows up before leadership speeches do
✅ What disciplined risk evaluation actually looks like before bidding
✅ Why growth breaks support teams before it breaks crews
✅ How labor challenges force smarter work selection
✅ Why resilience is built long before the job goes sideways

This episode is about growth with guardrails.

Because scaling without discipline does not build value.
It builds exposure.

🎧 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 → https://www.linkedin.com/company/ellerbrock-norris/

• Grab a copy of Andy Bassett’s book → https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/book

Connect with the Hosts

Andy Bassett, CEO, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, President and Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

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 → https://www.linkedin.com/company/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
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, AIP, CPCU — President & Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most businesses don’t fail because they lack opportunity.
They fail because volatility hits faster than their systems can respond.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Zach Lubeck, CEO of Quality Pork International, to unpack what it really takes to build a resilient, specialized manufacturing business in a world defined by labor shortages, global trade risk, and razor-thin margins.

This isn’t a conversation about pork.

It’s about what happens when you operate in an industry where:
→ You can’t pause production
→ You can’t control geopolitics
→ And mistakes don’t get a second chance

Perishable products force brutal clarity.

You either make the right decisions early — or you pay for them later.

For construction, manufacturing, and specialty trades owners, this episode goes far beyond food production.

In Episode 4, we unpack:

✅ Why narrowing your focus creates durability
✅ How turning craft work into systems protects profit
✅ Why “cheap” is the most expensive strategy
✅ How labor and skilled trades shortages threaten the future
✅ What uncontrollable risk teaches disciplined owners

If you own — or plan to own — a trades, manufacturing, or operations-driven business, this is a conversation you need to hear.

🎧 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 → https://www.linkedin.com/company/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
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, AIP, CPCU — President & Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/

Most trades businesses don’t break because the work is hard.
They break because the pressure compounds faster than the company is prepared to handle.

In this episode of Builders, Makers, Doers, Andy and Elliot sit down with Michael McKeone, owner of Daedalus Construction, to unpack what nearly 50 years in concrete teaches you about resiliency, leadership, and sustainable growth in the trades.

Concrete is unforgiving.
Once the trucks are rolling, time is already running out.

That reality forces a level of preparation, leadership discipline, and decision-making that most businesses never develop — until it’s too late.

For construction, manufacturing, and specialty trades owners, this conversation goes far beyond concrete.

It’s about:

→ When not growing is the smartest move
→ Why preparation beats toughness every time
→ How leadership failures show up as labor burnout
→ Why owners become the bottleneck without realizing it
→ What it actually takes to build a business that lasts decades

In Episode 3, we unpack:

✅ Why “growth at all costs” nearly collapses trades companies
✅ How slowing down can increase long-term profitability
✅ Why preparation is a leadership responsibility — not a crew problem
✅ How owner involvement quietly limits scale and resilience
✅ What it really means to step back without losing control

This episode isn’t about concrete.
It’s about building a company that can survive pressure, complexity, and time.

If you own — or plan to own — a trades business, this is a conversation you can’t afford to ignore.

🎧 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 → https://www.linkedin.com/company/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
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-bassett-cpcu-cic-7711853/

Elliot Bassett, AIP, CPCU — President & Partner, Ellerbrock-Norris
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-bassett-aip-cpcu-84499515/

🌐 https://www.ellerbrock-norris.com/