POWERS

Sieva is a founder and Managing Partner at Enduring Ventures. Enduring Ventures is a long-term holding company that buys beautiful businesses and holds them forever. Enduring owns a portfolio of 20+ companies across HVAC, B2B Maintenance, Plumbing, Swimming Pool Construction, and Software.

Chris and Sieva discuss:

Links:

Enduring Ventures - https://www.enduring.ventures/

Sieva on Twitter - https://twitter.com/SievaKozinsky

We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners. 

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Topics:

(00:00:00) Intro

(00:01:29) Founding Enduring Ventures

(00:12:06) What is the structure of Enduring today?

(00:20:58) How do you approach fundraising?

(00:22:47) How are you incentivized in your business model?

(00:28:26) Is there anything you won’t look at?

(00:29:51) How are you able to quickly assess the quality of a deal if you’re industry agnostic?

(00:33:09) What are the characteristics of a business that looked great years ago but today would be mediocre?

(00:37:14) What do you bring to the table when buying a deal?

(00:42:13) How do you source opportunities?

(00:44:24) Do you care if the founder or current operator stays on post-close?

(00:47:11) How do you incentivize someone to stay on in a long-term hold scenario?

(00:48:58) seller-note on full standby

(00:51:58)How many businesses do you own today?

(00:53:04) How do the businesses you acquire get cash to you?

(00:56:59) Finding the line between the what’s the responsibility of an owned business and Enduring

(00:59:39) Acquiring Scribe

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Sean Dalfen is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Dalfen Industrial and leads the firm’s investment committees and management committees across its platforms. Under Sean’s leadership, Dalfen Industrial’s portfolio has grown to over 50 million square feet of industrial properties from coast to coast, making it one of the nation’s largest owners and developers of industrial real estate and a leader in the last-mile sector. Over his career, Sean has transacted on in excess of $10 billion

On this episode, Chris and Sean discuss:

- A deep dive on the state of construction

- Predictions for the DFW market

- Robotics implementation in industrial spaces

- Industrial Outdoor Storage

We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners. 

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Links

Sean's first appearance on The Fort

Dalfen Industrial

Topics

(00:00:00) Intro

(00:04:25) Selling stocks in May 2022

(00:07:11) The state of construction

(00:14:46) How are you thinking about the next 3 years?

(00:21:36) Leasing

(00:31:43) Predictions for DFW

(00:39:18) Robotics implementation in industrial spaces

(00:43:34) Categorizing leasing activity

(00:45:49) Lending

(00:49:42) Industrial outdoor storage

(00:55:28) The evolving supply chain

(00:57:45) Thoughts on Amazon

(01:01:05) Supply vs. demand

(01:04:01) What needs to be in place right now for you to jump on a deal?

Support our Sponsors

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Chris on Social Media:

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LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd

Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX

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Alex Bridgeman is the host of Think Like an Owner, a podcast focused on how the most ambitious CEOs grow great companies. He started the podcast in 2018 while still in college, and the show has led to exciting opportunities like becoming Chief of Staff at HW Media in March 2022 which evolved into a Director of Data Strategy role at Altos Research, a data company acquired by HW Media in December 2022. 

Alex has a deep passion for content and data and how each can propel a creator into amazing opportunities they wouldn't have otherwise had. 

On this episode, Chris and Alex discuss:

- The immense benefits of Podcasting

- Alex's Chief of Staff role

- The content customer acquisition flywheel

- The world of Data Businesses

Topics:

(00:00:00) Intro

(00:01:38) “If you want to buy a business, don’t start a search fund, start a podcast.”

(00:08:22) The Impact of Think Like an Owner

(00:12:22) The Chief of Staff role

(00:24:33) The content customer acquisition flywheel

(00:28:56) What are the structures of data companies?

(00:33:26) Are we living in a world where everything we do is creating data for someone else?

(00:37:08) Does AI impact the data world?

(00:38:43) What would it look like to buy a data business?

(00:43:19) Would you implement a content flywheel if you owned a data company?

(00:45:17) How would you grow a data business?

(00:46:55) What fascinates you about the sales side of data business?

(00:51:24) Alex’s Chicken Theory

Support our Sponsors

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Links:

Think Like an Owner Podcast - https://tlaopodcast.com/

Alex on Twitter - https://twitter.com/aebridgeman

Chenmark weekly newsletter - https://chenmark.com/weekly-thoughts/

HW Media - https://www.hwmedia.com/

Craig Fuller on TLAO - https://tlaopodcast.com/podcasts/craig-fuller-acquiring-flying-magazine-and-building-a-media-playbook/

Craig Fuller on The Fort - https://www.thefortpod.com/212-craig-fuller-founder-of-freightwaves-an-absolute-masterclass-on-global-supply-chain-transportation/

Smith Travel Research - https://str.com/

The economics of data businesses - https://pivotal.substack.com/p/economics-of-data-biz

SafeGraph - https://www.safegraph.com/

World of DaaS Podcast - https://www.safegraph.com/podcasts

Altos Research - https://www.altosresearch.com/

Chris on Social Media:

Twitter: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH

LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd

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Susan Miller Gruppi is the founder and co-president of M2G Ventures, a commercial real estate private equity and advisory development company based in Fort Worth, Texas. Guided by the leadership of Susan and her partner, Jessica Miller Essl, the fast-growing company carefully invests in mixed-use and industrial development projects located in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex and the Austin Central Texas region.

On this episode, Chris & Susan discuss:

- Fundraising in today's market

- Trends in what matters to Family Offices

- Making Industrial cool

- Revitalizing the Fort Worth stockyards

Topics:

(00:00:00) Intro

(00:02:27) Susan’s experience in fundraising in this market

(00:13:45) Why did you choose a GP fund?

(00:16:25) What trends are you seeing in what matters to Family Offices?

(00:17:43) Making Industrial cool

(00:25:30) The Archetype in Brookhollow

(00:28:16) Thoughts on the debt market

(00:32:11) M2G’s Role in the massive success of the Fort Worth Stockyards and lessons learned

(00:47:36) How have you seen massive projects like this get screwed up?

(00:51:11) How do you handle a tenant who’s the lifeblood of an area but can’t afford a top dollar rent?

Links:

M2G Ventures - https://www.m2gventures.com/

Susan on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-miller-gruppi-14653818/

Mule Alley in the Fort Worth Stockyards - https://mulealleyfortworth.com/

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Isaac French designed and built Live Oak Lake, a breathtaking 7-unit nature-immersive retreat located just outside Waco, Texas. In its first year, the property grossed $1 million, with a net profit of $550,000. Thanks to his cultivation of the brand’s social media following of 150K, over 80% of all bookings are direct. Isaac thrives on continuously expanding his repertoire of skills and sharing candidly from his experiences.

On this episode, Chris and Isaac discuss:

We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners. 

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Links:

Isaac on Twitter

Isaac's LinkTree to course, newsletter & consulting

Live Oak Lake

DallasSites101

Topics:

(00:02:21) Isaac’s background & career

(00:07:24) The love of design

(00:09:55) The experiential hospitality model

(00:13:32) The process of building Live Oak Lake

(00:27:44) What does experiential hospitality mean?

(00:32:17) Automated cost savings & touchpoint details that matter

(00:41:56) What has changed about the property since you opened?

(00:46:11) Can you fake an end-to-end experiential property?

(00:48:12) How do you make sure labor is in check in a rural area?

(00:53:28) Is there a number of units where you lose out on the magic?

(01:00:25) Building a social media engine & course

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The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts

Nick and Chris come together for an intimate conversation that goes beyond their normal public or online discussions. This is Nick's 9th appearance on The Fort.

They discuss:

We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners. 

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Links

Nick on Twitter – https://twitter.com/sweatystartup

You Have What it Takes by John Eldredge

Nick's Companies

Business Brokerage – https://nickhuber.com/

Personal Brand – https://sweatystartup.com/

Self Storage – https://boltstorage.com/

Bold SEO – https://boldseo.com/

Insurance – https://titanrisk.com/

Recruiting – https://recruitjet.com/

Landing Page / Web Development – https://webrun.com/

Overseas Staffing – https://supportshepherd.com/

Debt and Equity – https://bluekeycapital.com/

Tax Credit – https://taxcredithunter.com/

Cost Segregation – https://recostseg.com/

Performance Marketing – https://adrhino.com/

Pest control – https://spidexx.com/

Topics

(00:03:43) Chris and Nick reflect on their relationship and careers

(00:08:47) Nick on his father: Starting businesses & their relationship

(00:15:16) Thoughts on money

(00:23:59) Pivoting to build the Huber Empire

(00:35:25) How much does it mean to you that your dad is proud of you?

(00:36:35) Chris reads an email his father sent him 3 days before passing

(00:40:25) Parenting & marriage philosophies

(00:58:52) The pressure on men in today’s world and what it means to be influential

(01:15:13) How Nick is building his Flywheel

(01:20:56) What does this all look like in 5 years if it goes right?

(01:25:42) Final thoughts

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Chris on Social Media:

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The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts

As the founder of Creek Development, Shiloe has completed 63 commercial redevelopment projects and 5 land entitlement plays in the San Francisco Bay Area. Leveraging her deep construction expertise, she challenges project assumptions and incorporates impactful design to achieve remarkable outcomes for her clients and investors.

On this episode, Chris and Shiloe discuss:

- How Shiloe built Creek as an outsourced developer

- How Creek converts Industrial space for biotech labs

- A deep dive into the Bay Area RE market

- Why design is such an important aspect of development

Links:

Shiloe on Twitter: https://twitter.com/shiloebear

Creek Development: https://creekdev.com/

Topics:

(00:04:37) Shiloe’s upbringing and journey to doing development in the Bay Area

(00:11:34) What are the projects you work on the most?

(00:14:03) Why is there such a demand for outsourced development?

(00:14:44) What makes your firm different?

(00:18:09) Tenants not paying rent

(00:19:49) Minimum Viable Projects

(00:24:27) How early in a project do you need to be brought in?

(00:27:48) What are some obvious parts of a project where you can save money?

(00:30:05) How would you describe the Bay Area market right now?

(00:35:48) Office to Residential

(00:39:48) What’s the environment like for Oakland?

(00:44:45) How Shiloe is planning to pivot her business into doing their own developments

(00:50:19) How important are the relationships you’ve developed in The Bay over the past 10 years?

(00:54:51) The BioTech market and development strategy

(01:02:19) Why design matters

(01:09:50) How far out are labs looking for space?

(01:11:02) Lenders, Leases, and hold periods

(01:13:48) Why did this become your niche?

(01:15:27) Shiloe’s bird-watching skills & long-distance running

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Chris on Social Media:

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Ana Lorena Fábrega is an edupreneur, writer, and Chief Evangelist at Synthesis. Growing up, she attended ten schools in seven different countries. She then earned her BS in Childhood Education and Special Education from New York University and taught elementary school in New York, Boston, and Panama. Today, Ana Lorena writes online to over 200,000 readers about the promise of alternative education.

On this episode, Chris and Ana discuss:

We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners. 

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Links

The Learning Game by Ana Lorena Fábrega

Ana on Twitter

Topics

(00:02:22) The problem in America with ADHD

(00:13:14) The current state of education

(00:22:34) The role of an educator

(00:29:38) How can teachers work differently within the school system?

(00:35:40) Are tests even necessary?

(00:39:36) Teaching kids in a digital world

(00:46:53) Learning how to fail

(00:59:57) Nature vs. Nurture

(01:02:41) Negotiating with your kids

(01:06:34) It’s useless to ask kids what they want to be when they grow up

(01:09:34) How parents should approach their children’s education

(01:13:54) Learning tendencies in single-child households vs. multi-child

(01:16:06) How are you planning out your child’s education?

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Chris on Social Media:

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Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX

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The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts

Eric is a trusted deal lawyer with extensive M&A and capital markets experience. Having worked for elite law firms such as Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, Eric has worked on high-stakes transactions for clients such as Amazon.com, Jerry Jones, Banc of America Securities LLC, Palantir and Greenlane Holdings.

On this episode, Eric and Chris discuss:

Links:

Eric on Twitter

SMB Law Group

Mundane Millionaires Podcast

The Fort w/ Rich Jordan

The Fort w/ Josh Schultz

Topics:

(00:01:57) Starting SMB Law Group - The first social media-driven law firm

(00:09:14) How different types of searchers approach acquisitions

(00:22:00) The Silver Tsunami

(00:23:52) The types of businesses Eric works on and the world of business brokers

(00:32:03) What makes a great buyer

(00:34:44) The process of closing on a business

(00:59:44) Installing a new CEO post-acquisition

(01:01:56) Management buy-outs

(01:03:17) Holdcos vs. rollups

(01:07:03) ChatGPT’s impact on the legal profession

(01:10:02) Reps, warranties, and insurance in SMB

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Evan Baehr is the managing partner of Learn Capital, a venture capital fund that backs and builds companies that drive human flourishing. He’s Founder of Teneo, a national leadership organization, author of the best-selling book Get Backed from Harvard Business Press, and host of the Arena, a TV show celebrating bold founders.

On this episode, Evan and Chris discuss:

We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners. 

https://www.thefortpod.com/survey

Links

Learn Capital

Teneo

Evan on Twitter

Topics

(00:01:36) Human Flourishing

(00:14:38) The rise in deaths of despair

(00:23:03) The role of government in human flourishing

(00:28:52) Teneo

(00:34:17) How to build a community

(00:41:43) How communities change as they grow

(00:54:57) Writing a bill to protect international mail-order brides

(00:58:06) Evan’s perspective on ESG

Support our Sponsors

Fort Capital: https://bit.ly/FortCapital

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Chris on Social Media:

Twitter: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH

LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd

Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX

Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys

Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0

Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO 

The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts