All right, welcome back to another facility meet up everybody your host Alvaro to bring you another super interesting guest And for that is gonna be our friend Brad love it He is the founder and president of AFD construction They are in a war-winning GZ in Arizona and they specialize in commercial residential and retail the projects are fantastic And aside from that they also have a really good podcast I will say that it's called the AFD construction podcast and we're heading ahead when it comes to the episodes and the topics that they This cast are phenomenal So we're gonna be talking about all different topics related to luxury when it comes to construction and hope you will get to enjoy it There is what's going on Brad. How you doing excited to be here? Oh, yes. Thank you for joining us.
Yeah By the way, what's that? I love your background. What are you happy there? Oh, thanks This is this my office here in Scottsdale and you know just big sports fans as you can see and you know We actually have a football team for a while, so we have a little football trophy up here in the corner, so I love that I love that.
Well, listen Brad. Thank you so much for joining us. I was making a quick intro by yourself You are the president and founder AFD construction award-winning GC in Arizona I've seen some of the projects that you do and for those that are tuning in right now or later on Please make sure that you follow Brad at AFD underscore construction all the projects that you're showcasing are yours and they're fantastic Yeah, so tell us a little bit about your story. What is it about AFD construction and some of the projects that you're working on?
Yeah, so quick background I grew up in San Diego in Southern California and just had a fascination for construction My father and uncle's were electricians my grandfather when he finished out the Navy started electrical company So grew up in the trades love construction was fortunate to work on some high-end projects there in San Diego and then Winter College the construction management in fact I'd agree behind me as There you go. Yeah construction degree and then I moved to Phoenix in 2005 So I worked building here in since oh five and then in 2013 Started a tea construction and like any company it takes a lot of work right at slow growth it takes time to start building Reputation and you know fortunately these last few years we've been able to work on some remarkable projects So well, I mean I just gonna tell you what you're doing is so beautiful and I've been in Scotts, Arizona I love playing golf there. I used to be Mexico So all my little trips were going to Arizona because it's such a fun place And I gotta say that from 2005 that is when you move in there until now. I'm sure you've seen tremendous growth, right?
Oh, it's changed so much. It's funny. Yeah, the growth has been amazing Especially now through COVID so many people are relocated there So that's a you know, it's a little hot, you know, truth be told right down the summer But you know most of the year it's beautiful a lot of great golf a lot of activities easy to travel to so you know our clients Definitely love especially winter homes great place to be in the winter. Mm-hmm So what would you say now with all the changes that we've been facing the last two years that you've experienced when it comes to the demands?
Yeah, you know, it's interesting it's a good question that the demands change a lot, right? We've seen more of a demand and I want you to take us another step You know, we've been fortunate our last few is to work on homes that are more sustainable building science We're fortunate to be selected to do the net zero home, which is off the grid, right? It's a building science house It's a national home of the year here in Cape Creek just north of Scottsdale And so I find that customers now are a lot more savvy, right? They care about the environment.
They care about the homes being sustainable But additionally they want they want amenities, right? I mean when travel was shut down and you're stuck at home, you know, whether it be a home office Whether it be the pool, you know, gathering areas, you know, have people at your house These are much more prevalent than important people now So we're finding customers asking for this and it's fun for us to build because now you have that resort style Yeah, that's right And that's what you're seeing me pulse now with lazy rivers and go-kart tracks in the yard I mean just a lot of those fun things that you know that I aspire to do with our team, so I mean you're completely right And I guess that space is the new luxury right a lot of people during that covid phase They were all you know wanting to have their own space and their backyard with their pool and everything So sure you're getting a lot of those requests now Yeah, we are and it's changed You know, I thought after the recession is funny because you asked about how it's changed, you know When I was I lived through the first recession, you know the housing crisis of 2008-19 and Phoenix was hit really hard And I honestly thought hey these big houses no one's gonna do them anymore But we're seeing that that regeneration right it's happening now and mostly because people are like hey If I get if there's another lockdown if something comes up I want to have my my safe place at home and part of that goes back to that sustainability, right? I want a home that has great lighting has great air filtration water filtration, you know these things for healthy lifestyle Which is really important No, absolutely and when it comes to your projects, I mean it has something very unique, right? It's all very beautiful Well done and it's very attractive, but you've also mastered when it comes to the content because what you said it takes time to build a reputation It takes time to build a brand and a company but now we are I guess you know very lucky enough to have access to technology that allows us to reach a larger audience And as long as you can master that game You'll be able to reach more potential clients in a faster way than traditionally and you currently have like also 100,000 followers You have amazing content great engagement.
So what it is that would you say has helped you reach that level? That's a good question I think it's partners such as yourself, right? It's you know networking with other professionals You only platforms build in a camaraderie build a networking or that reciprocity It's the same thing, right? If I support my fellow contractors, architects designers They'll do the same thing but what I found is not only from the content Not only can you build this amazing community because let's be realistic realistic right construction architecture design These are hard businesses that there's a lot that we do that people don't realize you know that aren't in the industry And so just understanding challenges people are having another market, you know Instagram LinkedIn has opened up those channels Additionally when you speak about marketing.
Yeah, I mean this is not an opportunity where we can you know network with clients right potential clients and they move to Scottsdale and build that brand build up reputation and that you know and that's a big thing People ask me like well Brad, you know, what do you think about budgets? Okay? Well, it's really easy to speak about sustainability or net zero or like these building sites Thanks, but you know, how do you get the customer to pay for that and the reality is you know through these channels? We can educate them we can show the process we can show the how we get to it You know the cost of it why we're doing it the benefits of it and there's gonna be people to gravitate to that You know to that education because you know you're just trying to be you know the more education you can be on the platform and more beneficial Is hundred percent no well said when it comes to your business?
I mean, there's a lot of years already in the business So I'm sure you've come across really interesting scenarios that have teach me a lot So tell me what's been like the biggest lesson that you've learned all those years? Uh, yeah, you know, I think there's a lot of ways I can go this Um, I think a big thing is when you think about expectations, right? Like setting clear expectations for clients anytime we get sideways. It's I've done a bad job, you know setting clear expectations and managing those Specific example, you know, this has changed our process You know one thing for me is I'm really big on intugasigns right that we have to have an intugasign with every project The reason being you know four years ago, we were doing a project We kind of went outside of that stipulation to have a designer and what ended up happening is the project took way too long It was it always contentious with a client.
You know us, you know to get answers get selections at delayed construction And so what we found was that when you deviate right from those practices or your operations It can create issues and this goes back to expectations And so I found that you know less than learned having the right design team being involved in the beginning Especially now when you're doing supply chain inflation cost if we can put that team together design properly organized purchase plan schedule Contract these are things we can do that now make the project go, you know a lot more smooth No, well, yeah, that's that's good Sometimes we forget about it, but that's some of the fundamentals in order for you to really thrive on the business So very good. Thanks for sharing that another question I have for you, right? And this is something that you know, I was being asked in the past and I'm like, that's a good question I will ask that to my next guest and here you are. How do you sell yourself?
Another good question. So I'll give another good example. This was a great lesson to me. Um, so fortunately This was probably I was pre-pandemic so probably three years ago.
I think I was able to attend on LinkedIn They had held like a LinkedIn global conference out of New York And so I attended this conference and uh, there was a female there who was on the panel with me And she made a comment and I've said this example before but she said, you know And this is her perspective not mine, right? But she said, you know, as a female I get on LinkedIn and I felt that I had to have like my makeup done I had to be all perfectly, you know dressed I prepared for the day and I'd hold my video up and I'd take this video about You know, whatever she was speaking about and then she realized, you know what? Why like I'm just gonna be myself. I'm gonna post in the morning when I wake up No makeup, you know, maybe I do have makeup later today when I'm ready And so really what she was saying was so many times we try to be someone we're not right And the reality is like there's some comfort getting behind a camera But what I found is you have to build up personality have to showcase who you are And I found that the more time I stand, you know, showing not only just our systems and processes But my personality like what drives me what motivates me, you know, what I enjoy, you know, sports I love all those pictures of golf and people that like all for like, hey, brother, let's get out and play So you just start to build this persona and so I would challenge anybody that don't worry about having the most perfect video Or the most perfect lighting just get out there be out there be yourself and people will take that They'll appreciate that and it'll help build your brain Wow, no, I love that because authenticity is really what resonates with the people, right?
They want to see the real youth so I love that you say that because I've had this conversation with a lot of the people and we Obviously as super luxury we focus on celebrities in homes So we work with a lot of influencers and public figures and it's about that that dilemma And how you really make sure your audience gets captivated and really follows through your journey And you cannot fake waking up like you fall you start being the authentic you it makes the whole transition easier Otherwise, it's too much, you know, you're gonna just have your perfect version all the time. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, not very very good Now this question is something that is very broad, right? It comes in all different shapes and forms, but the work luxury what really means for you I think luxury it means different things for different people, right?
But for me you think about the luxury experience So it's not so much maybe a level five or you know high-end metallic finish on wall I think luxury when you think about a luxury product Well, what is that experience? You know if you're going into Louis Vuitton just that that white glove service that that care right is or sit down and you have the cells associated and then the packaging as you take this and you have it's like it's like this amazing gift You know you open your Louis Vuitton the Apple but you know what I mean and same thing like if even something like Apple right Apple's a great product You know the packaging that experience and so luxury is experienced right and so many times In our industry especially construction that's completely lost even on the high-end side So how can we make this in more hands-on luxury? You know red carpet white gloves? How do we communicate how we set expectations?
How are we delivering a quality product? And so it's just it's more the process and not just the finished results and a lot of times there's business on the blue side of that But you said it right there and I think the experience is what really makes you know the word luxury being actually something luxury So with with that being said what is something that you've implemented in your services that have really made you stand out from the competition? Yeah, that experience good question. So something we did okay So as I mentioned previously in this conversation, we always have a designer in an architect and you know our client right that's involved in the process So now we do these very personal videos so every Friday instead of just sending an email like here's the update on the project You know a lot of my clients are from out of state being in Scotts that we have a lot from all over the country So more than half my clients don't live here full time.
So every Friday my superintendent that's on the job We have a group Text chain so I had architect the designer in our client and they send out a video and this video is walking through the house Here's what took place this week. You know here's what's up coming in the next few weeks is very personal So it's so nice. I had yeah, I have these clients with South Dakota and uh the husband told me said you know Brad I was asking him as next that this was last year actually because this is a two-year bill And I said hey when you come down and he said you know Brad and may I figured I'd come out pretty often but you guys are so communicative No need no need no Yeah, I'm not gonna talk to over and the funny thing is my superintendent has posted a video every week for over a year now with his client And he missed one he missed one because he was out of town and so on saturday the client's like Paul like where's my video? Yeah, it's so just but it's the personal side So you think about this it's just hearing the voice hearing the candor, you know The temperament of and here's the progress is what's happening is just a lot more live shot to what's happening.
Well, great advice and especially good reminder, because sometimes we forget that we have a device that allows us to connect to much deeper levels. And we don't utilize a quarter of it. We just sent a regular email where you can actually do a video walking through and connect directly with your client, with your friend, with whoever you're working with. It's a great reminder for a lot.
And here's the problem. The reality is with text or email, you can't understand tone or sarcasm. Not that you want to be sarcastic, but you don't just get a motion behind it. But if you're doing a video, and that's why going back to that service, even text when I text clients or my team, I do voice text.
I do voice text a lot. Because understanding tone is a big part of communication. And that's something that's often lost. No, well said.
And I agree 100% with you. So obviously, I need to remind myself sometimes about that. There is something about the video that I can resonate so much with you. I started to do this exercise daily of thanking people that are in my circle just for 10 minutes, no more.
I just take 10 minutes of my time in the morning to go through my list of people in my life and thank them for whatever reason resonates more with me. And at some point, I was like, I want to change that. I want to start doing videos instead. And the feedback that you received from sending something so beautifully instead of from a text from a video.
It's like, wow. So I think like video has something really beautiful that connects us. So no, great. And I really enjoyed the conversation.
I know that it's still early in Arizona. So I want you to keep on going with what you have going on. I just wanted to wrap this up by saying that I really appreciate your time and all the information that you've shared. And to encourage everybody watching or listening to this, the please follow Brad at AFT underscore construction.
Is there any other better way to communicate with you for any questions they may have? Overall, that's perfect. Yeah, they can communicate. I run our social media.
So like if they want to ping me on LinkedIn, Brad Levitt, Pretty Simple. And then all other social media is AFT construction, including the podcast. So pretty easy to find us. Amazing.
Well, I want to thank also everybody that is doing this live. And I will see this later. We appreciate all your support. Make sure you also show some love to Brad.
Thank you. Anything else that you would like to share before we finish this up? No, I appreciate it. You know, I appreciate the connection again.
That's the value that we always talk about the social media. As much as some people may not appreciate that aspect, you know, it's a connector. And the more like you and I connect outrun and others, right? It just it opens up channels of who knows where a pass will cross again.
You and I opportunities to come from that. I mean, you never know. And it just from you, King and me, Saint Brad, we come on. And just those simple interactions, turn to other things, you know.
No, absolutely. And look, I'm sure that if I ever go to Scottsdale, I'll be up for it. Oh my God. You know, I used to go for a lot when I used to be in the mini-car republic in California, in this golf course called Puntas Pala, number one golf course in the Caribbean, in Mexico.
If you haven't been, I invite you to be my guest in there because it's such a beautiful course. Even if you come here to Miami, there's also some nice golf courses that we can play on. So I'll hit you up when I'm in Miami next time. And in the US, let me know.
Yeah, some golf in business. Yes, a little bit of a ride. Well, thank you, Brad. I appreciate it.
I'm sure we'll see you soon. Thanks, and thank you. And thanks again for everybody tuning in today. We hope you enjoyed it.
And remember, embrace its beautiful success in life. My name is Alvaro, and I'll see you next time.