Blue Collar Ballers
by Faiez Rana
Blue Collar Ballers is the podcast about real entrepreneurs building 7- and 8-figure businesses with their hands—from roofers and plumbers to painters, pest pros, and landscapers. We go beyond Silicon Valley hype to share tactical growth strategies, operational playbooks, and leadership lessons from those turning grit into generational wealth. Whether you're in the trades or just respect the grind, these are the stories behind America’s most essential businesses.
Episodes
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From High School Dropout to 100-Territory Painting Franchise | Matthew Rathgeb on Building Groovy Hues Painting
Matthew Rathgeb is the founder of Groovy Hues Painting, the national franchise brand that just awarded its 100th territory — and the flagship location is his own shop in Philadelphia, PA. But it didn't start anywhere near there. Matt is a high school dropout who's been in recovery for 21 years.…
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35 Years, 4 Sons, $3M in HVAC — and One Loss That Changed Everything | Sheryl Knight's Aire Serv of the Woodlands Story
Sheryl Knight is the co-owner of Aire Serv of the Woodlands Heating and Aire Conditioning, a family-run HVAC company in Conroe, Texas — about 40 miles north of Houston — that she and her husband Mike have built into a nearly $3M business over 35 years. What started in 1991 as Mike and one helper...
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From 80% Residential to 75% Commercial | Tyler Taunton on Steering Texas Roof Repair's Commercial Pivot
Tyler Taunton is the co-owner of Texas Roof Repair, an Austin-based roofing company that has spent the last decade deliberately transforming from an 80% residential business into a 75% commercial operation. He runs sales and marketing alongside his partner Joseph, who runs operations — two…
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From Sailing the Pacific to $5M | How Matthew Mahoney Rebuilt Limestone Moving
Matthew Mahoney is the owner of Limestone Moving in Austin, Texas — a company he's on track to grow to roughly $5 million in revenue this year. But the path here wasn't a straight line. Matthew started Limestone moving people in and out of dorm rooms while he was a student at UT. After building…
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$1M Cleaning Business and Never Met a Cleaner or Client | Patrick Murphy on Building Cascade Home Cleaning 100% Remotely
Patrick Murphy is the owner of Cascade Home Cleaning, a residential cleaning business in Bellingham, Washington that he's built to $1M in annual recurring revenue — entirely remote. He's never met a cleaner. He's never met a client. He started the company as a side hustle while working as a…
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From $1.2M to $30M in 9 Years | Trey McWilliams on Scaling His Family HVAC Business in East Texas
Trey McWilliams is a third-generation HVAC operator from East Texas and the founder of Blue Cardinal Home Services, a platform group now operating in over 20 locations across the home service trades. Trey grew up riding shotgun with his grandfather — a Navy retiree who started the family business...
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Why He Added Electrical to His $1M HVAC Shop | Robert Wolf, Wolf HVAC (Sonoma County)
Robert Wolf is the owner of Wolf HVAC, a $1M+ HVAC operation based in Kotati, California, serving Sonoma, Marin, and Napa counties — right in the heart of wine country. Robert started his career doing odd jobs as a teenager before falling in love with the trades. After 11 years in the field —...
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$0 to $11.5M in Four Years | How Philip Crutchfield Is Scaling Three Home Service Franchises Under One Roof
In this episode, I sit down with Philip Crutchfield, co-owner and founder of Camber Brands in Sarasota, Florida — a portfolio of three home service franchises doing $11.5M in 2025, with a target of $17–18M in 2026. Camber houses Mighty Dog Roofing (where Philip was the very first franchisee),...
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From College Dropout to $3.7M in Fencing | How Nate Austin Grew a Premium Fence Brand in Texas
In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Nate Austin, founder of Austin Brothers Fence Company in Austin, Texas, shares how he and his brother started a fence company with $2,500, a financed truck, and zero experience installing wood fences — YouTubing their first 10 builds. Fourteen years later,...
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His Customer Couldn't Remember His Name - So He Spent $78K To Fix It | Will Sarver, Boxer Buddies Moving
Will Sarver spent 10 years building a moving company in Austin, Texas. One phone call changed everything — a past customer told him she'd just moved again, but couldn't remember who she'd used last time. That was his company. So Will dropped $78,000 on a complete rebrand. New name, new logo, new...
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He Built His Own Exit Plan — Then Had His Biggest Year Ever | Tony Batista | Floors 2 Luv
Tony Batista is the founder of Floors 2 Luv, a multi-million dollar flooring company in Houston, Texas running 10 crews and completing over 300 jobs a year. After nearly two decades in business, Tony is now in year three of a five-year succession plan — handing the company to two of his own…
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From One Van with His Dad to Building a Handyman Empire | Tim Leary on Scaling Handys & Champion Service Partners
Here's the updated description with timestamps pulled from the raw transcript. These will shift after you cut the pre-roll, so adjust accordingly — the pre-interview small talk runs until about 5:47, so roughly subtract 5-6 minutes depending on your edit. Tim Leary is the founder of Handys, a...
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From Single Mom to Master Plumber | How Jillian Pittman Went from Digging Trenches to Running a $2.7M Company
Jillian Pittman is a master plumber and the owner of JMP Plumbing Services in North Texas — a $2.7 million residential and commercial plumbing company with five trucks on the road, ten technicians, and a goal to cross $3 million this year with fewer people than she had at her peak. Jillian didn't...
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From Cleaning Toilets to 500 Employees | How Todd Wolf Built Total Cleaning to $15M Across 6 States
In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Todd Wolf, Founder of Total Cleaning, shares how he went from answering his mom's phone call at 23 to building a $15M janitorial company with 500 employees across 6 states — over 36 years of learning, leading, and letting go. Based in Fort Lauderdale, Total...
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Turn Reviews & Networking Into Jobs: How Adriana Filled 3 Painting Crews Without Lead Vendors
Adriana Salazar moved to Austin in 2020 knowing almost no one, burned money on junk leads early on, and still built a multi‑crew residential painting company mostly on relationships, reputation, and reviews. If you’re a high six or low seven‑figure home service owner, this episode gives you...
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Stop Driving to Every Estimate: The Live Video “Cheat Code” for Home Service Owners w/ James Hatfield
If you’re still driving to every single estimate, you’re donating hours and jobs to your competition. In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Faiez Rana sits down with James Hatfield, former painting and power washing owner turned Chief Revenue Officer at LiveSwitch – one of the fastest-growing...
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From Zero to Six Territories in One Year | How Jared Chapple Is Scaling Pink’s Windows in Atlanta
In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Faiez Rana sits down with Jared Chapple, a multi-territory owner of Pink’s Windows in North Atlanta. Jared went from zero franchise experience to buying six territories in one of the most competitive home service markets in the country — launching three in...
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From Couch Surfing to $20M+ in 4 Years | How Jordan White Built an 8-Figure Roofing Company by Age 26
In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Jordan White, Co-Owner of SeekOne Roofing, shares how he went from sleeping on a couch to building a $20M roofing business in just four years — all by age 26. Based in Nashville, SeekOne Roofing has carved out a dominant position in some of the wealthiest...
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Why Most Electrical Contractors Get Stuck at $1M — and How Magnify Electric Broke Through to $3M
In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Faiez Rana sits down with James Dougherty, owner of Magnify Electric outside Austin, Texas. James shares the real story behind growing from a small commercial operation into a $3M electrical business with 24 employees, and the hard-earned lessons that came...
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How a Former D1 Athlete Built Two Franchises That Run Without Her | Mary Guarino on Building Enterprise Value & Owner Freedom
Mary Guarino is one of the best operator-turned-advisors in the franchise world — a former Division I athlete who built two thriving businesses in pest control and wellness, scaled them across multiple territories, and engineered both to run on true autopilot. Today, Mary is a business advisor at...
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Building America’s #1 Turf Brand with Tim Lovett: The Unit Economics, Playbook & Vision Behind Waterloo Turf
Tim Lovett is one of the most intriguing new voices in home services — a former WeWork and ResiBrands exec who walked away from corporate success to help build America’s #1 artificial turf brand. Today, Waterloo Turf is expanding nationally with 36 territories, elite unit economics, and a…
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Three Exits Later: 30 Years of Franchising Lessons with Rick Maffezzoli
Rick Maffezzoli has seen every angle of the franchise world — as a gym owner, consultant, and multi-unit operator. After three business exits, including sales to Gold’s Gym and Palm Beach Tanning, he’s now building a franchise portfolio with his wife Lisa. In this episode, Rick shares hard-earned...
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From Colombia to a 7-Figure Landscaping Company: Angelica Negrete’s Story of Reinvention and Rising as a Woman in the Trades.
Florida-based entrepreneur Angelica Negrete shares how she turned Royal Gardens FL from a side hustle with no truck or equipment into a seven-figure landscaping company—and how she’s redefining what it means to be a woman leading in the trades. We cover what it really takes to build a...
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Tony Hulbert on Building Horsepower Brands to $275M — The All-In Mindset, Kaizen Leadership, and AI-Powered Home Services
Nebraska-based CEO Tony Hulbert shares how he helped grow Horsepower Brands—a home-service franchising platform spanning nine brands and 400 business owners—from a single $800K roofing startup into a $275 million system in just five years. We cover what it really takes to build people who build...
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Glitter, Grit, and Grease: How Ashleigh Barcuch Built a 7-Figure Auto Shop That's Changing the Culture of Car Repair
Austin-based entrepreneur Ashleigh Barcuch shares how she and her husband built Mobile Auto Clinic, a $1.2 million hybrid shop and mobile-mechanic fleet redefining what it means to serve customers—and each other—in the automotive trades. We cover the real human side of running a business with…
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From the Barrio to a $30M Roofing Empire | Randy Hurtado, COO of DT Companies & Good Contractors List
Former IT security consultant, Randy Hurtado, shares how an unexpected career pivot led him from a job in IT to co-owning DT Companies—a $30M roofing and construction group—and now serving as COO of The Good Contractors List, a nationwide platform protecting homeowners with a $25,000 job…
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From Banker to Blue Collar CEO: How Greg Bruns Bought Allied Hydro Mulch and Built Texas’s Go-To Erosion Control Company
Former commercial banker Greg Bruns shares how he used entrepreneurship through acquisition (ETA) to buy Allied Hydro Mulch—a Houston-based erosion control and hydromulching/hydroseeding subcontractor—and what he’s learned operating in the construction trades. We cover the real day-to-day after…
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How to Buy a Business with an SBA Loan | Matthias Smith, Pioneer Capital Advisory
Thinking of buying a business? Learn exactly how to use SBA 7(a) financing—from LOI to close—with Matthias Smith of Pioneer Capital Advisory. In this Blue Collar Ballers episode, we go step-by-step on how to buy a business with an SBA loan. Guest Matthias Smith, founder of Pioneer Capital…
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From Corporate America to Blue Collar Operator | How Eric Cunningham Bought A 25 Year Old Plumbing Business
From Corporate to Blue-Collar Operator: Eric Cunningham shares how he left National Instruments and tech startups to buy a 25-year-old residential plumbing company in Austin, TX. We unpack acquisition entrepreneurship, the “learning/stupid tax,” and the shift from sales ops and engineering...
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From Sobriety to $200M+ Solar CEO | How Bret Biggart Rebuilt His Life and Business
What happens when a private equity exec walks away, gets sober, and builds one of the top residential solar companies in America? In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Faiez Rana sits down with Bret Biggart, the Founder & CEO of Freedom Solar — a company that’s grown into a $200M+ powerhouse,...
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From Single Mom to Franchise Powerhouse: How Miss Dafna Is Building Her Pink's Windows Empire with Courage & Community
Today on Blue Collar Ballers, I'm sitting down with Miss Dafna, owner of Pink’s Windows Fort Lauderdale—a fast-growing window and pressure washing franchise. When Dafna unexpectedly lost her job, she didn't panic. Instead, she leaned into an opportunity she found by chance—buying and rapidly...
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Leadership, Delegation & Retaining Great Talent in the Trades with Coach Dan Dowdy
Dan Dowdy started earning $5/day on plumbing jobs with his dad at age 5. By 2009, he stepped into leadership of the family business—learning the hard way how to manage people, delegate, and scale without burning out. In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Dan shares hard-earned lessons from 20+...
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From Mowing Lawns to $10M Remodeling CEO by 25 | The Unfiltered Truth of Buying a Business with Reid Rupp
Reid Rupp started mowing lawns at 14. By 25, he was running a $10M remodeling company—after buying it with less than $400K down. In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Reid breaks down what really happens after you buy a business—beyond the highlight reels. We cover: How he structured the deal...
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From Pro Baseball to Coaching 1,000+ Sales Teams: How Ryan Groth Transformed the Way Contractors Sell
From Pro Baseball to Coaching 1,000+ Sales Teams: How Ryan Groth Transformed the Way Contractors Sell Ryan Groth, Founder of Sales Transformation Group, didn’t just walk away from a pro baseball career—he reinvented himself into one of the most respected sales trainers in the trades. Today, he’s...
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From Jurassic Park to Franchise Empire: How Andy Fuller Scaled Mosquito Hunters to 150+ Locations
Andy Fuller was watching Jurassic Park when a wild idea struck: mosquitoes have been around since the dinosaurs — and they’re not going anywhere. That insight became the seed for Mosquito Hunters, a side hustle he launched while working a corporate job. Today, it's a national franchise with over...
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6 Hidden Deal-Killers to Avoid Before You Exit (with Business Attorney Mitch Zoll)
Most home service business owners dream of a big payday—but 80% never find a buyer. Not because their business isn’t profitable. But because it’s unprepared. In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, business attorney Mitch Zoll pulls on two decades of experience and breaks down 6 hidden landmines...
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$0 to $40MM in 12 Months: How Steve Huber Built $2B Sales Teams in Roofing & Solar
In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Faiez Rana sits down with Steve Huber, founder of Billion Dollar Contractor and the architect behind two of the most dominant sales organizations in solar and roofing. Over the last 12 years, Steve’s teams have sold and installed more than $2 billion in...
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From Lawyer to $10M+ Trades SaaS | How Marc Visent Is Solving Contractings Most Common Profit Leaks
What happens when a corporate lawyer helps a plumber recover $60K in missed revenue—and stumbles into a broken industry? He builds a business to fix it. In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, I sit down with Marc Visent, founder and CEO of Knowify, a construction management platform now used by...
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From Marine to Main Street | How Anna Bought a 78 Year Old HVAC Business
Anna Pavlack went from Marine Corps intelligence to Main Street CEO—buying a 78-year-old HVAC business in small-town Pennsylvania with just 5% down. In this episode, Anna breaks down how she structured the deal using SBA financing and seller notes, why buying the building gave her better terms…
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From Gas Station Clerk to $12.5M in 4 Years | How Joel Bell built an 8-figure roofing business by 25
At just 25 years old, Joel Bell is running a $12.5M roofing business with a lean team and a rock-solid mindset. But just four years ago, he was earning $14/hr at a gas station, flipping furniture on Facebook, and catering crawfish boils to cover rent. In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, host...
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From ER Nurse to $6M Plumbing Outfit
How Ashley Stroud Built a $5M+ Plumbing Business While Raising 5 Kids What does it take to build a plumbing company from scratch—while raising five kids and running it with your spouse? In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, we sit down with Ashley Stroud, co-owner of Plumbing Outfitters, to...
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From Prison to Pastor to $50M Roofing CEO
How Jacob Vanhorn Built a $50M Roofing Empire with Systems, Service, and Second Chances In this powerful episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Faiez Rana sits down with Jacob, the CEO and co-owner of Bird Creek Roofing & Construction—a Texas-based roofing company that grew from humble beginnings to…
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About this show
Blue Collar Ballers is the podcast about real entrepreneurs building 7- and 8-figure businesses with their hands—from roofers and plumbers to painters, pest pros, and landscapers. We go beyond Silicon Valley hype to share tactical growth strategies, operational playbooks, and leadership lessons from those turning grit into generational wealth. Whether you're in the trades or just respect the grind, these are the stories behind America’s most essential businesses.
Hosted by
Faiez Rana
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