The First Shift

In this episode of Built on Blues , host Graeme Bryks sits down with a rare breed in the industry: Jim Zack of Zack | de Vito Architecture + Construction. Jim isn't just an architect who stays behind a desk; he’s a licensed contractor who spent his formative years as a carpenter and "shop rat." This hybrid identity allows him to design with a level of precision and "spatial thin...

We often talk about building houses, but we rarely discuss the nightmare of leaving them. In this episode of Built on Blues , Graeme sits down with Barry Gordon, CEO of Gordon’s Downsizing and Estate Services, to deconstruct the machine he built to handle the one thing every homeowner dreads: moving a lifetime of stuff. Barry traces his company's evolution from a 1950s livestock auction house to a...

Concrete is the oldest material in the book, but the way we lay it is about to change forever. In this episode of Built on Blues , we are stepping away from the trowel and looking at the robot arm. Graeme sits down with Justin D’Angelo, founder of Printera 3D, to discuss how he went from an IT background and a garage hobby to printing architectural masterpieces in Manhattan. We dive deep into the...

In this episode of Built on Blues , host Graeme Bryks sits down with commercial real estate "Hall of Famer" Greg Schenk, President of The Schenk Company. With over 38 years in the trenches, Greg has built a reputation as the "renter's bodyguard"—a broker who refuses to take landlord commissions so he can fight 100% for the tenant. The conversation dives deep into the evolut...

In this episode of Built on Blues , Graeme sits down with Alison Alston, owner of Lodestone Real Estate and partner at Finca Living. Alison didn’t just stumble into success; she built it on a foundation of grit, coming from a family of contractors and house flippers before taking the reins of a high-volume real estate team. This episode is a wake-up call for any business owner still operating manu...

Episode Description: How does a career firefighter build three successful companies in under five years? On this episode of Built on Blues , Graeme sits down with Brad Covington, founder of Forged Construction, to discuss how he translated the life-or-death command structures of the fire station into a scalable business blueprint. Brad’s journey started in 2020 as a backup plan during the uncertai...

In this episode of Built on Blues, host Graeme Bryks interviews Adam Fincik, founder of Planet Roof. Adam shares his journey from working in door-to-door sales to establishing a successful roofing company. He discusses the importance of mentorship, the influence of his sports background, and the challenges of scaling a business. Adam emphasizes the significance of customer experience and quality a...