Brad Leavitt Podcast

Located ​in Berkeley, California, Lane McNab Interiors infuses a sophisticated sensibility into residential and commercial interiors. The firm specializes in primary and secondary homes, boutique retail spaces, and large scale projects with a vast knowledge of historical architecture. Opened in 2012, LMI is known for its artful approach to sophisticated living. Although each project is the reflect...

Chris is a registered California architect and member of the AIA with a Bachelor’s Degree from California Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo. Since childhood, he’s been fascinated by the built environment and the creative possibilities that art and architecture have to offer. Spending his formative years in a small town in Northeast Oregon, Chris learned to value the beauty in nature at a y...

Today Brad speaks with Christian Daw of Christian Daw Design. With a passion for beautiful homes and an appreciation for practicality and comfort, Christian Daw runs a successful boutique interior and architectural design firm. In addition to rethinking classic interior design, tailored to today’s homeowner, he creates spaces that are luxurious yet unpretentious. Christian’s aesthetic is timeless,...

Today Brad speaks with Jim Spurlino, Founder of Spurlino Materials, a supplier of construction materials. He is also the author of Business Bullseye: Take Dead Aim and Achieve Great Success, a guide to establishing, scaling, managing, and creating an exit strategy for small- to medium-size businesses. Listen in as Jim describes the “three legs of the stool” that make up a successful professional i...

The company currently has around 150 active projects spread across different regions, each of which has its own Vice President of Finance. A financial reporting group accumulates data from all of these regions each month. Listen in as Kris speaks on the finance side of running a large commercial contractor that she has had the pleasure of working for over the past 15 years. She describes how contr...

Brad, Renee, and Mark have joined forces on a project started by Mark himself called the Net-Zero Iconic Home, also known as the Desert Comfort Home. Simply put, this is a home that produces as much energy as it consumes. Mark, one of the foremost experts in the country on building science and sustainability, has decided to apply his expertise into building a sustainable house that he can call his...

The residential and commercial world obviously offer two different working experiences, both of which Erik embraces equally for different reasons. He loves residential because of the tight-knit bond he needs to create with clients in order to realize their dreams; whereas commercial brings with it the pride of being sought out for his professional opinion on major projects and being trusted, with...

One of the main themes of this discussion is the importance of confidence as a practitioner in the industry. A great interior designer is confident that their vision and skillset can create a beautiful home. One of the challenges is getting clients to trust their designer’s process. Jaimee gets up close and personal with clients from the beginning, conducting anywhere between six-to-ten design mee...

Today Brad speaks with Tracy Morris, Owner of Tracy Morris Design. Launched in 2003, the company has “a focus on fresh, vibrant and approachable interiors”. Tracy, who hails from Washington, has had a passion for design since the age of six when she started building two-story colonials out of legos. She finds creativity and inspiration in amazing lighting, and architecture with color and texture a...

Today Brad speaks with Aymee Kuhlman and Molly Kidd, Co-Owners of Light & Dwell, a full-service interior design studio created in 2015, and today serves clients nationwide. Aside from its full-service offering—whose timeline stretches from eight months to two years—Light & Dwell also offers virtual design, where the initial design is delivered within three to four weeks. Aymee and Molly make it a...

Today Brad speaks with Melissa Hryszko, an interior designer at Veranda Estate Homes, a construction company with over 45 years of experience in building custom luxury homes in Calgary, Alberta and beyond. Veranda is a proud multiple SAM Award-winner, a member of the Alberta New Home Warranty Program as well as the Calgary New Home Builders Association. Melissa speaks on Veranda’s stringent proces...

Today Brad speaks with Nick Schiffer, owner of NS Builders, where he leads a team to renovate homes for private clients in and around Boston. Nick is also the Co-Host of The Modern Craftsman podcast alongside John Hourihan and Tyler Grace where they interview a variety of professionals involved with the trades. NS Builders started out as a one-man carpentry company with relatively small ambitions....

D. J. shares his path to becoming an offensive lineman in the NFL and the mentors that guided him down that path, which includes his father, former wide receiver D. J. Humphries, Sr. He then describes his thought process going into his decision to join Florida after being recruited by virtually every Division I program in the country. D. J. then talks about the “loss of structure once you leave th...

Today Brad speaks with California-based interior designer Lindsey Borchard of Lindsey Brooke Design. With a background as an artist, Lindsey has a penchant for thinking out of the box, making sure each and every project is uniquely bespoke to her clients’ specific vision. Lindsey mixes “earthy textures with bold textiles” and curates “vintage finds with contemporary elements,” pulling all her “ins...

Today Brad speaks with the team at AFT Construction, including Senior Construction Manager Adam Cade, Project Managers Spencer Nield and Paul Lundgren, and Superintendent Andrew Clark. The team share their individual experiences so far in their careers at AFT, from their specific roles, to their approach to solving project or client-related challenges, to their biggest lessons learned, to company...

Dr. Leila Peterson is the founder of Prescribed Health and Beauty as well as Prescribed Design. She is a business owner who only recently relocated her medical practice from San Antonio, Texas to Gilbert, Arizona in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Leila speaks on how she managed the many factors involved in building a company while making this crucial transition in the middle of a worldwide pand...

Shawn Van Dyke is a construction business coach, an international keynote speaker, and author of two books: Profit First for Contractors and The Paperwork Punch List . Most contractors are not profitable, which makes them feel uncertain about what they need to grow their construction businesses. Shawn believes that construction business owners should be as good at business as they are at their cra...

Lisa J. Wood is the owner of an interior design firm based in Asheville, North Carolina. She helps “busy professionals plan, design and construct homes so personalized that they are the perfect respite, for now and their futures.” She is also a Certified Living In Place Professional (CLIPP) Ambassador. Lisa is on a mission to elevate the way homes are built and created. She is trained as an interi...

Johnny Hourihan is the co-owner of Vintage Builders, the co-host of The Modern Craftsman Podcast, and one of the four brand ambassadors for Fine HomeBuilding Magazine by The Taunton Press. What are those things we wish we had known when we started in business? What are things we’re doing now that we would have fast-tracked had we known their importance from the beginning? For instance, when is the...

Randy Coffin is the President of Coffin & Trout Fine Jewelers. Randy has worked in the industry of jewelry design and craftsmanship for many years. He started out as a bench jeweler in 1975. He was inspired to start his jewelry career from an early exposure to fine arts, and an interest in using his God-given talents to design and create amazing works of art. Randy and his business partner David T...

Amy Margolin is the third-generation co-owner of M&M Lighting. She joined her family business in 2013 after graduating with an English degree from Columbia University working as a manager for an international clothing retailer in Austin, Texas. She was also a food photographer for Zagat, a national restaurant review guide, and spent time as a freelance celebrity stylist at red carpet events in Los...

Jason Black is the owner and president of Artisan Signature Homes. He had a successful career prior to construction, but his passion for homes eventually led him to start his first company, Stonecroft Homes, in 2002 while still working full-time. This was the beginning of his journey in building custom homes. Jason has worked on a number of projects with his wife, Gretchen—a talented designer in h...

Mark LaLiberte is the co-founder and president of Construction Instruction. He has dedicated over 30 years to the building industry. Through his lectures, site assistance, Building Better Homes video series and his mobile App, he provides builders, architects and manufacturers with an in-depth look at the current and future state of housing. His work has earned him a Lifetime Achievement Award fro...

Willie Bloomquist is a former MLB player, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. Throughout his career in baseball, Willie played for the Seattle Mariners, Kansas City Royals, Cincinnati Reds, and Arizona Diamondbacks, and has played every position aside from catcher and pitcher. After retiring from professional sports in 2016, Willie explored his other passions through the avenues of entrepreneurship...

Ashley Stark Kenner is the Creative Director at Stark Carpet in New York, a company founded by her grandparents, Arthur and Nadia Stark, in 1938. Stark Carpet has been synonymous with the world’s finest floor coverings since its inception and has been the go-to resource for top interior decorators for decades. Ashley is also the Sr. Vice President of Design, bringing her fashion-forward vision to...