Growing Up B2B

Kevin Nolan once cracked a customer’s window, then blamed a dead bird he found and placed beneath it. That early lie became a lesson in accountability, one of many hard-earned experiences behind the unusual company he built: a $20 million painting business with 165 employees and no subcontractors. In this episode of Growing Up B2B , host Ed Delia talks with Kevin Nolan, Founder and Chairman of Nol...

At 17, Mykel McElwee came to Universal Tools & Manufacturing to sweep floors, expecting a summer job, not a future as President of Sales. Today, he and CEO Robin lead the fourth-generation New Jersey manufacturer, whose family business has weathered a founder’s sudden death, COVID-era upheaval, and the loss of most of its small customers. In this episode of Growing Up B2B , host Ed Delia talks...

A founder can become so central to a family business that even their presence in the office makes the next generation hesitate to lead. In this episode of Growing Up B2B , Ed Delia speaks with Mark Iorio, managing partner of Brand & Culture Alignment Technology (BCAT), about turning a founder’s instincts into a culture the whole company can carry forward. Iorio shares how BCAT’s survey has fou...

At 14, Melissa Ortiz spent her summers on a tomato harvester, sorting out snakes, rats, and dirt clods before they reached the ketchup. Years later, after returning to her family’s fifth-generation California farm, she left when a business debt landed in her lap, and eventually urged her husband to leave too, so he and her brother could preserve their relationship. In this episode of Growing Up B2...

George LaCapra spent nearly a decade on the factory floor before becoming president of his family’s metal-finishing business. When his brother chose a different path, George moved into the office and worked his way up. On Growing Up B2B , host Ed Delia speaks with George, President of UniMetal Surface Finishing, about how a 2011 merger with a respected competitor expanded the company’s capabilitie...

Just Packaging, Inc. began with a partner’s phone calls, and a first job that grew out of a conflict-of-interest scare. Steve Fischbein soon left his own job, and the company grew from a basement in a newspaper building to roughly 200,000 square feet. On this episode of Growing Up B2B , Steve and his sons, Evan and Jesse, share how the brothers worked their way through the business, pursued career...

After joining Withum as a staff accountant, Theresa Richardson rose to partner and became the firm’s first chief talent officer, helping guide its growth from about 75 people to 3,300. In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia talks with Richardson about how her CPA experience shaped her approach to developing talent, why Withum replaced traditional mentoring with dedicated career coa...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia speaks with Matt Dusa about building and selling Capstone Fire and Safety Management, a family-owned business he co-founded with his father and brother in 2007. Matt shares how they navigated challenges like seasonality, geographic expansion, and family dynamics while scaling the company using the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). He dis...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia speaks with Shawn Kuehn, former President of Kuehn Bevel, Inc., a family manufacturing business. Shawn shares his journey from sweeping factory floors as a kid to leading the company, and the hard lessons learned when a shrinking market forced difficult decisions. He discusses how understanding business numbers and building owner-independent s...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia interviews Jonathan Goldhill, founder of the Goldhill Group and author of Disruptive Successor . Drawing from his family's multi-generational apparel business, which closed in 1986, Jonathan explores the challenges of family business succession. He discusses how next-generation leaders can earn credibility, balance preserving legacy values whi...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , host Ed Delia speaks with Nitin Khanna, Founder and President of N3 Business Advisors, about building and transferring construction businesses. Nitin shares his entrepreneurial journey, from selling pashminas at age 11 to founding a Canadian M&A advisory firm. They explore what makes construction businesses transferable, why owner dependency destroys value,...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia speaks with Maria and Ron Ferguson of Ferguson Associates, a family-owned third-party logistics company specializing in luxury fragrances and cosmetics. Founded by Bob Ferguson, who left a distinguished corporate career to pursue entrepreneurship, the company has built a sterling reputation for discretion, security, and white-glove service. Ma...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia interviews Lisa Troost Sottrel, fifth-generation President of Peter Troost Monument Company, the largest privately owned monument company in the U.S. Lisa shares her journey from working at GE to leading her family's nearly 140-year-old business, discussing the importance of outside experience, earning credibility, and navigating leadership tr...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia speaks with Brian Glenn, Chief Investment Officer at Premier Path Wealth Partners. Brian shares insights from his family's business history, including his grandfather's founding of Glen Killion Color Company and the subsequent financial losses tied to Penn Central's bankruptcy. The conversation explores how outside investors spot blind spots o...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia welcomes Mike Michalowicz, bestselling author of Profit First and Clockwork . Mike shares candid lessons from his entrepreneurial journey, including losing a fortune after selling his first company. He discusses his "Profit First" philosophy, the importance of hiring A-players, and building businesses that don't depend on their owners. The con...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia interviews Charles D. Hatley, CEO of Melone Hatley P.C., a multi-state family law and estate planning firm co-led with his wife, Rebecca. Charles shares their journey from solo practice to Inc. 5000-recognized firm, discussing the challenges of working as a married business team, aligning on growth vision, and building a values-driven culture...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia speaks with Jessica Walker, Founder & CEO of J.Walker Salon Group, about her nearly 30-year entrepreneurial journey. Starting her first salon at 19 with just four employees, Jessica shares how family influence, resilience, and a strong values-driven culture helped her build a multi-location beauty and wellness enterprise. She discusses nav...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia interviews Suhaiba Neill, Vice President of John Neill Painting & Decorating. Suhaiba shares her journey from working with the Philadelphia 76ers to joining her father's painting company in 2005. She discusses navigating leadership transitions, building systems in a founder-led business, and collaborating with her brother David. Suhaiba al...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia welcomes Joseph Alam III, second-generation Managing Director of Mid-States Advisors, Inc. Joseph shares how he expanded his father's debt placement firm into a full-service advisory practice offering M&A and fractional CFO services for lower middle market businesses. The conversation covers key topics including preparing businesses for sa...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B, your host Ed Delia interviews Chad Bruce, President of GluDown, Inc., a family business founded in Dallas in 1981. Chad shares how he unexpectedly joined the company after his mother's illness and navigated a challenging leadership transition with his father, who resisted his push toward construction markets. Chad eventually bought his father out, sold most of th...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B, your host Ed Delia speaks with Del Ornelas III, owner of I Am Trucking, an oilfield logistics company. Del shares his entrepreneurial journey, shaped by contrasting family influences between risk aversion and bold entrepreneurship. He discusses leaving a secure corporate career at H-E-B to join his family's business, only to face painful partnership disputes and...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , host Ed Delia speaks with Pedro and Jesse Quiroga of EAFab Corporation, a family-owned engineering and fabrication company serving the global steel industry. Pedro and his wife Claudia founded EAFab in 2006, designing equipment for electric arc furnace steel production. Jesse, their daughter, took a non-linear path, studying psychology and exploring various care...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , host Ed Delia speaks with Caryn Kopp, founder of Kopp Consulting and self-described "Chief Door Opener." Caryn shares her expertise in helping companies secure meetings with top executives at major corporations. The conversation covers why getting in the door is the hardest part of sales, the importance of having the right sales DNA, precise targeting, and quali...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia speaks with Dr. Lauri Union about family entrepreneurship, leadership succession, and organizational transformation. Dr. Lauri shares her remarkable journey of becoming CEO of her family's struggling corrugated steel business at 27, growing it twelvefold over 14 years. She distinguishes family entrepreneurship from traditional family business,...

In this episode of Growing Up B2B , your host Ed Delia speaks with Harry Dale, Co-Founder of Cover & Supply Co. Harry and his brother Nick, raised in an entrepreneurial family, identified a gap in the spa cover market after a local manufacturer closed, causing price spikes. They left their corporate jobs to build a Northeast-based manufacturing business specializing in custom spa covers. Harry...