The Small Business Safari

Send us Fan Mail Goodbye! Sorry, we mean...Hello! The guys have been talking about exit strategies so much it can be difficult to tell if you're coming or going. Just like that, the lines between being fully immersed in your company and carrying out an exit strategy can get seriously blurred. Don't fret because Chris and Alan are here to talk you through what goes into exit strategy plan...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to another rich episode of The Small Business Safari! Today, Alan and Chris are joined by Beth Miller of Executive Velocity, a company she founded in 2006. Beth has written two books called, "Replaceable, An Obsession With Succession" and "Are You Talent Obsessed?" that lay the framework for passing the torch in your business and why it is so impor...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to a very special installment of The Small Business Safari! 365 days ago TODAY, Alan and Chris sat down and cracked a beer for the very first episode. This time the guys are reminiscing on: 1. How the podcast began and why the guys felt it was important to share their business experience in an entertaining way to help others in the same position realize their potential 2....

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to this week's episode of The Small Business Safari. Today, Chris sits down with Jason Sleeman, who is the VP of Craft Beverage Lending for United Community Bank, to talk about one of our favorite topics...beer! Grab a beer from your favorite craft brewery and join us as the guys get into: 1. How Jason followed his passion for craft brewing and combined it with the ba...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to The Small Business Safari! Chris and Alan are joined once again by father-son duo Ken and KJ Cornwall of ProVent Systems. This week Ken and KJ share some of the GOLD NUGGETS that helped shaped their business, plus: 1.  Ken and KJ are Customer Experience masters, they run their business with the intent to sell the customer something that will make their life better...

Send us Fan Mail Happy Tuesday folks! Today's episode is very special because today Chris and Alan are sitting down with not one, but TWO guests! Meet father and son, Ken and KJ Cornwall who own and operate ProVent Systems in Lawrenceville, GA.  Ken and KJ take the guys through the story of how  Ken traversed through the plumbing business world and landed himself 50+ plumbing product patents...

Send us Fan Mail It's the BIG FIVE-OH! That's right, this is the 50th episode of The Small Business Safari! Andy Suggs is BACK and still brimming with GOLD NUGGETS. This time, The Man with the Brand is sharing some branding insider tips that you don't want to miss. Kick back and listen up as the guys get into: 1. Andy walks the guys through an actual branding project/ campaign strat...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to The Small Business Safari for episode 49!  Our guest this week is Andy Suggs, he was the man with graphic design plan and now runs his own branding company, Reckon Branding. Andy is here with Chris and Alan to share some insight on: 1. Why your company's "WHY?" is important 2. The positive impact of customer feedback on defining a brand 3. A brand is...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to episode 48 of The Small Business Safari,  this week the doctor is in! Well, he's in the podcast studio, that is! Dr. David Adler is here to straighten some things out and we're not just talking about Chris's back. Get ready to collect some GOLD NUGGETS on: 1. The importance of old-school methods, especially when you're just starting out 2. How to per...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to another episode of The Small Business Safari! This week Chris and Alan kick around some serious knowledge and reflect on the following: 1. How to identify when you are stuck in a rut, and how to turn it into a growth experience. 2. The power of mindset and how you as a leader can become more self aware and in tune with your company/employees needs. 3. How you can use th...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode of The Small Business Safari Chris is joined by Edd Konopka,  A.K.A. the man behind the scenes. Edd has worn many hats in his career! He started out as a technician, then became Chris's operations manager for The Trusted Toolbox, and is now in charge of the Home Service Institute and the production of this podcast. Since Edd and Chris go way back, they have se...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to another episode! This week Chris and Alan sit down with Paul Letalien, the owner of Archer Restoration Services. In his line of work, Paul is inside of his customer's homes and deals with homeowners at some of the most stressful periods in their lives. Restoration services are typically needed following a disaster that impacts a home. Paul stresses the importance o...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to another rich episode of The Small Business Safari. Today, Alan and Chris are joined by Zach Levy! Zach's impressive background shows how you can start in one place and end up somewhere completely different. He attended Georgia State University and then transferred to Kennesaw State University where he continued his education with a plan in mind to work in the healt...

Send us Fan Mail Cheers! We hope you have dinner in the oven because this episode will definitely make you hungry. Whether you're hungry for Paella or business success, we have you covered! This week, Chris and Alan talk about two of their favorite things, food and business. The guys dive into a bunch of gold nuggets that show you the parallels between cooking and running a small business. Si...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Season 3 of The Small Business Safari! Chris and Alan start off the new season by introducing the brand new summer intern, Rose. As always, the guys are kicking back and giving you some gold nuggets on how to balance work-life with home-life to get that happy medium. This episode is full of real experiences that show how crucial it is to manage your time without driving...

Send us Fan Mail Express your WHY through your culture! --- Chris Michel launches into the safari once again! To recap, he has built a company that focuses on business development, increasing revenue and profits, recruiting, hiring, and developing of individuals and teams! Chris, aka Coach Chris, has a background in the home service industry. Not only has he built a successful small business but h...

Send us Fan Mail Add your special seasoning after you learn your processes! --- Chris Michel hops into the safari! He has built a company that focuses on business development, increasing revenue and profits, recruiting, hiring, and developing of individuals and teams! Chris, aka Coach Chris, has a background in the home service industry. Not only has he built a successful small business but he is...

Send us Fan Mail The special guest makes a second appearance! Sam Lalomia is back for a second round with more great stories! They open up with beer! Alan is a beer connoisseur. Not only does he love but he brews it. He gets to tell the stories behind the beer he brought which really makes you appreciate it even more. If you haven't noticed already, the theme of this episode is stories. The e...

Send us Fan Mail Chris has a special guest! He raised him, he bathed him, and most importantly he helped the Trusted Toolbox. Chris's father, Sam Lalomia, joins us in this episode! Sam is from Buffalo, New York, and was a civil engineer. They deep dive into Chris's upbringing, how he got into a small business, and how to tackle family crises when they occur. This episode has a ton of GOL...

Send us Fan Mail Maybe you're too entrepreneurial... Jon Ostenson jumps into the safari! Like us, he was in the corporate world and now he walks the entrepreneurial journey. Jon is a top 1% Franchise Consultant nationally and he leads FranBridge Consulting as CEO. Jon walks through everything franchising. He goes through trending small businesses, aligning general managers, and leveraging you...

Send us Fan Mail What is your definition of success? Tommy Breedlove joins the safari! Tommy has one of the most inspiring stories I have heard. He made it from working in a factory to save for college to leading one of the largest public accounting firms in the southeast U.S. Living a movie-like success, Tommy eventually found himself in a very bad position in his life. He flipped himself around...

Send us Fan Mail  and business... Andy McDowell jumps into the safari with us! Andy is now an entrepreneur but goes way back into work with Boeing. While he was at Boeing for 22 years, he figured he was more a life coach than a boss. In 2002 he started the entrepreneurship journey in Airspace Design Consulting. Join in and listen to his experiences trying to coordinate air travel with China! Thank...

Send us Fan Mail Get your life organized! Let's recap Heather Rogers, THE professional organizer! Heather's career has stretched to many different industries. Everything from financial services to customer service and sales. Today, she is the small business owner of Simply Organized. She and her team's superpower is decluttering and easing homeowners. Whether you are a busy stay at...

Send us Fan Mail Get your life organized! Heather Rogers, THE professional organizer, joins us in this episode! Heather's career has stretched to many different industries. Everything from financial services to customer service and sales. Today, she is the small business owner of Simply Organized. She and her team's superpower is decluttering and easing homeowners. Whether you are a busy...

Send us Fan Mail Let's Recap! Rocky is the profit answer man! As a kid, Rocky was always entrepreneurial. He would go into the city and buy wholesale products then come home to school sell it all! He's also big on harmony. Balancing business and life. Chris breaks down the importance of networking aswell. Your network is your networth! There are tons of GOLD NUGGETS in this episode so go...