The Grit Blueprint
The Playbook for Building Unmistakable Brands in the Built World
You can be the best in your market and still get passed over by a competitor who simply shows up better and more consistently where their customers are looking.
The Grit Blueprint Podcast is where visibility, media, customer experience, and creative brand strategy turn trust into growth in the built world.
Hosted by Stefanie Couch, a lifelong building industry expert born and raised in the business, this show explores how companies in building materials, construction, manufacturing, and distribution position themselves to win before the first conversation even starts.
You’ll hear from executives, operators, and decision-makers who are rethinking how they show up in the market. You’ll also hear from Stefanie and the Grit Blueprint team as they share the systems, strategy, and content that make good brands impossible to ignore.
Every episode turns insight into action. Because in this space, great work alone isn’t enough. You have to be seen, be known, be chosen, and ultimately, become unmistakable.
Produced by Grit Media. Powered by Grit Blueprint.
Episodes
111 episodes
How Custom Design And Millwork Transform Spaces: Inside Chip Wade's Stunning Luxury Treehouse Rentals
In this episode of Behind the Build I'm in Chatsworth, Georgia, with Chip Wade at The Perch Treehouses. The three luxury treehouses are located in the North Georgia mountains and have stunning views of their wild surroundings. The Jenny, The To...
How To Modernize Custom Manufacturing With Powerful Software: Dori Shoshan, Panda Windows & Doors
I sit down with Dori Shoshan, head of Innovation and Business Development at Panda Windows & Doors, inside the Las Vegas showroom of one of the most respected custom luxury windows and doors manufacturers in North America. Dori is a working...
The Four Cs Of Marketing for Building Materials Companies with Ashley Guest, Marketing Manager at Harbin Lumber
Most lumber yards stay invisible in their own market. They sell millions of dollars of product a year and the people next door still do not know their name. Ashley Guest is changing that at Harbin Lumber, a fourth generation, century-old buildi...
How To Build A Local Brand: Small Town Retail Marketing That Works with Sharona Eiserer
Sharona Eiserer bought a struggling 60-year-old lumber yard at six months pregnant and grew it into six Wood Shed Lumber and Hardware locations across rural Missouri. In this episode of the Grit Blueprint Podcast, she shares how she saved a dyi...
How To Grow Your Building Material Business with Strategic Use of AI & Clear Goals | Jason Blair
Jason Blair, CEO of Tal Building Centers, joins me to break down how to build a sales culture in building materials where every role drives revenue. He shares the weekly communication cadence he uses with 500 employees, how he reads company cul...
Exit Strategy Tips for Independent Retail Business Owners with Former Founder Gina Schaefer
What does it actually take to sell a $55 million business you built from scratch? In this episode, Gina Schaefer breaks down everything: ESOPs, succession planning for independent dealers, finding the right buyer for your business, and why she ...
Where Building Materials Growth Is Actually Happening with Craig Webb, President of Webb Analytics
The big box giants are buying everything. But independent dealers? They can still win. In this episode, Stefanie Couch sits down with Craig Webb of Webb Analytics, the most trusted data voice in the building materials industry, to break down wh...
Building a Million Dollar Network: How to Make Better First Impressions With Confidence
If networking events feel awkward, this episode will show you how to network with confidence, start better conversations, and build real business relationships that last. Stefanie and Ben Couch break down practical networking tips for rememberi...
How to Improve Your Sales Results and Earn Customers' Trust | Sarah Campbell, Sierra Pacific Windows
If you sell windows, doors, or other high-ticket building products, this episode will help you become a stronger, more trusted salesperson. You’ll learn how consultative selling, job site knowledge, and better questions can help you uncover wha...
Most Founders Break Under This Pressure. From NAVY SEAL to CEO: Sam Mackey, CEO of Outsider
What can a founder learn from a former Navy SEAL who built a brand from scratch? In this episode, you’ll learn how discipline, pressure, and resilience shape better leaders, why mentorship matters more than most entrepreneurs realize, and how s...
Independent Retailers Need Better Data. Do it Best Has The Tools: Nick Talarico, President of Do it Best
What does it look like to lead through massive change without losing the heart of the business? In this episode, I sit down with Do it Best president Nick Talarico to talk about leadership, grit, customer experience, and the real work of helpin...
What We've Learned After 100 Podcast Episodes: Building Grit Blueprint with Ben & Stefanie Couch
What does it really take to get to 100 episodes when no one cares at first? In this special episode, Ben flips the script and interviews me about how the Grit Blueprint Podcast started, what almost made it stall, and why consistency beats perfe...
Why Story Wins in Building Products with Chip Wade of Wade Works Creative & Creator of The Perch
What if the smartest way to grow in building products is to stop selling features and start selling transformation? In this episode, I sit down with Chip Wade to talk about why trust, process, and real-world performance matter more than polishe...
What it's like building a business with your spouse: Entrepreneurship, Freedom & Extreme Ownership
What does it really take to build a business with your spouse and keep both the marriage and the mission intact? Ben and I pull back the curtain on three and a half years of grit and entrepreneurship, from working at the kitchen table to launch...
One Forgotten Screw Can Cost Millions... | Fortress Building Envelope Consultants
Water intrusion is the number one cause of construction lawsuits, and most of it is preventable. I sit down with Mark Stewart and Jeff Martin of Fortress Building Envelope Consultants to break down why roofs, walls, and windows fail and h...
Simple Ways To Create Cashflow In Your business with Russ Kathrein, VP of LBM at Do it Best
Most lumberyards think they have a sales problem. Russ Kathrein says they actually have a systems problem. In this episode, we break down the operational moves that quietly unlock millions in revenue, from billing special orders the right way t...
The Real Reason Customers Buy Again with Michael Tull, CEO of Tull Sales
Windows and doors are hard, and that’s exactly why they matter. In this episode, I sit down with industry veteran Michael Tull to break down why deep product knowledge, jobsite experience, and real relationships still win in a market full of sh...
How To Win in 2026: Sales Data, AI, And LinkedIn with Eric Knox, Director of LBM Sales at Do it Best
Sales growth is not optional. In this episode, I sit down with Eric Knox from Do it Best to break down what independent dealers must do now to stay competitive as AI, data, and big-box pressure accelerate. We get p...
Why Choosing NOT To Sell To Big Box Can GROW Your Business: Jim Powell, Culpeper Wood
Some choices change your trajectory. Jim Powell of Culpeper Wood joins us to share why their team refuses big box volume in favor of independence, relationships, and long-term brand equity, and how that stance fuels growth. We dig into the stra...
Authentic Storytelling Turns Independent Hardware Stores Into Community Favorites: Kerry Hasselbach, Do it Best
Want a real competitive edge that big-box chains can’t copy? Start with a story only your store can tell. We sat down on the floor at the Do It Best Market in Indianapolis with Marketing Director Kerry Hasselbach to unpack how independent hardw...
This Is The Video Strategy Local Businesses Need: Brent Gentling, Bring Your Own Tools BYOT
Ever wonder why some simple, scrappy videos drive floods of real customers while polished promos fall flat? We sat down with Brent of BYOT, a builder-turned-creator with 20 years on the tools, to unpack how clear teaching, strong hooks, and con...
People, Process, And Purpose In A Tech-Shifting Industry: Rick Cross, Account Executive at Paradigm
Fresh off the GlassBuild floor, we dig into the real story behind AI, sales momentum, and the future of windows, doors, and glass. Industry veteran Rick Cross, Account Executive at Paradigm, joins us to separate signal from noise, arguing that ...
Pick One Target, Play The Long Game, And Win The Contractor’s Vote: Todd Tomalak at the WDMA Executive Management Conference
A soft market can fool you into thinking nothing’s moving. Under the surface, single-family starts are edging up, mortgage pressure is easing, and homeowners are about to unlock record equity, shifting windows and doors from isolated upgrades i...
How Independent Dealers Win With Partnerships And Visibility: Gabe Arnold, Do it Best
Want a practical playbook for how independent dealers can outmaneuver bigger competitors? I sat down with Gabe Arnold at the Do it Best Market to dig into the moves that matter: consultative selling, smarter buying, and turning human visibility...
Build Loyalty Like a 76-Year Family Business: Chip Gentry, Chief Legal Officer at Quaker Windows
The fastest way to lose great work is to forget the people doing it. We dive into a candid, high-energy conversation with Chip Gentry, Chief Legal Officer at Quaker Windows, on why relationships still beat automation and how trust turns into me...