Blue Collar Ballers

$1M Cleaning Business and Never Met a Cleaner or Client | Patrick Murphy on Building Cascade Home Cleaning 100% Remotely

Patrick Murphy is the owner of Cascade Home Cleaning, a residential cleaning business in Bellingham, Washington that he's built to $1M in annual recurring revenue — entirely remote. He's never met a cleaner. He's never met a client. He started the company as a side hustle while working as a product manager at Amazon in Seattle, and now runs it from Chicago, 2,000 miles away from the market it serves. Cascade operates in a town of 100,000 people, with a total addressable market under 250,000 across the surrounding county. Patrick built it over four years on the back of a Big Four accounting career and a decade in product at Nordstrom and Amazon — and he's importing the operating discipline of trillion-dollar companies into a blue collar service business. In this episode, Patrick breaks down the internal hiring playbook he wrote himself — a recruiting system any home service operator can run, whether they're hiring cleaners, technicians, or office staff. We get into: * The tenets for hiring he adapted from Amazon's doc-driven culture, and why writing them down is what makes them stick * Why "always be hiring" is non-negotiable — and how to run an evergreen job post and a bench of candidates before you need them * The 50% rule for every new hire, and how it constantly raises the talent ceiling on your crew * How he sponsors Indeed posts for $5–$7 a day and what he spends in total on recruiting per year * The W-2 transition from 1099 contractors and what it changed about retention and quality * Why most operators don't find good people — and what they're actually doing wrong If you've ever told yourself you can't find good people in your market, this episode will challenge you. Patrick isn't in a hot labor market. He's in a small town in Washington, running it from Chicago, and his recruiting bench is deeper than most operators' active rosters. Chapters 00:00 — Intro03:43 — Meet Patrick: $1M cleaning business, built 100% remote06:54 — From Big Four accounting to Amazon to cleaning08:04 — How he started Cascade as a side hustle17:15 — The tenets for hiring (stolen from Amazon)19:28 — Tenet #1: Always be hiring22:21 — What "always be hiring" actually looks like day-to-day24:01 — Recruiting spend: $5–$7/day on Indeed26:09 — The 50% rule: every new hire raises the average Visit: Qualified Hires [https://www.qualifiedhires.com/]

From $1.2M to $30M in 9 Years | Trey McWilliams on Scaling His Family HVAC Business in East Texas

Trey McWilliams is a third-generation HVAC operator from East Texas and the founder of Blue Cardinal Home Services, a platform group now operating in over 20 locations across the home service trades. Trey grew up riding shotgun with his grandfather — a Navy retiree who started the family business because he loved taking care of customers and didn't want to deal with employees or back-office work. Trey started drawing a paycheck at 14, ran a truck by 16, and by 22 he made the call that would change everything: he told his dad the lifestyle business needed to become a scaled business, and he'd pay the price to make it happen. From 2010 to 2019, he took McWilliams & Son Heating and Cooling from $1.2M to nearly $30M in revenue — then built Blue Cardinal Group on top of it to give other operators a home to take chips off the table without selling out to private equity. In this episode, Trey breaks down the exact playbook he ran to scale: * The first hire that broke his $1M ceiling — and why it had to be a salesperson, not an operator * The math teacher who built his entire ops backbone from the call center up * The "rule of four" that governs every new market and trade he enters * Why he runs the business in groups of four crews so techs never miss their kids' baseball games * How he added plumbing without compromising the HVAC standard — including the academy model for homegrown technicians (95% of his field staff) * The mindset shift from "I'm in HVAC" to "I'm in the people-building business" * Why he built Blue Cardinal as the anti-private-equity platform for operators who care about culture and the long game If you're an operator stuck between $1M and $5M and you can feel the ceiling — or if you're a second or third-generation owner wrestling with whether to scale past what your dad built — this one's for you. Chapters 00:00 Intro00:40 Growing up in the family business — riding with grandpa at 1404:30 The 2010 turning point: "If not me, then who?"06:38 The exact playbook from $1.2M to $30M16:35 Hire #1: Why sales had to come before operations20:15 The math teacher who built the ops backbone23:30 The rule of four: how Trey enters new markets and trades27:00 Scaling is a journey of personal evolution30:00 Why he built Blue Cardinal Home Services36:00 Going from operator to capital allocator1:02:00 What's next for Blue Cardinal — and the operators he's looking for

$0 to $11.5M in Four Years | How Philip Crutchfield Is Scaling Three Home Service Franchises Under One Roof

In this episode, I sit down with Philip Crutchfield, co-owner and founder of Camber Brands in Sarasota, Florida — a portfolio of three home service franchises doing $11.5M in 2025, with a target of $17–18M in 2026. Camber houses Mighty Dog Roofing (where Philip was the very first franchisee), Blingle holiday and landscape lighting, and Varsity Zone HVAC — which he founded from a dead acquisition with zero employees and built into what is now the founding location of a 30+ unit franchise system under Horsepower Brands. Philip breaks down: * How he cross-promotes three trades to one customer and wins commercial work his competitors can't * Why he acquired an HVAC business with zero employees — and how it became a nationwide franchise * The 500-person annual "Camber Party" that started as a one-off thank-you and became his best marketing channel * How he hit $1.4M in his first 7 months by hiring heavy early when most franchisees bootstrap * Why his salespeople are called "relationship managers" and are never on straight commission * The mistake of "drowning an opportunity" — and the gutter line that cost him money * The biggest transition moving from B2B software to trades * What he'd tell any first-year home service franchisee who wants to make money faster * If you're an operator thinking about a second service line, a portfolio play, or just wondering how to stand out in a crowded home service market — this one's for you. Chapters 00:00 Intro 02:30 Meet Philip Crutchfield and Camber Brands 05:00 Why acquire an HVAC business with zero employees 08:00 The cross-promotion mechanic — how 3 brands win 1 customer 11:00 The condo complex story: 40 HVAC units, one flat roof, one contractor 13:30 The Camber name story and the 500-person annual party 18:00 How the party pays for itself through supplier sponsorship 20:30 $1.4M in 7 months — why Philip hired heavy early 23:30 Tennis vs. golf: which builds a better network 25:00 The residential-to-commercial split and why you have to earn commercial 27:00 Working with Horsepower Brands as the founding franchisee 35:00 Working on the business vs. in the business 40:00 Why his sales team is called "relationship managers" 43:00 From B2B software to home services — the biggest personal evolution46:00 The path from $11.5M to $18M — pricing and process 47:30 "You can drown an opportunity" — the gutter service mistake 52:30 Advice to first-year franchisees: throw out your KPIs54:00 The "just ask" philosophy 55:30 Best dinner spot in Sarasota + where to find Philip Meet the Guest: Philip Crutchfield [https://www.linkedin.com/in/philip-crutchfield-9673451a/] Visit: Camber Brands [https://camberbrands.com/] Meet the Host: Faiez Rana [https://www.linkedin.com/in/faiez-rana-198162120/] Brought to you by Offshore Launch [https://www.notion.so/Ep-36-Philip-Crutchfield-3361dc96cc7e80888748f96303fe6bba?pvs=21] Your shop is leaking profit. In 14 days, we'll show you exactly where, then put a full‑time operator in place to run the fix inside your tools.

From College Dropout to $3.7M in Fencing | How Nate Austin Grew a Premium Fence Brand in Texas

In this episode of Blue Collar Ballers, Nate Austin, founder of Austin Brothers Fence Company in Austin, Texas, shares how he and his brother started a fence company with $2,500, a financed truck, and zero experience installing wood fences — YouTubing their first 10 builds. Fourteen years later, Austin Brothers is one of the most recognized residential fence brands in the Austin market, peaking at $3.7 million in revenue with a reputation for white glove service that clients say feels more like a design firm than a fence contractor. Nate was a college dropout who spent seven years gaming his way through school with no degree to show for it. After bouncing through jobs — AT&T retail, door-to-door pest control, vacuum sales — he realized he was a terrible employee and moved to Austin to start something of his own. Nate breaks down: * How he built a consultative, online-first sales process in an industry where everyone just shows up and measures * Why he intentionally filters leads through an upfront qualification process — and still can't keep up with demand * The real story behind growing to 30+ people three separate times and deliberately downsizing each time * How 40% of his revenue comes from referrals and repeat clients without paying for ads for nine straight years * What a $78,000 historic home fence project looks like from estimate to completion * Why he's launching a budget sister brand to serve first-time homeowners who can't afford premium fencing — without sacrificing the service model Whether you're a trades owner trying to figure out how to sell without being a salesperson, or you've hit a growth ceiling and can't figure out why scaling feels like suffocating, this one's for you. 00:00 Intro 02:46 From college dropout to starting a fence company 06:15 Getting the first customers with $7.50/day Google Ads 10:23 YouTubing how to build the first 10 fences 15:34 Building a premium sales process around self-awareness 19:47 Why the customer journey feels like a design firm 23:19 Managing lead volume without a sales team 26:23 Nine years of growth without an ad budget 29:11 The $78K historic home fence job 34:25 Growing and downsizing three times on purpose 39:51 Launching a budget sister brand 41:40 The one restaurant you have to hit in Austin Meet the Guest: Nate Austin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-austin-451b6b23b/] Visit: Austin Brothers Fence Company [https://www.fence4atx.com/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22263570396&gbraid=0AAAAADm4vy3V_wigkXqe9e2bEUBFE3GZZ&gclid=CjwKCAjwnN3OBhA8EiwAfpTYegy6xlTTZswx157Z6YTrqnhVm3Vrr_pafCEZyuXylubKNvtzC-YDZRoCyE8QAvD_BwE] Meet the Host: Faiez Rana [https://www.linkedin.com/in/faiez-rana-198162120/] Brought to you by OsL [https://www.notion.so/Ep-35-Nate-Austin-3001dc96cc7e80cb9d33edffbca9acd0?pvs=21]: Your shop is leaking profit in the office. We’ll show you where and how to fix it in 14 days.

His Customer Couldn't Remember His Name - So He Spent $78K To Fix It | Will Sarver, Boxer Buddies Moving

Will Sarver spent 10 years building a moving company in Austin, Texas. One phone call changed everything — a past customer told him she'd just moved again, but couldn't remember who she'd used last time. That was his company. So Will dropped $78,000 on a complete rebrand. New name, new logo, new trucks, new website. Boxer Buddies was born — and within 42 days, people were calling just from seeing the trucks drive by. Something that never happened before. Will breaks down the real math behind his rebrand — what Kick Charge Creative charged, what the wraps cost per truck, and why he sees it as a foundation investment, not a marketing expense. He also walks through the incentive system he built to drive Google reviews: $30 per crew member, per review, but only if it includes a name, a photo, and hits Google. One of his drivers was pulling a 73% review rate on every job he touched. Beyond branding, Will gets into the operational engine behind Boxer Buddies — Friday crew trainings, nightly driver calls, a three-round hiring process that starts with a VA-led Zoom screening, and a recruiting motion that runs every week whether they're hiring or not. He and Faiez also go deep on open book management, why most employees don't care as much as you do (and whose fault that really is), and the math behind going from $1M to $2M in revenue. Topics covered in this episode * The rebrand decision — from Sarver Movers to Boxer Buddies and the book that started it * Why branding that appeals to women drives more initial calls * The full cost breakdown of a $78K rebrand across logo, wraps, and website * $30 per Google review — how Will built the incentive structure and the labor math behind it * Friday training sessions and how they prevent damage claims * The three-round hiring funnel — VA screening, dispatcher interview, owner final call * Why recruiting should run like marketing, not HR * Open book management and tying crew incentives to the P&L * The weighted-average revenue model for hitting $2M * VAs handling recruiting screening, marketing attribution, and sales QA 00:00 Will's background and how Boxer Buddies started in college04:03 Business size — $1.05M last year, targeting $2M05:06 The rebrand decision and Branded Not Blended by Dan Antonelli07:41 Why branding is the foundation, not a marketing line item10:23 Kick Charge Creative — research, owner calls, and the $78K total cost12:11 Tommy Mello rebranding at $17M and why that's scary at any stage16:16 Operational changes over the past 12–24 months18:15 Friday training — what they cover and why it prevents damage claims22:00 The $30 Google review incentive — name, photo, Google only24:18 Adrian's 73% review rate and how Will benchmarked the team26:01 The labor math — 34% target, 28% actual, and allocating 3–6% to review bonuses28:30 Book recommendations — Never Split the Difference, Ultimate Sales Machine, Atomic Habits31:15 Open book management and The Great Game of Business38:54 Weekly recruiting cadence — Indeed, 6th Street, referrals, Meta ads44:38 The screening question that filters candidates instantly46:09 VA team — recruiting, marketing analysis, sales QA49:36 The path from $1M to $2M — Google ads, mailers, capacity53:02 Advice for owners one to two steps behind54:23 Austin date night pick — North Italia + Cosmic Beer Garden Meet the Guest: Will Sarver [https://www.linkedin.com/in/will-sarver-b8b7689b/] Visit: Boxer Buddies [https://boxerbuddies.com/] Meet the Host: Faiez Rana [https://www.linkedin.com/in/faiez-rana-198162120/] Brought to you by OsL [https://www.notion.so/15f1dc96cc7e807e8ecfd67c491ed4ab?pvs=21]: Your shop is leaking profit in the office. We’ll show you where in 14 days.