The Labor Shortage in the Trades

On this week's podcast, Matt and Travis Brungardt of Catalyst Built out of Prairie Village, Kansas, go deep into the trade deficit and how we get more younger people to join the trades. Travis and his partner Joe are some of the few builders with trade licenses. They have a master electrician, master HVAC, master plumber, and a GC license between them. Matt and Travis talk about the scope of the issue and how the lack of younger tradespeople affects the industry. They discuss why we have a nationwide shortage of skilled labor and how we, as builders, can address it. Take a few minutes to listen in and think about what you can do to interest a young person in the trades. What project are you working on? You can find Catalyst Built on the web here: http://www.catalystbuilt.com/, and on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/catalystbuilt BS* and Beer KC is here: https://bsandbeerkc.org/Save the Date for Build Show LIVE 2025 in Dallas, TX: October 16-18, 2025! Don't miss a single episode of Build Show content. Sign up for our newsletter.