POWERS

On this episode, Stinson Dean (www.Twitter.com/LumberTrading), the Founder of Deacon Lumber, joins Chris to provide a deep dive into the Lumber industry. Stinson explains his role as a Lumber trader, why most homes in the US are built from Canadian Lumber, the tariff issues between the US and Canada, the Lumber supply chain, and why we are seeing the highest prices ever recorded. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ (02:40) - Stinson’s Journey Into Lumber and What He’s Doing Today Deacon Lumber (08:18) - Why are futures under-utilized? (11:44) - How many people are doing what you do in lumber? (12:39) - Why do a lot of people not participate in lumber as opposed to other commodities? (14:43) - Are there government subsidies for lumber? (16:48) - What’s the shelf life of lumber? The Business Model for Lumber (18:11) - Who are you buying from and where are you storing it? West Fraser Saw Mill (22:34) - Where does your business fit in the supply chain? (23:49) - How does the full supply chain work starting with the tree? (34:14) - How long does it take a tree to grow to a point where it can become lumber? (34:54) - Why are lumber prices skyrocketing right now? (40:50) - Is there still COVID caution in the market? (45:21) - Opportunities in an Inefficient Market (46:15) - Who’s making all the money in a market with historically high prices? (49:05) - Blue Stain Lumber (52:33) - Have the tariffs that are in place been the reason for Canadian sawmills buying mills in the US? (54:53) - Why does Lumber grow better in Canada? Are fires more likely in the US? (57:49) - How do most of these forest fires start? (59:32) - Why aren’t mills adding capacity? (1:00:27) - Is there an opportunity for VC to step in and make a giant change in the industry? (1:02:35) - Are you betting lumber prices will go higher or lower? Types of Lumber & Pricing (1:04:38) - What are the main types of lumber being used? (1:06:42) - The quality of Lumber Being Used in Custom Homes vs. Production Homes (1:09:44) - The Price of Multi-Family Lumber vs. Single-Family (1:12:04) - What % of a typical home is comprised of lumber in single vs. multi-family? (1:14:28) - What are some tips for a regional/small home builder to better hedge this risk? (1:19:55) - What’s the current time frame for locking in prices right now? (1:20:30) - How are smaller builders purchasing their lumber? (1:22:19) - Is there any interesting technology being created within the industry? (1:25:50) - What is the biggest risk right now in lumber? (1:27:38) - How is money made or lost in this industry? What are general risks in your part of the industry? (1:36:32) - Do you have a childhood experience that shaped who you are today? (1:40:00) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? (1:40:27) - What’s your favorite book?  King of Capital by David Carey (1:42:55) - How can people reach you? The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Kenneth Schlenker is the Founder of Opal, an app that was created to give control back to the users of screens. Opal uses a VPN to block access to distracting apps in a way that encourages us to think about the 'why' of what we are doing when we mindlessly pick up our phones.  On this episode, Kenneth explains how Opal works, data on just how addicted we are to our screens, how the scientists hired by social media giants are designing their apps to keep us online as long as possible and much more. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Follow Kenneth on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/KSchlenker Check out Opal: www.Opal.so (03:50) - Kenneth’s Story and Career Leading Up to Opal (05:45) - What’s the inflection point that people are starting to realize there’s a problem with our addiction to Social Media? (07:51) - Is there data around how much we don’t know what we’re getting into when we open up social media? (10:06) - Are we becoming conditioned to pull out our phones on instinct? (11:32) - What are these scientists you talk about doing that incentivize us to stay on our phones? Opal on TechCrunch (13:23) - Well-Timed Notifications The Social Dilemma  (19:21) - What data are you seeing with regards to the Zoom'er generation and their usage of social media vs. other age groups? (22:58) - Was there a moment in time where you felt so convicted that you needed to start Opal? (25:25) - How does Opal work? (28:24) - Is there any customer requests you’ve been getting that you didn’t expect? (30:00) - What was your experience raising a seed round during the pandemic? (32:27) - How do you think about the incumbents like Facebook who may not be super excited about your entrance? (34:00) - Is there something you believe that many others don’t? (35:27) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever received  (36:06) - What’s the best book you’ve ever read Indistractable - Nir Eyal Power of Breath - Swami Saradananda  (37:31) - How do people grow up differently in French culture vs. American culture? (40:04) - Which country uses their phones the most? (41:11) - How can people reach you? The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Today's episode features the Co-Founder of Tiny Capital, Andrew Wilkinson. Tiny Capital owns 30+ companies and focuses on buying, starting, and investing in internet businesses. On this episode, Chris and Andrew discuss his childhood creating MetaLab which led him to help design some of the most well known companies like Slack and CoinBase. They also talk about the process of acquiring businesses, Andrew's habit of starting businesses when he's bored, his experience going public with WeCommerce and much more. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Follow Andrew on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/awilkinson (02:51) - Andrews Background MetaLab The Making of an American Capitalist  (09:50) - How did you think about money at an early age?  (13:54) - Do you consider yourself a designer? How did you learn this? (17:17) - Did you have founder’s guilt when it came time to replace yourself? (19:21) - Doing the Things You Hate Doing in Business (21:35) - Do you actually like reading a P&L and balance sheets? (22:16) - What’s an immediate ‘no’ of all the businesses that cross your desk? (26:00) - Once you’ve agreed to buy a business, what’s the process like going forward to close? (29:32) - Do you negotiate? (30:13) - Structuring CEO Comp and What Questions You’re Trying to Answer When Developing a Plan (32:27) - Will you steer founders to go get a bank loan for a new company project or will you deploy capital? (34:43) - If you had one hour to talk to each of your CEOs per year, what would you discuss with them? Tao of Charlie Munger (36:09) - Twitter Q: What is the key role, or person, to take a company from $500k-1M in revenue to $5-10M? (38:00) - You speak very highly of your partner Chris. What do you do and what does he do? (39:03) - Do y’all have a standing meeting or when do you communicate? (39:51) - WeCommerce  (43:17) - A Traditional IPO vs. a Reverse Takeover  (45:20) - When did you decide it was time to go public? (46:11) - What was your involvement in the Stamped Acquisition? (47:28) - What have you learned from Bill Ackman and how did you meet him? CharityBuzz (51:26) - What's your process like to go from an idea to the launch of a business? (58:19) - What’s the biggest thing content creators are missing when it comes to monetization? Joe Rogan Got Ripped Off by Spotify (1:02:34) - If you were the CEO of Twitter, what would you do to change the company? (1:06:38) - Is there a childhood experience that shaped where you would go in life?  (1:07:49) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? (1:08:57) - How can people get in touch with you? Twitter: www.twitter.com/awilkinson

Chris Bakke is the co-founder and CEO of Laskie. Previously, he was the co-founder of Interviewed (acquired by Indeed), COO of 42Floors (acquired by Knotel), and managed business development for Zillow and RentJuice (acquired by Zillow). On this episode, Chris discusses his experiences selling his companies and then working for the acquirers such as Zillow and Indeed during the pandemic. He also discusses the growth of the freelancer economy and how companies are starting to think about their approach to full-time employees vs. contract workers. Finally, they talk about founding Laskie, Twitter and the founders-dilemma of deciding whether to sell when an offer comes by or continuing to build. Enjoy! (02:18) - Chris’ Background Working for Early Stage and Public Tech Companies (04:42) - What was it like working at Indeed in the midst of the pandemic? (07:47) - What is it like to transition from a founder of a company to being an employee after an acquisition? (10:09) - When you take on the new role do you know what’s required of you from the jump, or is it expected your role might change? (13:01) - Are there questions that you wish you asked in previous acquisitions to understand what it will be like on the other side? (15:13) - How did the idea for Laskie come about? How do you describe what y’all do? (19:02) - How long does it take to get approved as a vendor? (21:14) - How many times do companies hire full time people when a freelancer would do just fine? Are we entering a world where companies cut down on full time people in exchange for more freelancers? (24:31) - How do you overcome the issue of freelancer loyalty between competitors? (28:23) - Personality Testing in Freelancing (30:40) - Should hirers think about the idea of 1-3 days of working on a project with a potential employee before deciding to hire them? (36:04) - Has there been anything unique in this COVID era in terms of requested services you’ve seen? (39:18) - Chris’ Experience Working With the Same Group of Founders for All of His Companies (40:10) - Are the roles of the group pretty clear each time you start a company together? (45:31) - Was there someone who told you to stop doing founder-led sales and bring someone on or was it something you had to figure out? (47:07) - What is “the game” of being a venture-backed company? (50:19) - Was your goal to be the next billion-dollar company or did you know you wanted in and out in two years? (53:22) - Do you think there’s a lot of companies that should have sold much earlier but keep pushing for that $10B sale? (56:42) - What did it do to your psyche when you saw that first offer from a founder's perspective? (1:01:45) - Why are you bullish on San Francisco/Silicon Valley? (1:05:47) - If you were CEO of Twitter for the next year, what would you do? (1:09:17) - Do you have a childhood experience that put you on your life path? (1:12:20) - If you had a billboard on the busiest highway in Danville, what would it say? (1:23:43) - How can people reach you? Twitter: www.Twitter.com/ChrisJBakke LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bakk3/

Ray Washburne is the owner of the Mi Cocina restaurants, Dallas Highland Park Village, and former President and CEO of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.  On this episode, Chris and Ray talk about Ray's career path in real estate and how he developed Highland Park Village in Dallas into nearly $380 million in annual sales. They also talk about Ray starting one of the most popular Tex Mex chains in Texas, his experience working under President Trump, OPIC, and much more. Enjoy!  Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital (02:27) - Ray’s Background and Career (04:14) - How did you get started in real estate? (05:16) - How do you find operating platforms that you want to back? (06:58) - How do you think about getting a deal done? (08:05) - How Chris and Ray Met (08:42) - How Ray Bought Highland Park Village (11:50) - Developing the Property (13:11) - How does it work bringing in super-luxury tenants? (15:10) - What does ‘Retail is Dead’ mean to you? Why is it wrong? (16:35) - How do the personal shoppers work in your spaces? (18:51) - What has Park House done for the center? (20:55) - Why is Dallas winning so much? (22:21) - Understanding the Consumer From a Property Management Perspective (26:00) - The Story of Mi Cocina and Where it is Today (30:40) - Why do brands not travel well? (32:04) - What’s the long-term vision for the brand? (33:20) - What was it like owning a restaurant in 2020? (38:01) - Are there places where you’re now saving money due to COVID? (40:43) - How important is it for a restaurant to have a signature drink or dish that people can rally behind? (43:26) - How do restaurants make money? (44:36) - Is there anything that you’re seeing that anticipates the next roaring 20’s? (46:53) - Thinking About National Competition (48:21) - Are most retailers located in major centers to make money or is it for marketing/branding? (49:12) - What was it like working for President Trump? (53:19) - Is there a time or interaction with him that you’ll never forget? (55:31) - Was the division between Trump and top Democrats just for show or was it real? (56:31) - What is OPIC and why should private business owners be thinking about it? (59:52) - How do you determine which companies\countries have the entrepreneurs to drive capital? (1:01:03) - The Chinese Belt & Road Initiative (1:01:48) - What’s the coolest project you worked on? (1:03:19) - Where is the world growing that we in America aren’t thinking about? (1:04:54) - How are we going to be competitive against China? (1:05:35) - What’s interesting to you going forward now that you’re out of government? (1:07:44) - What’s the pitch of Downtown vs. Uptown Dallas? (1:08:39) - Do you have a childhood experience that shaped the direction of your life? (1:09:52) - What’s one thing you believe that a lot of people do not? (1:11:09) - Can we keep a clean government? (1:11:33) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? (1:12:02) -  If you owned the biggest billboard in DFW and you could put anything on it, what would it say? The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Chris Torres is an artist and creator of Nyan Cat, one of the most popular memes in internet history. Vangeli Gelekas is currently building the largest NFT (Non-Fungible Tokens) artist community on the web and helping artists leave the constraints of corporate commissions behind through NFTs.  On this episode, Chris and Van deep dive into NFT's and how the ownership of digital assets is going to change the world as we know it. They talk about the community of artists that currently make up their section of the NFT economy, how the average Joe can get into this world, why transactions are made via cryptocurrency, and more. This is is an episode you may want to listen to more than once, enjoy!  Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Chris Torres on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/PRguitarman Vangeli Gelekas on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/NetGenius (02:36) - What is an NFT? (Non-Fungible Token) (04:35) - How did you get into this space? (07:29) - Where are the best communities for NFTs? NBA Top Shot  (09:21) - Is an NFT only digital or can it be for physical assets? (10:52) - If everybody has a screenshot of a piece of art, how is it really that valuable?  (12:37) - What is Nyan Cat? (14:10) - How can you monetize Nyan Cat & NFTs? (15:06) - Why Screenshotting the NFT is What We Want  (18:04) - If I buy Nyan Cat, what do I do with it? (19:44) - How Much Chris Sold Nyan Cat For (20:46) - Who’s buying NFTs right now? (26:18) - How do I join the community? (28:58) - Is there a leader of this community like Shitoshi in Bitcoin? (31:07) - How does the average Joe get into this world with respect? (40:11) - How do you create the NFT and get it on the Blockchain? (44:13) - If I buy Nyan Cat, can I ask you never to sell another one or how does the ownership work? (50:06) - Do you have to display the purchased art anywhere to build momentum? What happens if you don’t? Marketplace: Foundation (55:45) - Do NFTs only live on ETH? (58:05) - The Transition from Physical Asset Value to Digital Asset Value (59:42) - Could we turn this podcast episode into an NFT? (1:01:21) - Can there be fractional ownership of NFTs? (1:04:08) - Where can I go look at NFT freak’s art? (1:05:47) - How did y’all meet each other? (1:08:25) - Chris, why are you doing this? (1:14:02) - Wrap-Up: What do you want people to take away from this episode if they came in with zero knowledge about this space? The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

On this episode, Chris dives into what is known as the 'Barbell Theory' in real estate. He discusses how he came to learn about the theory and how folks in the industry can capitalize on the theory by getting ahead of the growth of an area before it happens. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ (01:00) - How Chris Came to Learn About The Barbell Theory (01:52) - The Barbell Theory Google Earth Example of Fort Worth Barbell Theory (08:25) - Acting on the Barbell Theory/ Buying in Front of the Growth (13:28) - The Time Horizon for Growth (15:09) - Wrap Up The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Mitchell Baldridge is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Financial Planner with vast experience in corporate accounting, business advisory, and financial planning. His passion is building lifelong relationships with business owners to help them thrive.  On this episode, Mitchell and Chris discuss the nuances in financial planning for business owners, best practices to take before selling your business, bulletproof ways for normal people to save on taxes, Twitter and more. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.Linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Follow Mitchell on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/BaldridgeCPA (02:51) - Mitchell’s Story and What He Does Today (05:46) - Knowing How to Make Money vs. Knowing How to Invest Money (06:40) - Thought Experiment: Family business owner, late in a career, $50 M company w/ three kids & grandkids and no planning. What do you recommend? (16:02) - Is there a certain dollar amount you need to start thinking about this planning? (17:03) - Setting up a Giving Plan (21:10) - The Fractional Family Offices & Creative Planning (24:32) - What technology are you using right now? (25:30) - Twitter Q: Why do most CPAs act like they work for the IRS instead of their client? (28:58) - What’s it like to be so intimately involved with people making incredible amounts of money? (30:22) - If you’re selling your business, are there best practices to do a few years out? (32:35) - What’s a Loan Out Corp? (34:48) - Do they need audited financials years in advance? (35:34) - What is QSBS? (Qualified Small Business Stock) (28:25) - How does a SPAC work? (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) (40:17) - What are some outlandish ways you’ve seen people avoid taxes? (41:36) - Is there a bulletproof way to save on taxes for the average person? (42:59) - What’s a cash balance pension plan? (45:12) - What are the benefits for Multi-Family vs. Commercial asset classes with Cost & Bonus Depreciation? (54:42) - What pieces of real properties (parking areas, concrete on commercial areas, etc.) are often overlooked for bonus depreciation? (56:12) - Is the best practice to call your CPA after every deal? (58:04) - How do you most efficiently structure a holding company with both operating and real estate investments? (1:00:07) - How do you best structure family businesses that will succeed from one generation to another? (1:02:34) - What is the coolest way you’ve seen a family set benchmarks for grandkids to actually earn money from a plan? (1:05:36) - How are you thinking about growing your business going forward? (1:08:46) - Twitter as a Mode for Growth (1:12:55) - Nick Huber (1:16:40) - Do you have a childhood experience that shaped the direction of your life? (1:18:50) - Is there something you believe that a lot of people around you don’t? (1:19:38) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? (1:20:30) - Do you have a book that you love? Think & Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill Choose yourself by James Altucher (1:21:41) - What’s the best way for people to reach you? The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

James Beshara is a full-time Angel Investor & Founder of Magic Mind. He also is the host of the podcast Below the Line.  In his third appearance on The FORT, James and Chris discuss the origins of their friendship, the concept of lives being made on 12 seconds of courage, and the metrics of their first venture fund. James also details his experience building Tilt, which was acquired by Airbnb in 2017, and the downside of that journey that you won't ever hear from other start-ups in the media. He talks about running out of cash while trying to find a suitable buyer for the business, having to lay-off employees, and taking the news of the acquisition to the team as well as transitioning to Airbnb. Finally, James and Chris discuss the ego-centric world of tech, what it means to be happy, the philosophy behind building a business, and more. Enjoy!  Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ James Beshara on Twitter: www.twitter.com/jamesbeshara James' Podcast: www.belowthelinepod.com (03:26) - How James and Chris Met (07:22) - Lives Are Made on 12 Seconds of Courage (12:15) - Going to South Africa (16:24) - The Metrics for Chris & James First Fund (Cat Empire) (24:20) - The Process of Deciding to Start a Venture Fund (30:02) - The Downside of Building and Exiting Tilt (Acquired by Airbnb) Below the Line: On Failure  (36:10) - The Last Few Months of Tilt (50:03) - Telling the Team About the Acquisition (59:06) - Initial Experiences at Airbnb (1:02:10) - What’s the process like getting stock in a pre-IPO company? (1:05:12) - Being Made to Create (1:07:20) - Working Alongside AirBnb’s CEO (1:10:55) - When someone is emerging with a start-up, are they getting executive coaches along the way? (1:17:04) - Vulnerability is a Strength  (1:22:33) - Ego in Today’s Society (1:25:27) - Envy (1:30:51) - Eastern Philosophy & Starting a Business (1:33:17) - Wheat does an internal pursuit mean? (1:36:36) - What does it mean to be content? Living life backwards by David Gibson (1:49:08) - Clubhouse and James Being One of the First Investors The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Patrick Dossett is a Navy SEAL and Co-Founder of Madefor, a ten-month program that applies the principles of modern neuroscience, psychology, and physiology to make your brain and body better. On this episode, Patrick talks about his journey of becoming a SEAL and the grueling physical and mental process that develops the greatest soldiers on earth. He also talks about his transition out of the SEAL Teams into business school at Wharton and his time working at Google. Finally, he and Chris discuss launching Madefor right as the pandemic hit, learning from his Co-founder Blake Mycoskie (founder of Tom's Shoes) and how Madefor is aimed to help bring peak potential out of every student. Enjoy! (02:31) - Pat’s Story Growing Up Rogue Warrior by Richard Marcinko (03:46) - What was it that drove you to want to become a SEAL? (05:36) - Pat's Journey of Starting at the Naval Academy and Getting to BUD/S (08:31) - What’s the breakdown of mental vs. physical toughness in being a SEAL? (13:01) - Hell Week & Focusing on What’s in Front of You (19:20) - Sleep During Hell Week (20:36) - Is there a reason why we aren’t taught more about focusing on the little things in front of us? Why do we only look at the 'big wins’? Growth and Fixed Mindsets - Carol Dweck (25:30) - Was the Dweck research outcome due to more nature or nurture? (26:46) - What’s the main reason a SEAL mission fails? (32:30) - There’s Always an Opportunity to Quit (37:20) - How was your transition out of the teams? What did business school do for you? (40:58) - What was the difference in ‘thinking outside the box’ in the SEALS vs. your time working at Google? (47:25) - How did you get the idea for Madefor? (52:23) - What have you learned from your co-founder, Blake, that’s made him a great businessman? (55:24) - What is the product you’ve built? What’s the curriculum? (1:02:34) - Do people taking the class get to know other students or is there only communication with the company? (1:04:06) - How many people have gone through the program to date? (1:05:09) - What happens during a month of the program? (1:08:35) - What’s the main reason why people show up for this program? (1:14:29) - What’s one thing you believe that most people don’t? (1:15:03) - Do you have a morning routine? (1:18:44) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? (1:19:26) - How can people get in touch with you? (1:20:31) - Wrap Up www.getmadefor.com Madefor on Instagram: @madefor Patrick on Instagram: @Madefor_pat The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts