Who Built This and Why

Delmar Barber

Founder, Entrepreneurial Trades Academy

25 years in the trades. Built from the ground up.

I have been in the trades for over 25 years. The majority of that time as a self-employed builder and remodeler. I also spent time with the Union, which I have a great deal of respect for — it made me a better leader and a sharper businessman.

Like most of you, I have lost the tips of my fingers on jobs. I have banged my bones wondering if I broke them and dragged myself to work in conditions that would have sent most people back to bed. I was good at the trade. Really good. And for a long time I thought being good at the trade was enough.

It was not enough.

I was underpricing jobs. Not because I could not calculate a number — I could price a job to the penny and estimate the hours within a fraction — but because I did not know what I did not know. I did not understand margins. I did not understand what it actually cost to run a business, pay myself properly, and still come out ahead.

So I built systems because I needed them to survive. I built tools because nothing that existed worked for the way a trade business actually operates. I mapped out the process because I had to find the path on my own and I refused to let that effort go to waste once I found it.

Our Philosophy

Start Smart

Start Smart — Avoid the mistakes that other startups pay coaches to fix later.

Solid Plan

Solid Plan — BASE calculated, floor rate locked, estimating system built.

Strong Systems

Strong Systems — Operations, communication, and tracking that run consistently.

Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning — Build a business that supports you first. Then decide whether to scale.

People like us will likely have two real assets in our lifetime — our home and our business. We teach you to build both correctly.

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