The iFab Transition

Growth can stall even when the shed lot stays busy, and that’s usually a sign the problem is hiding underneath the surface. We’re recording from Iowa and sitting down with Glen and Chad from iFab as they share big news: iFab is transitioning to new ownership, with fabricator and problem-solver Eli Slabaughl stepping in to lead the next chapter while Glen and Chad stay on for a smooth handoff.

We talk about what iFab equipment actually changes inside a shed manufacturing shop, not just “faster,” but more consistent. When trusses vary, rooflines fight back, sheeting takes longer, and every downstream step costs you time. Glen, Chad, and Eli walk through why a truss press that can drive repeatable results is a real scaling tool, how simple hydraulic design keeps repairs practical, and why training videos matter when your best operator might not learn from an English-only manual.

We also get into the broader iFab lineup, including saw systems, forklift building movers, and the adjustable jig that builders keep asking about for custom pitches and layouts. Eli shares his background in welding and repair, what attracts him to iFab’s “simple, innovative solutions” mindset, and where he wants to expand next, especially serving the barn industry with custom solutions.

If you’re trying to build more sheds with less friction, listen now, share this with a builder friend, and leave a review so more shops can find the tools and people behind them. What’s the one bottleneck you want to eliminate in your shop this year?

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This episodes Sponsors:
Studio Sponsor: Shed Pro

First Choice Metals
Challenger
LuxGuard
Shed Sales Summit

Transcript

INTRO 0:00

Hello and welcome back to the Shed Geek Podcast. A quick word about our studio sponsor. One thing the team at Shed Pro has been hearing lately from Shed businesses is that many of them aren't struggling because of lack of demand. Things just kind of stall out. The lot is busy, but growth flattens. And it's not always obvious why. Usually it's something small. The website, the follow-up. How customers interact with you before they ever pick up the phone. So Shed Pro puts something together called the Shed Sales Audit. It helps you get a clearer picture of where you might be losing people. It takes a couple of minutes. And if you want to dig deeper, their team will walk you through it. Here's the thing nine times out of ten, the fix isn't more leads, it's a tighter operation underneath. That's the rest of the Shed Pro platform. Configurator, point of sale, RTO contract, inventory, deliveries, and dealer tools. All in one place. From website lead to final delivery, one clean workflow. Start with the audit at shedpro.co/ ShedGeek. Thank you, Shed Pro, for being our Wednesday studio sponsor and for building something that helps the industry.

Iowa Road Trip And Welcome

Shannon 1:16

Okay, welcome back to another episode of the Shed Geek Podcast. And thank you so much for listening today. We're not in Metropolis today. We're up here in the in black soil country in Iowa. And uh beautiful up here, the Rolling Hills. Absolutely love it. Every time we get to come up here to Kalmar, West Union area, Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, always beautiful. Lots of nice shed lots. Meta uh hearty sheds. Shout out to them. Met them while I was up here uh yesterday, and what a phenomenal story they have. Uh, a few ways to stay connected with us here at the Shed Geek Podcast is to uh just shoot over an email at info@ shedgeek.com, give us a call at 618-309-3648, or go check out our website, fill out a lead form. And if you're not getting the newsletter, let us know. You can email us at uh the same email address or Deanna, my wife, D-E-A-N-N-A@ shedgeek.com. Uh for those who like to listen on the call- in landline number, uh 330-997-3055. Tell a friend uh they may be interested in listening to the podcast. We appreciate the over 500 listens that we get from the Amish and plain communities uh weekly. It means so much that you guys tune in and we hope that we're offering value to your day. Uh check us out on the Shed Sales Professionals page and elsewhere. Go give us a like, a follow, all the things. Thank you for listening. And more than anything, welcome back iFab LLC to the podcast. We've got Glen and uh Chad here uh joining us again, fellas. Thank you for one for uh you know uh giving us the opportunity to interview you again. Glad to be here again. How have things been going uh over at iFab? It seems like after the first podcast, it was fairly successful. Yeah, and uh really glad that you guys came on and the industry got to know you more. Of course, you're out and about at the shed shows and all that, but we've got good news here with Eli Slabaugh joining us also. And uh we'll talk a little bit about that. But how have things been with Glen and Chad? Busy. Busy?

Chad Yost 3:28

Yeah, busy, yeah, real busy.

Shannon 3:30

That's an understatement, right? Yeah. Uh what's uh what's the shed industry looked like for you guys since the last time we spoke? At least on the podcast. I know we speak through email or text, but uh things have been things have been progressing well.

Chad Yost 3:45

Yeah, um, equipment-wise, for sure, with iFab has been yeah, we've done a lot of good things and been successful at them. Um the market seemed to take a little dip. Equipment market took a little dip for a while. It's definitely on the rise again. So, that's a good thing. Exciting times. Yeah, yeah, it's really good.

Glen Yost 4:05

One of the first things we noticed during that dip was we had people calling and uh wanting parts to refurbish. They bought something used, and that wasn't happening before. Okay, that's only happened in the last probably two years.

Chad Yost 4:20

Okay. That's very interesting to find out that your product has a used market. That's very cool though, too, to know that your product lasts long enough to actually make it to a used market.

Shannon 4:30

You've got you've got iFab parts out here on the black market. Yeah. The black shed market. Uh it does speak to the quality of what you guys do and your fabrication skills, you know, the story that you guys told previously about how you got started. Um, I mean, you guys have had a pretty good run in the shed industry for quite a while now.

Glen Yost 4:50

We have. It's been 15, 16 years. No, we started um in the I built my first set in the winter of 12 and 13.

Shannon 5:04

Okay.

Glen Yost 5:05

Okay.

Chad Yost 5:06

So yeah.

Shannon 5:07

Yeah. Been at a been at it quite a while now. Yeah. Yeah. So, obviously see you guys at the shows and see you guys at the places doing the things, uh, exhibiting and stuff like that. But we're on to a new adventure now. Uh to say the least, I'd imagine you guys could we could turn it into a two-hour podcast if we talked about all the things, but uh Eli's here joining us today, and it's Eli

Market Dip And Refurb Parts Calls

Shannon 5:30

Schleyball.

Eli Slabaugh 5:31

Slabaugh.

Shannon 5:31

Slabaugh, Slabaugh. I gotta I'll tell you what, between Stutzmans and Stuttsmans and Schleighballs and Slayballs and Hostettlers, it's a it's a mix to keep straight. I did not grow up in the plain community, so like I'm learning a lot of the dynamics and the names and the connections. But um, so tell me, how do you how did you come to know like what just a little bit about Eli? Where where'd you come from and uh how'd you end up here?

Eli Slabaugh 5:58

Yeah. Um, well, I don't know how far back you want me to go.

Shannon 6:01

Oh, take as far as far as you want to go. Grow it.

Eli Slabaugh 6:05

Um so I actually I grew up Amish and my parents left the Amish when I was 14. Okay. Uh so that's uh hence where the Slava name comes from. Um, but yeah, then uh uh grew up in in the Mennonite church, actually the same church as they go to. Okay. Uh different community, but um, so that's how I got to know them somewhat. But uh backing up, actually, my brother uh he started building for old Hickory uh way back in I want to say it was in 2012. And he actually so I've had my welding shop um uh run a welding repair shop, and I started that in 2010. So I think it was around 2012 or 13. I actually built his first rafter press for my brother when he was starting uh building for old hickory. I didn't even know that. Uh I didn't need it. That it was a very crude old machine. Um our first one was too. And it's actually kind of funny because you guys just sold a new rafter press to Marcus, uh, which is an old hickory shop that Ez used to have. And uh so he just replaced that now uh with from my old crude machine with one of the nicer ones from iFab. Um so yeah, he definitely sees the upgrade and it's working much better for him. Um so yeah, that's kind of I guess where I got introduced to the uh shed industry was way back then. Um I only build one because I guess that was all the market was asking for at that time. And at least to my knowledge about it. You're right. Yeah, uh IFAP was definitely way above me and uh building a lot nicer equipment than I was. So, um I didn't take the time to research and do the RD uh to really get things figured out like that, um, or even try to market it. Um I just built one off because he needed it and we got it up and running. Um that was kind of the way it's the way that went.

Shannon 8:09

It's the story of a lot of things, I feel like, in the shed industry is uh, you know, the need exists, someone builds it. You're not thinking about selling this always to everybody else, you're just building it because you need it. And with the engineering that happens inside of this industry, it's always so impressive. I mean, the mule, the challenger, all the trailers. I saw a WKM trailer pass by here, you know, Creekside and Myers and you know, uh Pine Hill and just all of them are just the equipment. I I'm always impressed, the amount of fabrication that happens inside the industry. And if there's not a solution, let's go build it. Let's just go figure it out. And that that seems to be a little bit of the what you guys embody at iFab. You've just created a solution for yourself or for a friend or a neighboring shop, and then it turns into a business model. And that's kind of you guys' story in many ways.

Glen Yost 9:06

Yeah, you know create something and somebody likes it and you keep doing it. Yeah. And even the things that we have created, new products, mostly have been a custom product for a one-off build, but we've told them, look, um if we can keep the design as ours, we won't charge you for all the RD and we expect to recoup that on other sales. So, most of our new project products have been um a custom build, you know, it would have been a one-off build, but we tried to turn it into something that we can build more of.

Shannon 9:49

Yeah, it turns into a business model. There's a lot of creative and capable people in this industry that are built from that same mindset where they're like, I'll just create it, I'll fix it myself. Or uh, but once you put the RD into it, you find the pain points, you figure out places where the machines fail, you improve those. Uh, now you've got a business line where you're where you're selling. And really what you sell at the end of the day is if you're a builder listening today, it's what they need. You know, this is you know, this the this conversation is focused on the builder.

Eli Slabaugh 10:22

Yep. And then they got to know that you're even around. You know, there was no there was no other shed builder that knew that I had builder after press.

Eli’s Backstory And First Press

Eli Slabaugh 10:30

Uh so it, you know, the marketing was pretty slim. Um so nobody else is gonna buy it if they don't know about it.

Shannon 10:37

I think back about six years ago, you know, starting a podcast, and it was like people were telling me, I just need more resources, and you need more places to try and find a way to get out there. If Eli's running a trust press, how do people know without going to the expo or coming on a podcast or you know, uh advertising to people on and even Facebook has become a really big thing, you know, where the different groups, uh the shed manufacturers group, you know, to be able to go in there and talk about your product and troubleshoot back and forth with manufacturers. Like, why do I need this? How does it help me? So, let's talk about those things. Well, maybe we should stay here with Eli taking over as uh new ownership. Um, you guys might be able to explain that dynamic to me a little bit more, but you guys are staying on to help to ensure that customer service continues to be met for a period of time while Eli continues to take uh just hopefully this business to a new level and continue to get manufactured.

Chad Yost 11:39

That's what we hope. Yeah, I'm excited to see what he does with it. Yeah, yeah. It's a little bittersweet from our end is you know, life kind of takes you a different direction, and it got to a point where we were letting people down and we couldn't service the industry because we didn't have the time. And so you start looking for other ways to do it. And it kind of came down to that of all right, maybe we need to just let somebody else take the business. And found Eli, and yeah, as far as far as handing a business to somebody, it's as good as it gets.

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iFab Ownership Handoff Plan

Shannon 13:20

Yeah, you guys were telling me off the air, and this is the beauty of chatting beforehand before we're even recording, is you, you know, Glen was explaining how good he felt about Eli being the person to represent the brand that you guys have built over all these years and to just take it to a new level, like learn how to do different things with it. Obviously, customer service, you know, is a staple, but even the equipment itself. And for any manufacturers that didn't get a chance to listen to the first podcast, go back and listen to it. It was great. But let's rehash a little bit of that. Tell me some of the pain points that you that iFab solves for shed manufacturers.

Chad Yost 14:01

The biggest thing would be just efficiency. Um a product that you can build one truss a minute on is incredible. If you go from anything else manual to any sort of automation, that's an insane leap.

Shannon 14:20

The conversations are just getting bigger about automation and efficiency. Putting people to work that even might not even know how to build a shed, but know how to be trained on equipment to increase the efficiency of building sheds faster.

Glen Yost 14:35

Which is one uh thing that we have done in the last few years to meet exactly what she was talking about, is in the owner's manual putting a link to a video. Because there's a lot of shops that have operators that can't read that English owner's manual.

Shannon 14:57

Yeah.

Glen Yost 14:58

And but they can watch a video, and if they can see how to do it, um that's all they need. You know, they can watch a video, they can watch it as many times as they need to get efficient at what they're doing. Doing it right.

Shannon 15:11

Yeah, absolutely. That oftentimes that language barrier, you know, exists, and but visually, just so much more to see and so much more to learn. And I I'm a visual learner myself, so like you can tell me and tell me and tell me, but I gotta see it. Almost gotta put my hands on the machine and mess up once or twice. Right, for sure. You know, then I then I start to pick up on it.

Eli Slabaugh 15:33

The best learning is having a little bit of pain in it. Yeah, and it sticks.

Shannon 15:37

Yeah, yeah. So what is what is sort of uh you talked about how you got started in on uh or met these guys in the industry, but what's a little bit more of your background, like uh fabrication? Uh you said you started a fabrication shop or welding shop in 2010.

Eli Slabaugh 15:53

Yep. So, I started in 2010 is when I bought my welding repair shop. It was just a farm repair shop. Uh we do specialize in ornamental wrought iron railings, um, a lot of handrails going to lakes and stuff like that.

Shannon 16:07

Okay.

Eli Slabaugh 16:08

Uh that that was about our main work uh before IFab, before I took them over. Um so now that's becoming probably more of it. Uh we're probably getting close to that 50-50 on IFAB versus what I used to do.

Shannon 16:23

Okay.

Eli Slabaugh 16:23

So, it has doubled uh my workload, but we're very happy for that. And uh yeah, we're definitely uh looking forward to having something more steady through the winter. Um that was kind of what originally attracted me to IFab is the fact

Efficiency Gains From Automation

Eli Slabaugh 16:40

that they get uh maybe more orders through the winter, and uh that was my slow time, so it uh seemed like a good fit for me. And I liked what they had built up. Uh, I don't know if he probably forgot when I was younger how I acted. Uh you know, that he says he trusts me now or that I felt like the right person to sell to. So um, because actually originally when they moved to Iowa, I was working for construction, so I did construction before I did welding.

Shannon 17:11

Okay.

Eli Slabaugh 17:11

And uh we actually checked up an old building that they bought here in West Union, and I helped them pour the concrete uh for that, which I don't know if I was 15 or 16 maybe at that time. So, I'm thinking he forgot about that.

Glen Yost 17:27

Are you the one that um was goofing off all the time? Well that that con the guy there with the excavator to let you run it. I could not remember that.

Shannon 17:37

Uh unless you guys did.

Eli Slabaugh 17:39

Very possible.

Shannon 17:40

Yeah, it probably I would go with I don't remember either.

Eli Slabaugh 17:42

Yeah. I do not recall much of that.

Chad Yost 17:46

Um that was quite a project there, is that it really was, yeah. Jacked a building up and moved it halfway into a main highway. Shut one lane of the highway down for what a week? I don't remember what it was. It was a while to rebuild the foundation because we couldn't build new because of zoning loss. It was too close to a main highway. So, you could remove it.

Glen Yost 18:07

You could renovate it. So, we moved the building clear off, built a new foundation, and moved it back.

Eli Slabaugh 18:12

I remember rolling it off on like little two-inch pipes going across there.

Shannon 18:18

I mean, engineering, get again, like find a solution when you don't have a solution. But that's I think that kind of fits the mindset of fabrication and like this equipment. Uh you know, I I'm excited after interviewing you guys. I know you had some success early on, especially after the first podcast, and uh was so happy that you guys came on as an advertiser because you saw some of that success. And really, it's also a thank you to the industry for listening and then seeing that there was a solution uh there that would make building and manufacturing more efficient for them. Uh and that's kind of what you guys have attempted to create, especially when you added the conveyor in. Right. You started launching different products and things like that. It just seems like we we've been talking about this. We were up here meeting for other reasons as well, too. Some RTO investment and it's different things. And um one of the things we were casually talking about with some of those personalities that that aren't involved in the industry quite as heavy is like, where is the industry going? Where is it headed? It seems like there's more and more manufacturers showing up constantly. We passed twice the amount of shed lots on the way up this time that we did last time. Um but everybody's staying busy. So I can't help but think that like the product that you offer doesn't just offer efficiency, but it's just generally needed. And people just need to be able to make to maybe to Glen 's point to see it, to see it operate. That's why we put videos on our newsletter so that you can go click on it. Link you guys, I don't know if you have a YouTube channel. I'm I can't remember. I think I pulled some videos from what you guys had done on trainings and showing how the equipment works. And I think that's very important for people to know where to go and find that information.

Glen Yost 20:14

We do have those operational videos on our website, on the website, okay. Every piece of equipment, at least I think so, every piece of equipment. We have a video showing what it does, how it works.

Shannon 20:26

So, if you were if you were to just give the first time listener a new builder, like uh I always call it an elevator pitch, something that you could say in an elevator if somebody said, What do you do? What is IFAB? How do you guys describe that to a manufacturer who may be hearing for the first time what problem IFab solves? How would you describe it? Uh I know you say uh, you know, the trust press, but uh you do even more than that. I mean, you guys have uh other products, but what problem does it solve? How would you explain it in an elevator?

Chad Yost 21:00

So ultimately, I think back to kind of how we started. I don't I don't have my elevator pitch all slicked down into the street. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't either. I'm terrible at it. How we started it seemed like just looking at finding a problem and asking how do we make this easier.

Shannon 21:16

Okay.

Chad Yost 21:17

Um and obviously building trusses takes time if you don't have equipment. And you can put in some equipment that if you build any amount of sheds per year pays for itself in at least a year. I mean, it's a very quick turnaround on labor savings.

Glen Yost 21:35

And not only the labor, um to me, I think the probably as much value is in the consistency of your trusses, making your shed go together quicker, easier, roofline looks better. Um you know, you do save time in building trusses, but it also saves time in putting the rest of the shed. Together when your trusses you don't have to fight every truss.

Chad Yost 22:03

Makes your builder's life much easier.

Shannon 22:05

Yeah, the consistency.

Glen Yost 22:06

Yeah. The consistency is a big thing.

Shannon 22:09

Yeah. And everybody's trying to go for that. You know, Eli, they you've probably been around some shed places that, you know, most of the time they build in in bays, and you have one, two, three builders attacking a building, getting that thing, you know, knocked out, getting it done. But we really are, you know, we got to interview, you know, Stor Mor,

Selling Trust Through Support

Shannon 22:30

we got to interview Graceland and some of these guys recently that are larger, Cook, you know, uh uh Leonard, you know, um, and they talk about the efficiencies that they're building, you know, um, whether this be 3D configurators that go directly to a CNC machine that automatically cuts when the order comes in. And I think this is kind of separating the wheat from the chaff a little in some ways when you're when you're seeing companies invest in a long-term possibility. The mechanics are part of that. Uh you know, things like I still see guys out there beating trust presses, you know, uh together with a trust plate. And nothing wrong with that. Just to be clear, like if you're a small builder, this is it's really cool in Americana to be able to just go out. I think Richard Mashburn said this one time before, you can still build a building, set it out at the end of your driveway, and people come by and buy it. Uh, it's totally different than a company moving, you know, thousands of thousands of buildings every year. You want to create a more efficient and you want to create a more steady roofline, you want to you begin to focus on the RD. Um, I think I'm guessing, Eli, and we just haven't got to talk a whole lot, but I'm just guessing your mindset is uh uh from what I'm gathering, you know, how can I help the customer?

Eli Slabaugh 23:55

Uh yeah, yeah, absolutely. Um I mean that that's always been kind of my saying, I guess, is uh we maybe kind of run two things is how is it gonna is it gonna solve a problem and is it gonna benefit the customer? Those are kind of two questions that we run by at our shop is if it fits those two things, then we should for sure should do it. Yeah, because we can solve a problem and we can benefit the customer.

Shannon 24:25

So obviously, you know, phone calls are welcome, yeah, emails are welcome, you know, checking out the website is welcome. Yeah, you know, uh come know more about us, but this is an opportunity for you guys to see what that new face of IFAB will be as you're moving forward.

Eli Slabaugh 24:41

Yeah, everything on the website, phone number, email, all of that is the exact same as it was before. So easy, easy to reach out.

Shannon 24:49

Provide some consistency, continue the customer service. Uh um now, Glen, how does this feel after this long run since 2012?

Glen Yost 25:01

Well, um that's a good question. Right now it feels good. It didn't for a while.

Speaker 8 25:10

Yeah.

Glen Yost 25:10

You know, uh when we started realizing that we were getting too involved in too many things and things were suffering. And, you know, so then what has to go? And it was really hard for me to think of shifting anything with IFAB because it's something that you know I had started with my uh fabricating skills that I developed as on the farm, um farmer engineering, you know, it was probably not even scribbled out on paper as much as just a design in my head, and I started building it, the first one. Um, and to think of letting that all go was pretty hard. And then as we started um exploring finding somebody to take it over and not only just keep it going, but take it even further. You know, then I began to get excited about that. Um and so today it feels good. Yeah, it really does.

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Shannon 28:06

It's uh, you know, our first connection was through uh your son Nick, who we're here. We're at Euphoria Coffee Shop in Calmar, and we met at uh West Union previously. Uh and me and Nick had just kind of stayed connected a little bit over the years through that. Me and Chad talk occasionally, um, just trying to find out what you're doing, how we can help with the advertising efforts, how we can explain more. I think it comes down to communication. Eli, I'm a communicator. I love to communicate. I think it's why I started a podcast. And I think good, good things come out of proper communication. And uh, you know, that someone would turn on their radio and pop up Spotify or Apple Podcasts or whatever and listen to this. And uh to think that, you know, a thousand to twelve hundred people would listen consistently every week, you know, and just to hear what you guys have to say. It's a blessing to be able to go out and travel uh, you know, into these different states and just not just learn about their business, but learn about the people behind it. You know, yesterday and even today has been a great connection on, hey, how do you know this guy? How do you know that guy? How'd you get involved in this industry? It feels like we're in between a big industry and a small industry, and it's starting to grow up. And uh these these things are just needed, the tools are needed. So, like what would what would you say to a manufacturer who's listening today who says, I want to know more about iFab? This may be good to bring Chad in on this because I know you're staying on for uh you know a year to kind of help with these conversations, but like what would you guys' thoughts be if you're speaking directly to a manufacturer? This is what our machines do, and we talked about efficiency and things like that, but what set you apart? Why iFab? Why should I buy an IFAB product? I know I hate it.

Eli Slabaugh 30:09

I'll maybe let you go. I mean, I mean, I kind of have my feeling of it, but it would it's basically uh based off of what you guys have done and just how you have created the company and with the customer care, the quality, um, all of that. That's what I would say. But yeah, you go ahead.

Chad Yost 30:29

That's I think that's what we've built it on, and that's why to me it's been a lot of fun to market my own product is solving a problem and providing support that actually matters. Um providing a product that that lasts a long time, that's gonna do the job, that makes your life easier, um and being able to help people further down the road, um, I mean, we don't get much we don't get much service calls on our equipment. But being there to I we've never even had a specified warranty. We haven't needed it. Um but people call up and need parts and yeah, I mean you can give them parts right away, you can drop ship and get them there. Um there's a big part of quality in why you would buy IFab.

Shannon 31:24

Do you have a Glen, do you have a story that's made you proud over these, you know, 15 years plus or whatever? Uh that you just have that customer that's just been excellent to work with, or they've talked about how it's changed their business. Uh anything come to mind of somebody that says, you know, gosh, I really am glad I connected with you guys. It's helped, it's helped things out tremendously.

Glen Yost 31:48

Oh yeah, there's a number of customers come to mind, but you know, I'm horrible with names, so uh I could find them. I could find them, I could tell you where they're located. Um especially I there's been several that uh have come to us and wanted equipment that would do what they wanted it to do. And I know you said we weren't supposed to badmouth competition, so we'll leave names off, but we've had customers that said, look, we have equipment, but we can't get the consistency out of it. And when you've got one truss that's a half inch higher than the rest, you can't get your roof sheeting to lay down. Um and he was just tired of fighting his roof line all the time. And uh yeah, he's bought several sets of our equipment. He's got different shops, several shops, and he's got our equipment in every shop. And um yeah, he said that's the best thing he did.

Shannon 33:00

Just really created uh a working environment for him.

Glen Yost 33:03

Yeah, and he said it provided the consistency that he needed.

Shannon 33:08

I always say some of the best podcasts are the ones that never get recorded because they're the real conversations that people have. We try to keep it as real as possible on here while also being you know respectful to others, but that is a real part of business, yeah, is your competitive advantage and you know it you're wanting to provide the best product out there is different than we want to provide a product um so that it's better than yours. No, we we're challenging ourselves, not challenging you. We want to provide the best thing we can, and if subsequently

Product Line And Custom Requests

Shannon 33:40

it's better than the competition, so be it. That's what collaboration and competition are both good things.

Glen Yost 33:47

And this particular customer, I meet him every year at the Shed Expo, and he's always uh he walks up, and if any of my guys are talking to somebody, he'll walk right up to him and say, Buy this equipment. He says, I've got it, and it works.

Shannon 34:08

You need to get that guy, right? Uh Eli.

Glen Yost 34:10

He sounds like the best salesman around. Actually, we have a number like that. I mean, I enjoy personally going to the shed show. I connect with all my old customers and just chat. The younger guys, the newer guys on my crew, they're the ones that are that are serious, serious about selling, and I'm there to just provide connection and yeah, and the networking aspect.

Shannon 34:38

And you know, there's a there's a there's almost a sales side to that that's unintended, just because you're trying to connect with the customer, take care of them. Um, a lot of times I I've stopped at shed lots, and then they ask you what you do, and I'm like, hey, listen, I'm not I'm not here to try to sell you something. If I can never stop at a shed lot without being accused of trying to sell something, that's gonna be a bad day. I sometimes I just want to stop and see your sheds. I mean, I am a shed geek after all. I've been in 35 states looking at sheds, you know, and I want to see your sheds too. And of course you pick up on the unintended things like how they sell. You know, I was asking questions yesterday like, are you doing much online selling? No, we're selling almost everything in person. It feels like that's a rarity nowadays. Uh leveraging the internet, leveraging social media, you know, being able to leverage these digital tools, get you in front of people. And we talked about this earlier, Glen, but being able to put those videos together where people see it, it is it trying to sell? Not necessarily, it's trying to be informational. Is there a result from being informational that turns into a sales opportunity? Yes. I mean, we're gonna be doing our consultation podcast here later today. And that's a lot of times what we found is like by being consultative and informational, uh, the more that people understand how it works, all of a sudden they start to grow the confidence in purchasing the product.

Glen Yost 36:11

Yeah. Well, there's two things you have to sell. You have to have a product that's that does the job they want it to do, and that's gonna, you know, they're gonna be satisfied with it not just for a little while, but for a long time. The other thing that well, my brother-in-law taught me this. He said, you've got to sell yourself. And you know, that's a little bit hard to do sometimes. Uh, you know, you try to be a modest, humble Christian, and to sell yourself seems wrong in a way, but it's not like you're selling yourself. You're selling yourself as a dependable person, right? As an honest person.

Shannon 36:55

Yes.

Glen Yost 36:56

A person that if they have a problem and it's your fault, you're gonna stand behind it. Uh and we have done that. Um you know, so I think that's the part of yourself that you have to sell, is that I am a person of integrity, and I'm not out here to rip you off and get rich quick.

Shannon 37:19

Yeah. Well, there's not there's not too many get rich, you know, plans out there. I think we've all looked for them and they just don't exist.

Glen Yost 37:27

The people that try it are always having to go to another one.

Shannon 37:30

Yeah, well, there's uh yeah, there's always a search for the next the get rich quick. Uh it's like it's like weight loss, you know, appeals to me. You know, it just don't work that way. You know, good old hard work. I'll tell you, I'll tell you where success and I've always heard that, you know, luck will find you working. You know, people always say, We got lucky. Well, I got lucky while I was working. I was lucky in work boots, I was I was lucky in uh overalls. I wasn't sitting around waiting for something to hit. You know, you guys have been a staple for me in this industry for a long time, just providing the products that you do. And you do more than trust press, you know. I mean, like uh what are some of the other things on the website, Chad?

Chad Yost 38:09

Building movers, okay. Three-point forklift building movers. Um, and we've had some requests for some other designs that we haven't had time to get to ever. Um, and uh yeah, I've been out of this just long enough. My brain is full enough of my other stuff. Yeah, yeah, you're starting to focus on the other. I don't have my ready answers all the time anymore.

Eli Slabaugh 38:35

Well, yeah, you got the saw system.

Chad Yost 38:36

That that would be a the saw system in the saw system and presses is kind of the two main different jig styles. Um we do have the adjustable jig that um allows you to build anything on it with presets.

Glen Yost 38:50

Yeah, that's something that that we have responded to customer uh demand. And uh in fact, the first one adjustable jig that we built was for a customer that uh was wanting to open a shop and he needed to be able to build custom buildings, you know, whatever the customer wanted. And uh he couldn't get, I mean, he was going whoever could get him one the fastest. And uh, well, we told him, you know, we've always wanted to develop one, we'll build you one. And if it doesn't work, we'll fix it. We'll make it work, we'll guarantee that it'll work. And uh we didn't have to fix that one, did we? No. We actually we shipped it clear out to California.

Shannon 39:39

Okay.

Glen Yost 39:40

He never saw it. We built it, built him some uh trusses on it, and sent him a video of how it worked. We shipped it to California and we've never touched it.

Shannon 39:53

The rest is history. He's just using it and it's worked well.

Glen Yost 39:56

And we've improved it since then, but that's one of the products that you know came from that customer demand is the adjustable jig. And actually, while we're talking about that, that is something that is really caught on because people want to be able to if somebody wants more room in their loft, they don't care what their shed looks like, you can you can bulge that roof out and you know give them more room up there. Um or you can, you know, whatever you want. If they want a you know, just a regular gabled roof, but they want it steeper, you can do that.

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How The Hydraulic Truss Press Works

Shannon 42:06

Let's uh I call myself a Shed Geek. Let's geek out on the equipment. Uh hard to give a visual, but for the YouTube listeners, maybe we can show some of those videos that you have on your website and anything that that you have that's uh informational visual-wise. How does the actual uh trust press work? If you guys were go ahead and feel free to geek out and get in the most boring of details, the pneumatics, the conveyor, how would you how would you say it works so that so that a builder who's listening can try to visualize in their head what this looks like? It's uh you know, I know you have like the it's uh there's three points on the press.

Chad Yost 42:51

On the press, yeah. It's all hydraulic. Okay. The press is hydraulic, um, and parallel arm um movement. So, you're if you do ever have problems with your hydraulics, the fluid is back behind, it's not right up in front, spraying in your face if you blow a hose or anything like that. Um it's all hydraulic, three points. Um uh yeah, you can press in both sides of your joiner plates at the same time. Um depending on the jig style you have. Both of them, I mean both of them do it. Um yeah, it's just it's as simple hydraulics as you can get. That way, if you need to repair it, you can go find parts locally. Okay. We like to do that because I'd rather not ship hydraulic cylinders out to somebody because that's expensive. Yeah. Yeah.

Glen Yost 43:44

Well, our business motto has been simple, innovative solutions. And we've tried to keep things simple. Um so that the customer can understand it, he can repair it himself. If he does need to. We try to use, you know, not a lot of highly customized components, but stuff that's readily available.

Shannon 44:14

Simple. Simple and easy for the customer. Ela, what excites you about this? I mean, like you've seen the equipment, you've worked with the equipment. Uh any ideas on like where you want to go, or maybe you don't want to share some of those things just yet, but uh, you know, where do you anticipate sort of are you be spending time on research development? Will it be customer service, mixture of both? I mean, uh different products. You're a fabricator yourself, so there's got to be some level of interest yourself to say, how do I solve a problem? And I assume you welcome those problems so that you can think about how to solve them.

Eli Slabaugh 44:54

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Um, I guess what excited uh me about this equipment is uh once again what they have come up with and how they've designed it, uh, just like he said, simple, uh keeping it easy, um, because it's really uh geared towards somebody that is a do-it-yourselfer that can easily fix it and work on it. And uh they've just come up with a high quality uh piece of equipment, really, is what it results in.

Shannon 45:25

It's a it's a nice thing to step into.

Eli Slabaugh 45:27

Yeah. Um, so and that's always been kind of my thing, is I always uh aim for uh the higher end of things. Um I like things to be nice and work and have good quality. Quality is a huge thing for me. Yeah, um everything I do has got to be top-notch quality, otherwise I just don't like it because I'm gonna bust

Eli’s Plan To Serve Barns

Eli Slabaugh 45:50

it up and break it. Um, so that's kind of the way I run on that. But um, yeah, as far as like the future, you know, uh I'm pretty new to this, so I'm still learning a lot um uh of how all the equipment goes. I've really only built uh about one set here, uh just finishing up or gonna finish up. So, I don't know all the details. I'm still learning a lot, yeah um, but definitely I have plans of expanding and um I want to serve the barn industry. That that's really what I want to uh focus this towards. Um, because I have a local shop uh close there that I can go to and uh kind of collaborate with him, see what else uh there is, you know, that could help them out. Um I really want to find solutions that can make their jobs easier and faster, more efficient.

Shannon 46:44

Um yeah, that's kind of the best research and development is go to a barn shop and see what their pain point and their problems are. And that's why I, you know, I say, you know, I figure you welcome those calls. You want to see what they're talking about so that you can find that solution through custom fabrication. But uh yeah, IFAB's just been just been excellent. And I love when I'm out in the field and I see an IFAB set up out there and I say, hey, I know those guys, I know them well. And like, what do you think about this equipment? I can I can say with confidence, I have never gotten any bad report over the iFab product. And uh I wouldn't want to say it on the on the podcast if I did, but uh, you know, I can I can tell you I I've just people have always been satisfied with the product. It just works, it's needed. I mean, unless you're gonna get out there with those, I don't even know what they're called, and those trust, you know, hammers and you know, put those trust plates in. If you're building efficiency, if you're trying to scale, if you're trying to do more in a short time, Eli, I'm convinced that people buy from people they trust. They want to know. Glen talked about this already. Like, I want to know it's a good product. I want to know who you are. He's spending this time networking because he's trying to understand the customer. The product's already there, it's figured out. But how do you take this next approach, which is infiltrating like the network and the relationship? And like we talk about how competitive marketing is, how competitive rent own is, how competitive sales and all of these different things are. These are all services, but you guys are offering not just service, you're offering a product. And that product has to work. You know, a website's not really a product, you know, it's an intellectual product, but it's not something you can, you know, touch and feel and measure the quality of it quite like you can a trust press. Um, and because people buy from people they trust, I think when they know you and a little bit more about who you are, they begin to understand that they're not just buying to Glen's point the product, they're buying the people behind the product. So, I want to know a little bit more about you uh while there's listeners here. You talked about kind of how you got started. You grew up Amish. Um you moved to Iowa. You were how old?

Eli Slabaugh 49:10

Uh no, I never lived in Iowa.

Shannon 49:12

Okay.

Eli Slabaugh 49:13

So, I actually was uh born in Wisconsin. Okay. And then moved to Long Prairie, Minnesota.

Shannon 49:20

Okay.

Eli Slabaugh 49:20

Um, and that's where I grew up until I was 14.

Shannon 49:23

Okay.

Eli Slabaugh 49:24

Uh worked on the farm, so did all the Amish farming stuff there. Uh-huh. Uh, probably learned quite a bit uh, you know, mechanically wise and things like that. Um, but then from there I did construction uh for four or five years. Um and then really from there I went to a welding school to learn to weld. Because I was interested in welding. And uh I actually worked for Case IH building the self-propelled sprayers. Okay. Uh working on the uh boom line for welding those booms and stuff. Uh did that for several years, and then it just uh kind of come monotonous and boring. And I needed to do something that was a little more exciting. So, uh that's when I found an older fella that was ready to retire, and I bought him out. Um, kind of like I well, you guys aren't retiring totally, but maybe Glen is.

Shannon 50:20

Uh but he's not an older fella, let's make sure to point that out.

Eli Slabaugh 50:23

Yeah, point that out. Um I won't correct you. But yeah, then I guess that's kind of the rest of it is history. Um that that's where the welding shop started, and we've been kind of doing that ever since. And um yeah, I've just uh I find great joy in helping find solutions. Um and yeah, being there, uh somebody they can trust, uh, like it's been pointed out. Like we maybe don't have an actual written warrant, uh uh warranty and stuff, but if something breaks, we're gonna stand behind it. Like it's just a common sense uh thing to do. Is if there was a fault,

Helping Small Shops Scale Up

Eli Slabaugh 51:10

it needs to be fixed.

Shannon 51:11

Yeah. No, it makes a lot of sense. And you're and you're in you're in Minnesota now, you're technically located in Minnesota.

Eli Slabaugh 51:16

Yeah, so we're in Glenwood, Minnesota.

Shannon 51:18

Okay. And I gotta tell you guys, and forgive me, Minnesota, I'm not very familiar with the uh the shed industry's presence in Minnesota. Uh I know that there's some rent-own, you know, like restrictions and things like that as are associated with the state or whatever. So, you've learned a couple of those things along the way, but I've never really uh ventured into uh it may be one of the states. I have not. I'm here I'm 45 minutes away from the border, and I don't think I've ever stepped foot in it. Is there a pretty large shed and mini-barn presence in Minnesota?

Eli Slabaugh 51:52

I don't know for sure, I guess, how big it is. There, there's uh Old Hickory and Premier is in Pipestone. Um Old Hickory's in Alexandria, Minnesota. You maybe drove through they're everywhere. Old Hickory's everywhere. Yeah, it's right beside the Interstate 94. There I can't really miss it if you're driving through there and you look off to the south.

Shannon 52:12

I'm impressed at how many new Iowa places have popped up, I feel like, just since I drove up last. Yeah. So I just assume that it's growing up.

Eli Slabaugh 52:20

And then there's a lot of smaller builders I would see to. Uh I know there's a builder up in Foston. Um, I don't know exactly how much they do. Uh yeah.

Shannon 52:30

Now you guys can service all of those. I mean the large manufacturer, the small manufacturer, it's it there's no favoritism here.

Glen Yost 52:37

It's no and that's one thing that that we learned. We started out servicing a large company. And that was kind of my mindset that we that's what we're gonna do is service these large companies. But as we as we expanded our capacity and decided to offer to the entire industry, it's actually the smaller companies and even the just the guy that's building with his own sons or maybe him and his brother or something, and they're just a very small shop, and um they've gotten to the point where they can't afford to just build their trusses by hand, and it's time to get some something to speed that up and make it more consistent. And you know, I would say our biggest customer base, or a very large part of our customer base, is people that have are just starting or that have been building but doing it the hard way, or maybe have one shop and they're wanting to expand to two, or they have two and they're wanting to expand to three. Uh that's a very important part of our customer base.

Shannon 54:06

Especially if you can catch those new builders. Yeah. You know.

Eli Slabaugh 54:09

Yeah, I think uh since I started answering the phone and stuff, like the biggest maybe surprise question uh that they're asking is you know, can your rafter press do such and such rafter uh with the adjustable jig? I think there's like people that uh they really don't understand what the adjustable jig actually is.

Chad Yost 54:29

Um that it can actually it literally builds anything.

Eli Slabaugh 54:33

Yeah. And that's I think the confusing part is we can say it builds anything, yeah. And then they go, but what about this? Does it actually build 16 foot wide? Um, so yes, the way I under yeah, the way I understand it, it'll go from a six foot wide all the way up to a sixteen, if I have that correct, and in pretty well any style.

Chad Yost 54:56

Yes. It'll go the main arms will go to a center uh to a 90 degree. So, you're you can have a uh 90 degree truss.

Glen Yost 55:07

You can open it up straight and join your uh your plates, your top and bottom plates for your walls. Um you can do that.

Shannon 55:16

Okay.

Glen Yost 55:17

Or you can bring it to a 90 degree and build a 1212 pitch uh gable rafter.

Shannon 55:25

So different pitches don't matter if they're getting away from a 412 to a 512, 612.

Chad Yost 55:31

Everything it'll do, all the hips, you can put the hip wherever you want to, whatever angle you want to.

Eli Slabaugh 55:36

And even depending uh if they want to have extra hips in it, you could add extra press wings to it, if I understand that correctly.

Chad Yost 55:45

You can you can add in more just to make uh put in a collar tie

Leads, Advertising, And Texas Sizes

Chad Yost 55:50

at different places, or you know, if you don't want to put it in right at your hip or whatever you want.

Shannon 55:54

I mean, more than anything, I think the goal is to focus on good customer service, focus on a good product. You know, this new ownership adventure sounds exciting. It sounds like the IFAB guys are gonna stick around for a little bit to help out with that process to make it seamless so that there's no disruption in the market, you're able to continue to service everybody. Obviously, they can find out more on your website if they go check out uh ifablloc.com. I believe it is. And we'll try to we'll make sure to not only put a uh if there's not a link in the show notes or the description, uh check out the newsletter because we do have regular advertising in there for our friends here at IFab that is a clickable link. Uh you can go fill out the lead form. Uh we just had one happen yesterday. Uh fun fact, we put out a this is how advertising works. And like we almost feel like we want to talk about this in a in a much bigger presentation on a separate podcast, but we put out a vault reel recently of our first podcast. And I thought it was timely. It was very interesting because we put out that vault reel, shared it on social media, and got a website inquiry, you know, uh the day after, which was yesterday. So we put it out on Monday. Or yeah, this is Wednesday. We put it out on Monday. We've got that uh on um Tuesday, and then by Wednesday, uh here we are doing another podcast, which is said to come out in probably six weeks or so, so it could be July before you know the viewers actually see this. Um, but a lead already came in, you know, they filled out a lead form, supplied their down in Texas, you know, they want to know more about what it does. And we're able to connect you and that customer, and hopefully they become a customer of iFab is the plan. So, um very excited about whenever things like that happen. And we try to do that for other networks as well, too. Uh those that advertise with us, we want you to reach out to us because we want to be a resource here at Shed Geek to be able to help. And we've just found no better trust press. So obviously, you know, they reached out uh from Texas, and you know, uh Glen, you know, down in Texas, they have big buildings. So, we talked about a six foot to sixteen, but they're doing 18 wides and everything else. Is that something you guys can help the Texas people with?

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Glen Yost 59:00

Yeah. Yeah, we do build actually, even in our static jigs, we have ones that we just call them Texas, a Texas 12, a Texas 16, because they're a full true measurement. They're, you know, the all the rest of the states, they're slightly undersized to keep the eaves at 12 foot or 16 just to uh minimize the restrictions in transporting. Texas, they don't have that. And Texas actually can uh, if I understand right, it's the only state in the nation that has 18-foot-wide mobile homes because they can pull them without a lot of restrictions.

Shannon 59:43

Big roads, everything's bigger in Texas, including the shade.

Glen Yost 59:46

Everything is literally bigger in Texas. And we do have a number of shops that are right on, especially the Texas, Louise, Louisiana border, and they build both. They'll build the Texas dimensions and the non-Texas dimensions. It depends on if they're going east or west from their lot, from their shop.

Shannon 1:00:08

Yeah, you guys have just, you know, a lot of people might not realize just how many like manufacturers you've serviced with your trust press and other uh tools here today. I just encourage you guys to reach out to the IFAB team. They've been excellent uh partners in terms of advertising, uh being willing to come on the show and discuss the products, the things that you guys offer. It's so nice to meet you, Eli, the new face, as you know, we continue to move forward in the industry and you guys continue to build and you just continue to invent uh and customize. And that's really your heart. I think you guys have shared that with me both on air and off air, is like we want to solve your problem. You know, I think Chad has mentioned that a couple of times, you know, to me off-air, that like we want to find a solution for you. So, you know, call, ask, walk through the process with us. Let us see if we can uh solve this problem for you. But our standard products sort of speak for themselves. I definitely see IFab more uh than anywhere, uh anything else, anywhere I go. Uh I know that you guys, I know your heart. Uh we share some friends, and like all of that makes for a really good environment to know the person behind the product, Eli. And it sounds to me like you're gonna do well. I can tell just from the conversation we had that you're hungry to want to meet customers, solve problems, answer the phone, fix whatever they've got going on. Um, what is what is your we'll get ready to sign off here, what is your message to the industry that you're getting to know as Eli Slayball? Make sure I say that right. And not throw a ch in there, but uh Slabaugh. What would you want the industry, the shed industry, and particularly shed manufacturers to know about you uh taking on IFAB?

Eli Slabaugh 1:02:00

Yeah. Um I guess yeah, just uh kind of to let them know I'm here to take over. I'm gonna be filling some pretty big shoes, and I want to make sure that I uh can fulfill that. And that was part of the reason why we uh have them agreed to help me for the next year uh to make that smooth transition, make sure I'm doing everything the way that uh the customers are used to, uh just to keep the consistency, learning everything. Um and then yeah, we're just really excited to kind of grow it from there, looking to expand it, uh, whatever other lines, and like it's been said, anything custom. If it doesn't quite fit what your need is, you know, we'd be more than happy to uh come up with a solution to help fix that. Um yeah, just really would be interested in in finding a solution to any problem that is out there in the barn industry.

Shannon 1:02:55

Well, I look forward to seeing you at the shows and knowing you for a long time. Glen, uh you know, Chad, do you guys do you guys have any final thoughts really? Just thank you's to the industry or anything like that.

Chad Yost 1:03:10

Definitely. We hope to make it to both of us hope to make it to the Shed Show this year. Um I want to I want to be there just to see the industry. Yeah. I don't it's always it's been a big part of my life so far. So yeah, um I don't necessarily want to be done with it. S,o I'm not sure what the next chapter for me holds, but for sure.

Glen Yost 1:03:30

Yeah, and as far as for me, I'd like to just thank the industry for their confidence and their business. Um you know it's we've had to do some advertising just to remind people, and yet um probably most of our sales have been somebody calls up and I've never talked to them before that I remember. Maybe you saw them at the shed show a time or two, maybe one of my other guys talked to them. But they just call up and said, I need to order such and such. What do I need to do to get it coming? And uh so yeah, it's been it hasn't been a hard product to sell.

Equipment In Hawaii And Alaska

Glen Yost 1:04:20

Appreciated that. A couple of other things that if you want to stitch these in somewhere, you can so I had a few versions. Um just this spring I sold a truss press and an adjustable jig that I shipped out to the west coast, and the customer there arranged his own shipping from there to Hawaii. Oh wow. So we have equipment at a mini barn shop in Hawaii.

Shannon 1:04:58

Wow.

Glen Yost 1:04:59

We have equipment in Alaska and most of the Canadian provinces, and probably not every state, but most every state of the continental U.S.

Shannon 1:05:10

If you are a shed builder in Hawaii and we have seen that there have been some listens come from Hawaii, uh let me know. We want to come interview you as the Shed Geek course podcast. Um perfect business opportunity uh to come out and visit uh a shed shop out in Hawaii. I really would love to know your story if you're in Hawaii, if you're in Alaska, those uh more, you know, like not part of the lower 48, you know, um that that's a very yeah, I mean I know there's a lot of Canadian, you know, shed manufacturers out there, you know, so Alaska's not so obscure, but Hawaii uh shed manufacturers, that's interesting to know. Like I wonder if all the rest of the uh you know types of equipment are necessary or how they become necessary there, whether it's through transportation or some of the other Products that build in the industry. That's a very cool story, uh, Glen. I just know that I've seen you guys constantly throughout the industry the last five years for sure, uh if not longer, and even attending shows and just reading up on things and being a true shed geek and trying to understand the industry and how it works and who's part of it. You guys have been just excellent to work with. I wish you nothing but absolute success. And same for you, Eli. Anything I can do to help. I'm very excited when the industry is able to reach out to us and we come become a resource to help them. Uh, we try to tell these stories where Eli come from so that you know who you're dealing with when you contact iFab, you know, moving forward. We want you to have that confidence in people, and we just want to be educational uh in general. So, I thank you guys. I think you guys have just been excellent. You make an excellent product. And you know, some things don't come with all the glitter, some things are just necessary, they're just needed if you're going to uh expand and create efficiencies and consistencies, like we've said. And that's what iFab, I feel like, has done for a long time. So, guys, we never take offense to you reaching out, texting, calling, emailing, filling out lead forms. We want to be that problem solver for you. And I know that's the heart of Eli over here at IFab. I know that's our heart at Shed Geek. So, we were excited to see that Texas uh advertise our lead come through. So, hopefully you guys uh we'll get that over to you guys. And for anybody else who wants to advertise with us, give us a call. We'd be happy to try to like help connect the industry, build community. Um, so thankful for you guys, and uh I wish you nothing but the absolute best in what you continue to do. And same for you, Eli. Don't be a stranger. Like uh, don't be a stranger. We're happy to help anytime. Final thoughts? Any questions? Anything to uh all hearts are clear, nothing to share.

Eli Slabaugh 1:07:55

I think that's all I got. I would say just uh reach out with any questions that you have.

Shannon 1:07:59

Yeah, ifablloc.com. Um, we'll make sure to put the phone number on our clickable link there on our newsletter if we can help in any way. Go buy something from these guys. Thank you guys for listening today. Go ahead, Glen.

Glen Yost 1:08:12

Well, I was just gonna I had one other thing that I was gonna do. Oh, come on.

Shannon 1:08:15

I'm here for it.

Glen Yost 1:08:17

So, I went up to help Eli set up all the start building everything. So, I went up and spent all day one day, and we built a press unit, a saw system, a forklift building mover, and an adjustable jig. And an adjustable jig. He had his whole crew working, and I just helped them set it up and make sure they understood how to do it. And that day really settled me. So, he has a very good crew. Um I was just very settled working with him. They're very um knowledgeable, and I guess what I was impressed was their quality and their attention to detail. Um it's exactly what I would expect. And I was very comfortable with that.

Shannon 1:09:14

Wow. I think it's great. I think you have nothing but success. I'll see you probably in Knoxville in uh September. See you guys if you're there, hopefully.

Glen Yost 1:09:23

We plan to be there.

Shannon 1:09:24

Yeah, yeah, very good.

Faith Story And Prayer Closing

Shannon 1:09:26

Well, uh, you know, we're always uh a fan of prayer over here. You know, we don't always do it every show, but we are uh we are definitely fans of prayer. We like to lead with a faith-first uh approach that says, you know, while we can compete, we can also collaborate and we can also build each other up uh, you know, and spread the good news and spread the gospel through even something like a media channel like this. I'm gonna I'm gonna share this uh and then I'm gonna go. You know, I had a gentleman reach out to me recently, if you ever wonder if you're doing the right thing, even if it's just for that one thing only. We were talking and he said he started listening to the podcast a year ago. He didn't really go to church or believe in a whole lot of that stuff. And he began to listen to the podcast and began to, I don't know, get convicted or some to some degree about the industry he was going to be in and how everybody else approached a faith, a part, an aspect of like their business. Not trying to put Jesus out for sale to promote your product, but just it being naturally a part of the industry and who you are and the Christian values that exist inside of those, to include the fact that I think it goes without saying we're all imperfect. So, please offer a little grace for our imperfections, Jesus did. So, I would ask that you would do the same. Uh and uh, but he said he started going to church and found salvation. And uh he even called and said, Thank you. And I think, you know what, even if it's five or six years of podcasting for that reason, even if it wasn't building my own net worth or resources or anything like that, that was just exciting for me to hear uh that someone would be encouraged by the listenership and those who attend the podcast to talk about their faith. We can collaborate, we can also compete. Let's just try to do it with uh with the mindset that we want to be our best uh because the Lord wants us to be at our best, not because we want to be better than you know the other person. So, uh Glen, we're gonna get out of here. But if you don't care, would you just uh pray over Eli, yourself, the industry, all these adventures that we're getting into, and we'll get out of here today. All right.

Glen Yost 1:11:43

Heavenly Father, we thank you that we can turn to you in good times and bad, and you're always ready to hear us. And so, we have confidence you are hearing us today. We just thank you that we can sit and talk about what you have opened to us, uh Chad and I, with the uh what we've been in. And uh just thank you, Lord, that we can hand it over and that it can keep going, and uh our lives can be free to take other directions. Just pray that you would continue to care for us, all of us, and wherever life takes us, that we can live it for you. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Shannon 1:12:30

Amen.

OUTRO 1:12:32

Thank you for listening to another episode of the Shed Geek Podcast. A quick thank you to our studio sponsor, Shed Pro. Head over to shedpro.co/ shed geek and take their free Shed sales audit. It takes just a few minutes and it gives you a clearer picture of what's going on underneath. Thank you for listening as always. And thank you, Shed Pro, for being this year's Wednesday studio sponsor on the Shed Geek Podcast.