POWERS Podcast Por Chris Powers arte de portada

POWERS

POWERS

De: Chris Powers
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POWERS brings you inside the minds of world-class leaders who have built, battled, and succeeded at the highest levels. POWERS digs beyond the surface with questions driven by curiosity, uncovering stories and insights rarely shared publicly. Each episode delivers timeless wisdom and hard-earned lessons that apply across business and life. The show has earned a reputation for asking the right questions at the right moment. The focus is on timeless principles, proven through years of discipline and risk, not on shortcuts. Each conversation is direct, deliberate, and designed to leave listeners sharper than when they arrived. The aim is simple: to deliver insights that matter and can be carried into business and life. Since its launch, POWERS has drawn a high-caliber audience of builders, investors, and decision makers. Past guests have represented companies such as Starwood Capital, JLL, Hillwood Capital, Chick-fil-A, Morning Brew, Founders Podcast, Tiny Capital, Permanent Equity, Fort, Matthews REIS, Bonobos, and ConvertKit. At its core, POWERS is a celebration of leadership, of work that matters, and of the American spirit that makes it possible.2025 Economía Finanzas Personales Gestión y Liderazgo Liderazgo Política y Gobierno
Episodios
  • #410 - Austin Tunnell - Founder of Building Culture - The Power of Developing Beautiful Buildings

    #410 - Austin Tunnell - Founder of Building Culture - The Power of Developing Beautiful Buildings
    Apr 14 2026
    In this episode, Chris sits down with Austin Tunnell, founder of Building Culture - a real estate development and design-build company based in Oklahoma City specializing in structural masonry construction and walkable, mixed-use urban infill. Austin's path to real estate is one of the more unusual ones we've had on the show. He grew up a football player in the suburbs of Houston, went to work at KPMG out of college, hated it, and joined the Peace Corps. A chance meeting with a master mason in Panama changed the trajectory of his life. He returned to the US and apprenticed for two years laying brick by hand for $12 an hour in rural Oklahoma while his wife cleaned houses to support them. Today Austin designs and develops some of the most beautiful residential and mixed-use projects being built in America, including an 18-townhome, live-work, and mixed-use commercial project currently underway in downtown Edmond, Oklahoma. Chris and Austin go deep on Austin's philosophy of beauty, the case for building things meant to last hundreds of years, and the policy, financing, and culture obstacles standing in the way. We discuss: - How a chance meeting with a master mason in Panama changed the trajectory of Austin's life - The difference between veneer brick and true structural masonry, and why almost no one in the US builds the real thing anymore - Why Austin believes beauty is real, beauty is important, and beauty "connects us to the divine" - Five simple brick details any developer can use to make a veneer building look dramatically better for almost no added cost - How fire codes, building codes, and Euclidean zoning quietly destroy neighborhoods and push developers toward the same ugly apartment complexes - Austin's long-term-hold model for funding new construction infill, inspired by Moses Kagan and ReSeed - Missing middle housing, walkability, and why a 30-unit townhome neighborhood can feel more like home than any class-A apartment building About the guest: Austin Tunnell is the founder of Building Culture, an Oklahoma City-based real estate development and design-build firm focused on beautiful, durable, human-scale neighborhoods. Building Culture specializes in structural masonry construction, walkable urban infill, and mixed-use development. Links: Building Culture - https://www.buildingculture.com/ Austin on TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@austintunnell Austin on X - https://x.com/austintunnell Austin on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/austin-tunnell-2a41894a/ Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro (00:02:33) - Austin’s journey with the Peace Corps and how that led him to Masonry (00:12:26) - Why we moved away from Masonry and toward wood frames (00:15:19) - What drew Austin to Masonry (00:19:34) - Learning the craft (00:24:25) - Why humans gravitate toward humanely built things (00:26:51) - What people can do with brick to get more value from a home (00:31:23) - What to ask architects when looking for a Mason (00:32:39) - Training Masons (00:33:28) - Austin’s project in Edmond, OK (00:38:17) - Defining beauty (00:50:03) - The impact of over regulation in construction and zoning (00:55:50) - Austin on scaling his business (00:59:38) - Local, state, and national policies that need to change (01:05:03) - Interior beauty in Austin’s world (01:09:30) - Tax incentives and capital structures (01:16:52) - Building a media business in Real Estate (01:18:05) - Live-work real estate Support our Sponsors Collateral Partners: https://collateral.com/fort Chris on Social Media: Chris on X: https://x.com/fortworthchris Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepowerspodcast LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd Watch POWERS on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX Visit our website: https://www.powerspod.com/ Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0 Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
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    1 h y 22 m
  • #409 - Jason McCann - CEO @ Vari - How a Simple Product Became a Global Brand

    #409 - Jason McCann - CEO @ Vari - How a Simple Product Became a Global Brand
    Apr 7 2026
    Today I sit down with Jason McCann, Co-Founder and CEO of Vari - a company that started when his business partner stood at a cardboard box complaining of back pain and turned that moment into a brand that has shipped millions of desks and transformed over a thousand offices. Jason built Vari direct-to-consumer in an industry that had never seen it. He bootstrapped the company while every instinct in the market said raise capital and burn cash. He became the fastest-growing company in Dallas, survived COVID after just putting $15 million into a TV campaign and opening 12 showrooms, and came out the other side as a fundamentally different leader. We go deep on what it actually takes to innovate legacy product categories, how he recruited the former Chief People Officer of Southwest Airlines over a cup of coffee, and why an introvert had to learn to over-communicate when hundreds of families were counting on him. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did. Links: Vari - https://www.vari.com/ Jason on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-mccann-vari/ Support our Sponsors Collateral Partners: https://collateral.com/fort Ramp: https://ramp.com/powers Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro(00:03:29) - How Vari was started(00:08:42) - How entrepreneurs should think about product development(00:11:24) - How Jason approaches AI(00:24:07) - Developing the standing desk(00:36:53) - Jason’s approach to manufacturing(00:47:16) - How Vari develops new products and services(00:56:59) - Bringing on the head of people of Southwest Airlines(01:04:31) - How Vari thinks about innovation vs. leaving products alone(01:14:55) - The future of work in 2026(01:19:50) - The reindustrialization of America(01:23:36) - Jason’s unique leadership style(01:28:47) - Why Jason only wears black(01:31:52) - What a week looks like for Jason(01:40:46) - How vari runs exec meetings Chris on Social Media: X: https://x.com/fortworthchris Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepowerspodcast LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd Watch POWERS on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX Visit our website: https://www.powerspod.com/ Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0 Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
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    1 h y 49 m
  • #408 - Jordan Levi - The Largest Cattle Feeder In America

    #408 - Jordan Levi - The Largest Cattle Feeder In America
    Mar 31 2026
    In this episode, I sit down with Jordan Levi to explore how he’s built a unique edge in the cattle industry by combining deep analytical thinking with real-world market experience. Jordan walks me through how he approaches cattle trading, the key biological and financial variables that ultimately determine profit and loss, and how he developed his framework without growing up in the business. We spend time unpacking how the cattle market actually works, where volatility comes from, and how operators think about risk across the cycle. We also dive into how he’s embracing AI tools and building custom workflows to stay ahead in a fast-moving, data-heavy environment. We discuss: - How the cattle market works and why volatility creates both risk and opportunity - The key drivers of profitability including feed efficiency, average daily gain, and out weight - The difference between biological intuition and building a data-driven edge in cattle trading - How Jordan processes daily reports and market data to inform trading decisions - How he’s building AI agents to summarize information and streamline his workflow Links: Vote for Jordan to be inducted into the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame - https://cattlefeeders.org/poll/2027-cattle-feeders-hall-of-fame/ Jordan on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordan-levi-b107182/ Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro(00:02:16) - The Belted Galloway(00:03:51) - The Kosher Cowboy(00:08:05) - Pulling value of the futures forward(00:11:43) - Learning cattle trading(00:16:48) - Daily average gain in cattle(00:18:20) - Jordan’s eureka moment in the cattle industry(00:21:08) - What does trading in animals actually look like?(00:27:05) - How Jordan defines his ROI in trading cattle(00:31:17) - The cattle curve(00:33:37) - The state of the cattle market(00:42:10) - Buying the largest cattle feeder in the world(00:46:09) - Grass vs. grain-fed cattle(00:49:15) - Predictions for the cattle supply over the next 10 years(00:50:54) - The international market(00:53:17) - Trading frequencies and macro thesis(01:00:27) - USA beef vs. international beef(01:05:21) - The cattle supply chain(01:07:32) - The future of auction yards and ranchers(01:09:40) - AI in AgTech(01:12:52) - The biggest problem facing the industry(01:14:42) - Livestock as a commodity that dies and how that impacts trading theory(01:20:51) - Is there a market for new entrants into cattle?(01:21:41) - Beef prices and the impact of a closed border on the industry(01:24:39) - Jordan’s biggest ideas for the industry(01:26:49) - Philanthropic efforts(01:31:24) - A day in the life of Jordan(01:26:42) - Risk management in cattle(01:41:17) - Does what you do show a leading indicator to the broader health of the American economy? Support our Sponsors Collateral Partners: https://collateral.com/fort Chris on Social Media: X: https://x.com/fortworthchris Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepowerspodcast LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd Watch POWERS on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX Visit our website: https://www.powerspod.com/ Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0 Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
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    1 h y 43 m
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Chris is great at asking his guests questions that the listener is thinking to ask.

His approach allows himself and guests to share their story and experience in business where the story tellers and listeners benefit.

Great podcast - especially for DFW residents

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