She Was Told It Wouldn't Work. 11 Years Later, It's Still Thriving.

When Yessy's father was laid off from his construction job during the recession, she didn't just help him find work, she built a company around it and made him her first employee. Eleven years later, that leap of faith has become a thriving Miami remodeling business known for high-end transformations and a deeply personal approach to every client. In this episode of The Handshake Podcast, host Ashley DePiano sits down with Yessy to talk about the messy, rewarding reality of growing a construction business: scaling up, downsizing when growth outpaced capacity, and rebuilding toward what she calls her "2.0 version." We get into: -Starting from small handyman repairs and teaching herself the commercial side on YouTube -Why she's still on the job site instead of behind a desk -The permitting nightmare that can stall projects for months — and cost clients -Competing against cut-rate handymen (and the clients who come back after a bad job) -Balancing a growing company with raising a family -The 1940s home she's renovating for a client seven years in the making -Her best advice for anyone entering the trades: save for a rainy day, stay involved, and don't give up A conversation about craftsmanship, reputation, and why people hire the person, not just the company. ⏱️ Chapters 00:00 Intro 00:33 Miami Roots & the Law Enforcement Plan She Walked Away From 01:09 Her Dad Gets Laid Off — and an Idea Is Born 02:20 "He Told Me I Was Crazy" 02:57 Saying Yes Before You're Ready (Teaching Herself Commercial) 03:55 When Clients Start Calling You 05:08 Staying Hands-On as the Business Grows 05:46 Five Crews & the Hard Lesson of Downsizing 07:06 Work-Life Balance, Kids & a Phone That Won't Stop 09:07 Losing Jobs to the Lowest Bidder 12:14 The One Thing She'd Hand Off Tomorrow (Permits) 15:17 Why She Still Loves the Work 17:54 The 1940s Home Transformation 19:33 The "2.0 Version": Building It Back Bigger 20:56 Can You Scale Without Losing the Personal Touch? 23:12 Rapid Fire: Her First Big Job Gone Sideways 24:13 The Funniest Thing That Happened on a Job 25:27 Best Advice for Anyone Entering the Trades 26:37 The Lesson That Cost Her the Most 🎧 New episodes of The Handshake Podcast every week. 👍 Like, subscribe, and hit the bell so you never miss a story. #TheHandshakePodcast #Remodeling #Construction #SmallBusiness #Entrepreneurship #MiamiBusiness #HomeRenovation #WomenInConstruction #Trades