In this episode of Construction Disruption, Ryan Bell and Todd Miller of Isaiah Industries chat with David Fraser, founder of Bunkie Life. David shares his journey of creating Bunkie Life and how it has transformed small-space living. He discusses the origins of the bunkie concept, the differences between bunkies and tiny homes, the challenges faced in the business, and the significance of his family and community. David also dives into the impacts of regulations and trends in the tiny living space. Tune in for inspirational stories, entrepreneurial advice, and some fun rapid-fire questions!
Timestamps
00:44 Guest Introduction: David Fraser of Bunkie Life
01:22 The Origin of Bunkie Life
02:29 Defining a Bunkie
03:39 Bunkies in the Backyard
07:21 Challenges and Triumphs
11:39 Trends in Tiny Living
14:49 Navigating Red Tape
21:01 Innovative Automation in Manufacturing
21:50 Building Time and Efficiency
23:01 Community and Customer Engagement
25:06 Future Plans and Expansion
27:57 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
31:53 Rapid Fire Questions
37:36 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Connect with David Online
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidcavanfraser/
Website: https://bunkielife.com/
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This episode was produced by Isaiah Industries, Inc.
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Ryan Bell: I'm Ryan Bell of Isaiah Industries, manufacturer
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of specialty metal roofing and other building materials.
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Today, my co host is Todd Miller.
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Todd, how are you doing?
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Todd Miller: Doing well, how are you?
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Ryan Bell: I'm doing great.
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I am doing great.
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Happy to be here and looking forward to this episode.
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Um, before we get started, uh, we'll mention that we are
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playing our challenge words game.
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So be on the lookout or listen for some words or phrases that I'm It
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might seem a little silly and, uh, not really fit into the conversation.
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And we will reveal those at the end of the episode.
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Todd Miller: Man, you remember to fit that in there.
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I always forget to say it till we're about halfway done.
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Good job.
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Ryan Bell: I usually do too.
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Well, let's, uh, let's go ahead and dive in today.
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Our guest is David Fraser, founder of Bunkie Life, a company that's
00:00:48
changing the way people think about small space living and construction.
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Bunkie life provides beautiful, crafted, prefabricated bunkies that
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offer a unique way to expand your space with minimal environmental impact.
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David has a fascinating journey from creating a brand rooted in family
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values to becoming a key player in the prefab tiny home space.
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David, welcome to Construction Disruption.
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It's great to have you on the show today.
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David Fraser: Well, it's fantastic to be here.
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I really, really appreciate it.
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Ryan Bell: Absolutely.
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Well, let's, let's dive right in.
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And, uh, you know, you've really kind of carved out a unique space
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in this world of kind of tiny homes or alternative living solutions.
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And I think our listeners are eager to learn more about your
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journey and kind of insights.
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Uh, can you just start us off by telling us the story of how Bunkie Life, uh,
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Kind of came to be and explained to our listeners exactly what a bunkie is.
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David Fraser: Sure, that's a great question.
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So we started, uh, officially in 2017, but even prior to that was, uh, the
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Genesis because, um, basically the story is my wife and I live in the country
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about an hour outside of Toronto and both of our sets of parents were three,
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four plus hours away at the time.
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And so we had our first daughter and all of a sudden I started
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getting these texts from my mom.
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Oh, David, I'm having Mr.
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Betsy.
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I just I got nowhere to stay when I come to visit.
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I'm, I'm having to sleep on the couch.
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Can you do something about it?
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And then she started sending me these photos of tiny homes and yurts and
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trailers and all this type of thing.
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And I looked into even renovating our, our small house and adding a bedroom on it.
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It was just like, it was.
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All of these options seemed like really terrible and then I stumbled
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upon the idea of a bunkie, which back then was pretty much an Ontario thing.
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So it's short form for bunkhouse.
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So traditionally a bunkie to differ it from a tiny home.
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Bunkie is usually like, uh, you know, a smaller, uh, you know,
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100 to 200 square foot structure.
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You put it in the backyard and it generally doesn't have a washroom.
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It generally doesn't have a kitchen, but it can.
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Some people add those things.
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Um, but generally speaking, it's just for bunks.
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Okay.
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And so my parents could come, they could stay in our bunkie,
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they could sleep there.
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I had a little queen bed, I had a little desk and a few other
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little pieces of furniture.
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And it was a perfect solution for I want them here to be help helping out
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with the grandkids and being with us.
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Um, they're still going to use our kitchen, they're still going to
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use our bathroom, but it's a little bit of added space and they're
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not right on top of each other.
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And of course, my mom was super happy because.
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I don't have to sleep on the couch anymore.
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So it was a huge win.
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And then of course, being the entrepreneur I am, I started
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renting the amount of an Airbnb.
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And then people started going, Oh, these are amazing.
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So I built a bunch more bunkies in our little backyard.
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And it kind of snowballed from there.
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I was making them for friends, making them for family.
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And then it just, it's subsequently, we've shipped all across Canada.
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Uh, and now 35 U.
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S.
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states and counting.
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Ryan Bell: So you build a bunch in your backyard.
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Did they stay in your backyard or you just build them back there and
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David Fraser: Yeah, they're still there.
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Actually, I was renting them out.
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Uh, yeah,
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Ryan Bell: How many do you have in your backyard?
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David Fraser: I've got six if you count.
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So I've got a bathroom bunkie, uh, four bunkie bunkies with different,
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different sizes that I've got my, uh, little, um, like, like barbecue bunkie.
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It's for like cooking.
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There's a grill inside of it.
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And then, uh, this coming week, I'm going to be adding a sauna.
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We're out of the sauna business.
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We just got out of the sauna business.
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We've tried it for a while.
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They were great, but, uh, it's, it's, It's not like our core love and
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focus, so one of the saunas that's here at the factory is actually
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getting dropped off at my house.
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I'm gonna have my sauna bunkie, uh, and uh, and then I'll complete the set.
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My wife says no more.
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Ryan Bell: Wow, that's like quite the little compound there.
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Todd Miller: That is very cool.
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Ryan Bell: Yeah, very neat.
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Todd Miller: So, I have to ask, so, so, bunkie was a Canadian
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word before you came up?
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You didn't just come up with it, is that right?
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David Fraser: Yeah, I mean, I guess bunkie down south means
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like your, your jail cellmate,
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Todd Miller: Yeah, kinda.
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David Fraser: Those of us who have been done some serious time, boys, I guess,
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uh, not me, but yeah, so it's a, it's a term that's pretty popular in Ontario
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and I noticed as we were growing, the term kind of grew with us as well.
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So people across Canada and kind of know what a Bunkie is now, I'd say,
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and then Michigan as we've grown into Michigan and now we're kind of expanding.
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So people are getting the idea, um, but that it's not, not only a
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cell mate, it's also, you know, a cool little back backyard bedroom.
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Todd Miller: Well, next time I'm up there eating my poutine, I'm gonna throw out
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the word bunkie and see what happens.
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David Fraser: I like it.
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Ryan Bell: So, so in terms of kind of comparing a bunkie to a tiny home, you
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know, what's, or any other of the, you know, these small alternative living
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scenarios, what, you know, what, what differentiates a bunkie from those?
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David Fraser: It's a great question.
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Uh, it's the one we get all the time because people look at the product, go
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to our web page and look at, so like an exterior shot, they look similar
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to a tiny home in a lot of ways.
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And in a lot of ways they are, you know, you've got a small space, small footprint.
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Um, in our case, it's all made out of wood.
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Um, the main difference is generally speaking, a tiny home is, um,
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Is like a fully complete things.
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You've got a kitchen.
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You've got a bathroom.
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It might be a tinier version of that.
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Um, whereas a Bunkie is usually 200 square feet or less.
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So it's a bit smaller than the average tiny home.
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Um, and then there's not generally a kitchen.
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There's not generally a bathroom.
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Um, so, and in our case, you know, we sell kits.
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So a Bunkie, um, is a great.
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Uh, thing that actually the average homework had built themselves, whereas
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tiny homes, generally speaking, are kind of built by professionals and
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up to full building codes standards, whereas our stuff's kind of slides
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in the category of like, you know, might be called the accessory
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building, um, that type of thing.
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And so, um, we specialize in wood, as you can see behind me, I mean, actually
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in a bunk here right now, um, you know, wood kits that are kind of like
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Lincoln logs, you stack them together, they come together, uh, and just
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the average joke and put it together
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Todd Miller: Well, they are absolutely beautiful.
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I love being on your website and looking at them.
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Um, just, yeah, really attractive.
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David Fraser: now.
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Thank you appreciate that.
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Ryan Bell: Yeah, I agree.
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I desperately want something like a bunkie and we've talked about this
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before, uh, with other people we've had on the podcast, but I desperately
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want something like this for an office.
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I work out of my home and it would be ideal to have something
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in my backyard that I can go to that's not attached to the house.
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David Fraser: Yeah, just kids, kids can run around in the house and
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you're not distracting each other.
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It's been, it's been a game changer for myself.
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I'm actually in one of our bunkies here at the factory and it's our podcast studio.
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It's kind of set up as an art studio.
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And so yeah, that's a use case that a lot of people have.
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It's like, I want to, I want to be home.
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I don't want to have an office somewhere, but I need separation
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from the family, uh, helps out a lot.
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Ryan Bell: Well, uh, were there any sort of challenges that you faced in
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getting bunkie life off the ground?
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And, you know, how did you kind of overcome that?
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David Fraser: You know, having the Betsy, I'll tell you, there's been, uh, An
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absolute probably three or four moments where we've almost pooped our pants and
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thought we were going to lose everything.
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Um, I can tell you any number of them, but the more recent one,
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uh, is, so we started a factory.
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Uh, we, we purchased our own factory to make them prior to that.
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We were kind of hodgepodging it together, uh, in different like wood shops and
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stuff, but now it's all under one roof.
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And so you're one of the factory.
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You kind of just throw money at the window every time something goes wrong is 10
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grand and we're just just throwing money into stuff and uh, and then the year end
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was kind of approaching and I'm like, let's, let's look at our numbers, right?
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Let's figure out where we're at.
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And I remember distinctly.
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Um, you know, it was October 2022.
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The leaves were just getting all turned and the air was getting crisp.
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And I was, I hadn't slept in probably a week.
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I hadn't ate.
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Uh, for three days and I was shivering, not because I was cold, because
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I had to tell my wife, love of my life, mother of my child, that, you
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know, bunkie life is bleeding cash and we're about to go bankrupt.
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And I just remember the look on her face is the color just drained out of her.
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And I just, I couldn't look her in the eye.
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And I was just thinking to myself, is she going to flip out?
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Is she going to divorce me?
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And she, you know, What are you going to do?
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And it was one of the lowest moments we've had.
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Um, it was, it was just a really tough time because, um, you know, we
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put everything we had, we'd signed all these personal guarantees,
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uh, for, for this factory.
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And I remember she looked at me and she she's not just my wife.
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She's not just, just my, uh, you know, my life partner.
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She's also the business partner.
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We're, we're in this together.
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And, uh, she said, you know, Dave, It's just stuff at the end of the day.
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We're going to get through this.
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We're going to, we're going to figure this out, you know?
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And, uh, it was then I realized like, I couldn't just give up on things.
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I had to, I had to re reaffirm my efforts.
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I had to, you know, all the people that are, are depending on us.
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Not just my family, but all the 30 employees we have,
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we have to figure this out.
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Um, it didn't happen overnight, but slowly we kind of dug into the numbers deeper.
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A lot of them weren't as bad as I initially thought, which was good.
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Um, and then we, we dug ourselves out of that, uh, you know, that tight spot.
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Um, and so we're in a really good spot financially secure, secure
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wise, but I learned like, you know, a, you know, your numbers really
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well, don't, don't be guessing.
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And then B, um, you know, you can't do things alone.
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I was trying to do all this Like be the, be the big hero, whatever.
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Right.
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The reality is I need help with just like everybody else.
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Um, and so, you know, that, that was one of about three experiences we've
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had where it's like, wow, like we, we could potentially lose everything.
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And, um, you know, I wouldn't recommend going through that, but I learned a
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lot and took away a lot through that, especially like I realized like, man.
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You know, if I have people in my life that love me and my family
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is going to stick together, like I can't really lose everything
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I've got, I got everything I need.
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So, um, you know, that, that, that was a springboard to taking some,
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some more educated risks this year, this past couple of years, really.
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Um, and it's been, it's been a really great ride ever since I would say, um, we
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got a great crew of people here and, uh, my wife and I, although we don't agree
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on everything, uh, we're, we're happy.
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We're stronger than ever, I would say.
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Todd Miller: That's a great story, you know, and it, and it's that sort of
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story that builds resiliency into you that, uh, you know, will pay itself
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back numerous times going forward.
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I, I kind of have my own similar story.
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I was in Houston once on business on a trip out trying to sell metal roofing
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and I was probably 35 years ago and, um.
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Back in that day when I would go on trips, I would just buy a one way ticket to get
00:11:14
there because I wasn't quite sure when I'd be coming back, and I realized on
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that trip, thank goodness that I bought a round trip ticket this time because
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my credit cards were maxed out, I had no cash, I had no way of getting home, uh,
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if I hadn't bought a round trip ticket, so, uh, yeah, those stories all give
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you resiliency and they give you good stories to tell others as well, so, uh, I
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encourage you, uh, keep up the good work.
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Ryan Bell: So, uh, this idea of kind of tiny living or tiny homes has been gaining
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traction, I think, for a few years now.
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Um, You know, there's several shows on HGTV or Magnolia Magnolia home network
00:11:52
about this, these tiny homes or cabins.
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Um, are there any trends that you see kind of coming out of this or that are
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emerging, uh, that you can see coming into the space in the next few years?
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David Fraser: Well, one thing I'm hopeful for, I don't know if this is
00:12:06
necessarily a trend, I'm going to try to create a trend with you guys here today.
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I, I'm hoping, hopeful that, um, so there's this macro demand
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for smaller living, right?
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Whether that's a full on tiny home or just a bunkie, like a temporary kind
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of, you know, different solutions to what we call the housing crisis.
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It's especially acute here in Ontario and across Canada.
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Um, And, and you look around, there's like, you know, acres and acres
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and acres of basically unused land.
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You've got young people that obviously need a place to live.
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And it just seems like an obvious mismatch, right?
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Um, and, and an obvious, um, you know, problem solution, like
00:12:44
laying right next to each other.
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Right.
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Um, and so I'm hoping, I'm hopeful that the bureaucracy and the red
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tape is going to get out of the way of a lot of this stuff and that
00:12:54
they'll just let people build tanks.
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Right.
00:12:56
What that looks like on the ground level.
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I'm not a political person, so I'm not gonna get political about it,
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but I would just like to see the empowerment to go back to the individual.
00:13:06
Um, and let's let people build things right.
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Um, and let's.
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You know, for lack of a better word, let's relax some of these rules that
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might have served a purpose at a time.
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But at this point, we need to be able to build right size houses for
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right size budgets and not expect a 22 year old kid to magically come
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up with a down payment for a million dollar house and a mega mansion that.
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Realistically, no one needs, um, or at least they don't need that
00:13:35
generation doesn't need, right?
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Um, I think there's been just a disconnect and I'm in the middle.
00:13:39
I'm a four year old guy.
00:13:40
Like, I was fortunate to get on the property ladder and own a
00:13:43
house, but I look at some of the people that work their butt off.
00:13:47
I've got some great employees that are fantastic.
00:13:50
And, uh, feasible, feasible wise here, at least in Ontario,
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it's just, it's not feasible for them to get a house right now.
00:13:56
And I think, you know, they could get started.
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With something smaller, a tiny home, a Bunkie, even like something that's just,
00:14:02
you know, maybe off the beaten path and get, get on the first rung of that ladder.
00:14:07
I think it could really, really help a lot of people and the spaces, the
00:14:11
space exists, the materials exist, the ingenuities here, it seems like an
00:14:14
obvious thing that we can just kind of.
00:14:16
You know, make that happen.
00:14:18
Um, and like I said, I'm not political, but I'm hopeful that, uh, on the
00:14:22
local level, municipalities and counties start recognizing, Hey,
00:14:25
we gotta, we gotta let this happen, um, because the demand is so high.
00:14:29
Cause I get emails every month, like every day, basically like,
00:14:32
can I live in this monkey?
00:14:33
And where can I, you know, where, where will allow me to do this?
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And it's like, I actually don't know.
00:14:38
Right.
00:14:39
Um, and I think that, uh, yeah, the only thing preventing that, not the only thing,
00:14:45
but a majority of the things preventing people from doing that is red tape.
00:14:49
Ryan Bell: One of the things that caught my eye on your website was.
00:14:52
I think I said something like, uh, you can put these up without a permit in a
00:14:56
lot of places or something like that.
00:14:59
Is that, you know, are you finding that to be true in Canada or, or because
00:15:04
like, I'm thinking about my backyard, I have a ton of red tape in my city to go
00:15:08
through, it will take months to get a permit approved or signed for something
00:15:13
like that, and then I have to have the HOA approve it and sign off on it.
00:15:17
And right.
00:15:18
Like, so there's almost so much red tape.
00:15:20
I don't even want to deal with it.
00:15:21
David Fraser: Fair, fair.
00:15:22
So, um, I mean, this is across North America that we,
00:15:26
that that's been the case.
00:15:27
So obviously it's easier in rural areas.
00:15:29
If you're in an HOA, I mean, God, God help you.
00:15:32
Um, but, uh, heavens, you know, heavens to Betsy, uh, you're on your
00:15:35
own there, but, uh, you know, just a lot of times, You know, a small area
00:15:39
outside of a out of a major center.
00:15:41
There's these pockets where it's like, Hey, you kind of build what
00:15:43
you want or up to a certain size.
00:15:45
So in Ontario, it seems to be 10 square meters, 107 square feet.
00:15:49
A lot of a lot of parts of Michigan and California.
00:15:52
And it seems to be 200 square anything under 200 square feet.
00:15:55
You're kind of in.
00:15:56
A little bit of a no man's land.
00:15:57
Um, and so we exploit that.
00:15:59
I mean, there's, there's kits that are 199.
00:16:02
9 square feet.
00:16:02
There's kits that are, you know, 9.
00:16:04
99 square meters.
00:16:06
Like that's, that's totally by design because we want people to
00:16:09
have the option to sneak under there.
00:16:12
Um, because in a lot of cases, it's just an office.
00:16:14
It's just a storage area or it's the thing where, yeah, maybe
00:16:17
occasionally someone stays over, but the full time use of it is.
00:16:21
The majority of use cases, like it's storage or an
00:16:24
office or that type of thing.
00:16:24
So, um, you know, we, we try, like I said, we don't try not to like poke the hornets
00:16:30
nest directly, but we try to design our things in a way that like someone
00:16:33
could build it and ideally sneak it in.
00:16:36
Uh, and just, just be under that.
00:16:38
Uh, whatever that restriction is in their local area.
00:16:40
Um, but if you're an HOA, you know, you're an HOA.
00:16:44
So what are you going to do
00:16:45
Ryan Bell: This will probably be our last HOA that we're in once
00:16:48
we're out of here, to be honest.
00:16:49
David Fraser: right now?
00:16:50
Why did you choose it?
00:16:51
Like, what was the, what was the, uh, because there's pluses.
00:16:54
There's gotta be pluses.
00:16:54
Right.
00:16:54
If people are, are moving to places,
00:16:57
Ryan Bell: Sure.
00:16:57
Yeah.
00:16:58
So it was one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in our, in our city that
00:17:02
we're in, and it was quiet and all the houses were well taken care of.
00:17:06
The yards were well taken care of.
00:17:07
We were coming from a neighborhood where yards were not taken care of.
00:17:11
And, you know, sighting had, you know, Mildew and mold all over, you
00:17:15
know, like it just, we didn't want to live in a neighborhood like that.
00:17:18
And we drove through this one and it was beautiful and
00:17:20
everything was well cared for.
00:17:22
And we said, we don't care about the HOA.
00:17:25
And even though it's, you know, it was the, the cost of it was way
00:17:30
more than what our other HOA was.
00:17:32
Right.
00:17:33
And, Oh, I don't care.
00:17:34
I'd want to live in this beautiful neighborhood.
00:17:36
And, and it's really kind of been eyeopening about.
00:17:39
How strict they are about a lot of things, um, and then they just keep raising
00:17:43
the price of it every year too, which I'm not even sure what that goes to.
00:17:48
So,
00:17:48
David Fraser: right.
00:17:48
Fair.
00:17:49
Ryan Bell: um, so many of your customers are probably using your
00:17:52
bunkies for like a guest house or just a little backyard office.
00:17:56
You mentioned a few of them kind of at the beginning, maybe, but any kind of
00:17:59
really out there or unique situations where you've seen someone use a
00:18:02
bunkie for something just totally.
00:18:06
You know, off the typical path.
00:18:08
David Fraser: Yeah, there's, I mean, every Saturday we'll do
00:18:10
a post about a customer story.
00:18:12
So there's a lot of really heart heartfelt ones like, you know, we built this bunkie
00:18:17
in honor of grant of our grandfather who always wanted to build a cabin on
00:18:19
our little island, but he never got to.
00:18:21
And so we're, we're commemorating it in his honor, um, things like
00:18:25
that, or, or people that are using them for like yoga studios.
00:18:28
And like one guy's got an Airbnb on his farm.
00:18:32
And so you stay in the bunkie and then you open the door and then there's goats
00:18:35
and there's like goat yoga happening and right in front of the bunkie and stuff.
00:18:38
So there's some pretty, uh, cool hippie ways that people
00:18:40
are using, uh, the product.
00:18:42
And, um, yeah, it's, it's always, it's always amazes me the different
00:18:46
ways they take our basic frame and our basic canvas and they paint
00:18:50
their own unique mosaic onto it.
00:18:52
It's always inspiring to me.
00:18:53
Ryan Bell: What about like the finishes that come?
00:18:56
I didn't really have this planned in our script, but you know, how finished is,
00:18:59
is a bunkie when you order one and get it, is it pretty much raw wood and you
00:19:05
it's open, you know, you can paint it and
00:19:07
David Fraser: Yeah, so if you look behind me, I don't know if you guys
00:19:09
can see the backdrop very well.
00:19:11
That's, that's a Bunkie wall right there.
00:19:12
So that's a, that's what, you know, it's a log cabin.
00:19:14
So the outside wall is the inside wall.
00:19:17
And that's what it looked like straight out of the box,
00:19:20
untreated premium J grade spruce.
00:19:23
And then from there you can stain it.
00:19:24
Um, I don't know if I can show you guys, but you know, the, I've seen the floors
00:19:28
are really dark kind of, um, uh, Gray, uh, a lot of people whitewash the walls
00:19:33
or you can do some people done actual mosaics that they painted into the
00:19:38
walls, um, or stained into the walls.
00:19:40
I should say.
00:19:40
So, yeah, there's tons and tons of options.
00:19:42
Uh, when you've got a nice kind of well, um, well fabricated, uh, wood structure.
00:19:47
It's kind of like the canvas that you can do a lot with.
00:19:50
Todd Miller: Well, I have to ask, are you including a roof or is
00:19:52
that up to the owner to figure out?
00:19:55
David Fraser: So the roof deck boards are included.
00:19:57
So they're also tongue and groove.
00:19:58
And then we just found it's actually better to to have a really good order kit.
00:20:02
So there's like the specs are all included with your build plans.
00:20:05
And then to order that locally, because there's so many color
00:20:08
options and choices and materials.
00:20:10
Right.
00:20:10
So, you know, good quality.
00:20:12
Wood, uh, sorry, good quality metal roof is what I usually recommend, right?
00:20:16
Um, I'm a huge fan of that.
00:20:18
Uh, and cause it lasts forever.
00:20:19
Isn't that tricky to install and cost effective?
00:20:22
It's, it's, but you know, that's bang for your buck in my view.
00:20:25
Todd Miller: Well, we like to hear that.
00:20:27
So,
00:20:27
Ryan Bell: Absolutely.
00:20:28
So, uh, what, what role does technology play in kind of the design
00:20:33
and construction of your bunkies?
00:20:34
Is there anything unique to you guys or any innovations you're,
00:20:38
you know, Really excited about,
00:20:40
David Fraser: Yeah.
00:20:40
So we have, um, a number of, it's pretty high.
00:20:43
I would say it's pretty high tech, but for a wood shop, it's quite high tech.
00:20:46
Most wood shops are kind of stuck in 1933.
00:20:49
Um, but, uh, so we've got, you know, high speed molder.
00:20:52
We've got a customized machine that we've actually patented the process that,
00:20:55
uh, this machine notches the corners.
00:20:57
So the corners are all kind of counter dovetailed like this kind of.
00:21:01
So we've patented that process of how that works.
00:21:04
Um, and there's a fair bit of automation there.
00:21:06
And then all of our windows and doors and stuff.
00:21:09
There's, there's.
00:21:10
Um different machines that make that happen.
00:21:12
We've got a optimizing crosscut saw that cuts everything the
00:21:15
length Um, that's pretty automated.
00:21:17
So it's a combination of kind of wood craftsmanship, but if we try to
00:21:21
automate Um anything that's going to be interacting like interlocking together.
00:21:26
We try to make that as As a automated and as you know, a really high fault
00:21:32
tolerance so that it everything fits together like a glove every single time
00:21:36
Our kits are great to build anyone could build them themselves unless like one
00:21:40
piece doesn't fit or unless you're missing a piece So our quality control has to be
00:21:43
kind of like really really good because we're shipping them all across north
00:21:47
america And it's very expensive to fix a mistake if something goes out wrong
00:21:50
Ryan Bell: uh, what sort of timeframe or someone looking at that orders one,
00:21:54
and if they're going to build it, put it together themselves, two people, let's say
00:21:59
how, you know, how long does that take?
00:22:00
David Fraser: Yeah.
00:22:01
So the, the build time depends on the kit.
00:22:03
But if we're talking about kind of our middle of the road kit, it takes two
00:22:06
people, usually two or three or four days to put together a kit, I'd say.
00:22:10
Um, and then it's, it's really, if you can have that third person ship it in.
00:22:14
So one guy's holding the ladder, one girl's up there in the roof and
00:22:17
then one person's passing material.
00:22:19
That third person helps a lot.
00:22:20
So we do have, um, some people that get some experience, they've
00:22:23
built a Bunkie in one day.
00:22:25
That's usually three people.
00:22:26
Cool.
00:22:26
Or four people and they're working like a 10 hour day.
00:22:29
Um, and, and the average homeowner, usually it takes them
00:22:33
a weekend, maybe to get it up.
00:22:35
And then a weekend to kind of stay in it and finish it and put all
00:22:38
the, all the extra love on it.
00:22:40
Um, and to your earlier part of that question, you know, how long does it
00:22:43
take us to get a bunkie to someone?
00:22:44
Our, our factory is pretty efficient.
00:22:46
We make about four a day.
00:22:48
We kind of make them to order.
00:22:49
So we're usually four.
00:22:51
to six weeks behind, uh, give or take.
00:22:53
So lead time is quite And sometimes we'll have inventory, we can ship it out that
00:22:57
same week if, uh, if all the stars align.
00:23:00
Ryan Bell: Very neat.
00:23:01
Um, so it looks like you've built a strong community around
00:23:04
your brand, especially online.
00:23:06
Can you kind of share how you've cultivated that community and
00:23:11
maybe the role that it's kind of played in your success?
00:23:14
David Fraser: Yeah, we've been really lucky.
00:23:15
Like ever since really day one, we've had a great kind of support base.
00:23:18
Our first 30 clients in year one.
00:23:20
So 2018 was our first year of kind of selling outside of our friends and family.
00:23:24
In 2018, I know every single person by name.
00:23:28
Um, and, and we've got this little cult of evangelists out there
00:23:32
helping us, which is amazing.
00:23:34
Um, every year we do a barbecue.
00:23:36
We used to be in my backyard.
00:23:37
Now it's here at the factory and like, uh, actually just
00:23:39
had our last one on Saturday.
00:23:41
Um, and so people come out and they, they are, you know, supportive of us.
00:23:47
And I think a part of it is just lucky.
00:23:49
Like we've just got a real kind of attracted a really nice group
00:23:51
of folks that are our people.
00:23:53
Um, and then.
00:23:55
You know, we try to emphasize giving back.
00:23:57
So a big part of what we do is, um, you know, a portion of our
00:24:00
sales go to Ronald McDonald house.
00:24:02
That's kind of ties into my family story.
00:24:04
Um, and, uh, and I think people respect that and they, they get that.
00:24:08
And, and, you know, we're, we try to be in our local community
00:24:12
here, active participants.
00:24:14
Um, we hire people all locally, which is helpful.
00:24:16
And, uh, and then a lot of our clients are within, you know, a
00:24:19
couple hours driving distance.
00:24:20
So, so they come out for those communities You know, um, I don't
00:24:25
know if it's anything we've done, but we've just been really lucky
00:24:28
and blessed to have the crew that we do have and the clients we do have.
00:24:30
It tends to be kind of people like yourselves, like small business owners,
00:24:35
people that understand the value of their time and money and aren't looking for
00:24:39
like a miracle solution, but they like respect that this is made in Canada.
00:24:42
And this is, um, you know, Like people care, people, people
00:24:46
at Bunkie Life care about me.
00:24:47
So they kind of, they get that and they support, they support us.
00:24:50
If that makes sense.
00:24:52
Ryan Bell: Yeah, absolutely.
00:24:53
Todd Miller: well, nice people attract nice people.
00:24:55
So, uh, I think there's a little bit going on there with that also.
00:24:59
So that's great.
00:25:00
If you got a crowd cheering you on, run for us, run.
00:25:03
You just keep doing it.
00:25:04
That's good stuff.
00:25:05
David Fraser: Yeah.
00:25:05
Thank you.
00:25:06
Ryan Bell: Well, what's the future look like for Bunkie Life?
00:25:09
Is there anything exciting or any developments or anything kind of new on
00:25:12
the horizon that you can share with us?
00:25:15
David Fraser: Yeah.
00:25:15
There's, we're continuing to iterate every year on our product line,
00:25:18
so we don't make dramatic changes, but every time we get feedback from
00:25:21
folks, Oh, you want more of that?
00:25:22
We, we kind of make it happen.
00:25:23
So we're going to be releasing a couple of products probably in
00:25:25
the new year, right, right early.
00:25:27
Um, but I think the biggest excitement for us is just, we went from last
00:25:30
year we shipped to, I think about Michigan and one or two other States,
00:25:34
uh, this year, I think we'll have.
00:25:35
It should ship to 36 us States, which is really exciting for us.
00:25:40
Um, we've had a lot of emphasis on our short form videos.
00:25:43
So, um, and trying to learn that whole process, it's taken us the
00:25:46
whole year, but, uh, some of our videos are really working well.
00:25:49
And, and, um, so that that's, I think the biggest driver of all the growth
00:25:54
in the U S so we're just hoping that we can hit all the, all the U S States.
00:25:57
We got a wait list for Hawaii right now.
00:26:00
That's slowly gathering momentum.
00:26:02
Um, and we've been to Alaska.
00:26:04
So really, I mean, It's a matter of time before we get all 50.
00:26:07
Um, and, uh, so we're just, yeah, we're, we're hoping to,
00:26:11
to continue to grow into the U.
00:26:12
S.
00:26:12
and, and just get feedback from people.
00:26:14
What's, what's good?
00:26:15
What are you liking?
00:26:15
What are you not liking?
00:26:16
Um, and what I've noticed is the Americans we end up You know, uh,
00:26:23
becoming clients that they have that same kind of early adopter field that
00:26:27
everybody had here in Ontario and you're wanted to, they're like, super excited.
00:26:30
And they're, you know, they're calling in.
00:26:31
They're like, I'm page for the manual.
00:26:33
Actually, it should say this.
00:26:34
And I love that.
00:26:35
Like, I love, um, Like everything we do now, essentially, I
00:26:39
can't take any credit for it.
00:26:40
Most of the dec decorations we use is like we just, you know,
00:26:43
board it from a client's photo.
00:26:45
Uh, most of the things we do are just because people either
00:26:47
directly asked for it or they did it themselves their own way.
00:26:50
And we, we just wanna support that.
00:26:51
So, um, it's very much at this point a kind of self-generating community
00:26:55
of, of, uh, enthusiasts and we're just trying to keep up with them, I guess.
00:26:59
Todd Miller: Are all of your sales direct to client?
00:27:01
Are you doing anything through distribution or?
00:27:04
David Fraser: Yeah, mostly, I'd say probably all pretty much all direct
00:27:07
to the consumer, but, um, we do have a, there's a guy in Southern Illinois,
00:27:11
another family, uh, that, that kind of licensed the Bunkie life name.
00:27:14
They're called Bunkie Life Heartland.
00:27:15
And so we work really closely with them.
00:27:17
Um, they kind of have their own little, they've got a bunch of bunkies
00:27:20
in their backyard, just like me kind of recreating the Dave model.
00:27:23
Um, but other than, other than Keith and his family, it's, it's
00:27:26
kind of just, we ship directly.
00:27:27
We can logistically make that happen now, um, ship right to the person.
00:27:31
And so, um, Most people are finding us online, they're, they might do a
00:27:35
virtual tour of us here at the factory or talk to us on the phone a few times
00:27:38
to get comfortable with who we are.
00:27:40
And then we just ship right to the door.
00:27:42
Todd Miller: That's awesome.
00:27:43
And it's a great business model and I think it's the business
00:27:45
model more and more of the future.
00:27:47
Um, consumers like this idea of something that's almost kind of
00:27:52
bespoke or, you know, personalized for them and, um, yeah, good stuff.
00:27:57
Ryan Bell: Is there any advice you would give to any young entrepreneur
00:28:01
that's, uh, kind of entering the construction industry in some way
00:28:05
and maybe looking to disrupt it?
00:28:07
David Fraser: Hmm.
00:28:08
It's a great question.
00:28:09
I don't think I went into, I don't, first of all, I don't know how much
00:28:13
disruption we've actually done, but we're, we're, uh, we're doing our best.
00:28:16
Um, I don't think we went in with the goal of disrupting anything
00:28:20
or like even consider ourselves like instruction business.
00:28:23
Uh, we just went in with a need that I personally had in my family had, right.
00:28:27
We, we needed a place to put mom.
00:28:28
And that, um, and so it scratched our itch and then we just really, I
00:28:33
think what we've done well at is like, really, let's just zoom in on what the
00:28:37
customers and the clients really want.
00:28:39
Right.
00:28:39
And just get like, cause they'll tell you, uh, if you, if, if you
00:28:44
just listen, they will tell you what they like and what they don't like.
00:28:47
And if you have the courage to listen and hear them out, um, and, and make
00:28:51
it those adjustments, uh, that I think is a, is a secret sauce for us.
00:28:55
It's not rocket.
00:28:55
It's actually not even, you know, There's a lot of other things you could
00:29:00
point to with, I think that's the core of what we do, is just really care
00:29:03
about what, what their experience is.
00:29:05
And when they tell you something bad, just be like, thank you.
00:29:08
That's great.
00:29:09
I can make that better for the next person.
00:29:10
I, I can't fix it for you, Bob, but I can at least fix it for the
00:29:12
next guy, um, or the next girl.
00:29:15
And, uh, we've tried to do that and continue to do that and
00:29:18
don't, don't ever get so big that.
00:29:20
Like you forget that these are the people that pay your bills.
00:29:23
These are the people that feeds your family.
00:29:26
Um, and, and so, you know, when you stop kind of listening to your
00:29:30
customers, regardless of what side, that's kind of when I think the magic
00:29:33
stops, um, because they, they're such a source of inspiration for us.
00:29:37
Um, and there's such a source of great ideas and there's such a sort of like,
00:29:41
they're like the Sanders, they sand us down the sand off the rough edges, right?
00:29:45
Um, like, I mean, this is a dumb example, but on Saturday, someone comes
00:29:48
in and they've got their cell phone and they're showing us their pictures
00:29:50
of their Bunkie and they're so excited and they go, you know, but change this.
00:29:52
And also, uh, when, when you send us the instructions, guess what?
00:29:56
I could click here and I could.
00:29:57
Could do this and I could get into your whole system or like, thanks.
00:30:00
You just saved us, you know, 50, 000 worth of security, uh, it guys.
00:30:06
Those right.
00:30:06
Like, you know, um, and that, that conversation, if it didn't happen to
00:30:10
happen and, or nobody cared, like it just, it could have been very expensive.
00:30:15
So, um, yeah, it's just a silly example, but, uh, you're
00:30:18
the secrets are in the room.
00:30:20
Like generally there's no, there's no secrets.
00:30:21
They're like right there.
00:30:22
The customers will tell you.
00:30:23
Todd Miller: You know, some of the things I have enjoyed most in business
00:30:27
have been those times we've worked direct with consumers and, uh, that's
00:30:31
not the lion's share of our business, but certainly a part of it where we're
00:30:34
putting together, uh, roof packages to ship direct to consumers, homeowners,
00:30:39
and, uh, you're right, you learn a lot from them and, and build great friendships
00:30:43
and relationships and, uh, they become your biggest advocates a lot of time too.
00:30:47
So good stuff.
00:30:48
David Fraser: Yeah, if you can, if you can win over like a kind of ticked
00:30:52
off Ted or like a salty Sam, like if you can win them over, like they're
00:30:57
just, they're going to be your biggest supporter and, and they're going to
00:31:00
also, um, you know, along that, that journey, you're going to learn a lot and
00:31:04
you're going to improve a lot of things.
00:31:05
Ryan Bell: Excellent advice.
00:31:07
Yes.
00:31:08
I think there's a few books written about that, about listening.
00:31:11
Uh, can't remember the name, but,
00:31:14
Todd Miller: They ask you listen is one of
00:31:15
Ryan Bell: yes, that, that's what I was trying to think of.
00:31:17
Yes.
00:31:18
Thank you, Todd.
00:31:19
Yeah.
00:31:19
So great advice.
00:31:21
Well, thanks so much, David.
00:31:22
Uh, this has been great.
00:31:23
More.
00:31:23
Thankful for the time we've had with you today and everything you've
00:31:26
shared with us about Bunkie Life.
00:31:29
Um, you've got the Riz, no cap, um, but we're close to wrapping up what
00:31:32
we call the business end of things.
00:31:34
Is there anything we haven't covered today that you'd like
00:31:37
to share with our audience?
00:31:38
David Fraser: Ah, you know, Heavens to Betsy, it's just been an absolute
00:31:41
pleasure, uh, being, uh, here with you guys, and, um, I just appreciate,
00:31:45
uh, you know, the invitation, it's been, it's been really wonderful.
00:31:48
Ryan Bell: Before we close out, we do like to do something here at the
00:31:50
end of the show to wrap things up.
00:31:52
That's a little more fun.
00:31:53
Um, a little thing we call rapid fire.
00:31:55
These are just seven questions.
00:31:57
Your only obligation is to give us a short, quick response.
00:32:00
Um, are you up for the challenge?
00:32:02
David Fraser: Let's do this, boys, come on!
00:32:04
Ryan Bell: Awesome.
00:32:05
Todd and I will alternate asking questions.
00:32:07
You want to kick us off,
00:32:08
Todd Miller: i'd be happy to i'm still trying to figure out how to get my
00:32:11
riz together since you brought that up earlier, but Anyway question number
00:32:15
one david Um, if you had to build something using only legos or popsicle
00:32:21
sticks no bunkies involved Which would you choose to use legos or popsicle?
00:32:26
David Fraser: Oh, definitely Legos, I was a Lego kid, I just love
00:32:29
when my kids are into it now, um.
00:32:31
Like it was all the way,
00:32:32
Todd Miller: We hear that from so many people in construction
00:32:35
and architects and so forth.
00:32:36
Yeah,
00:32:37
Ryan Bell: So I really thought about this question when I was putting it
00:32:40
in here and I know, sorry, I know this is supposed to be rapid fire, but I
00:32:44
really hesitated on the popsicle sticks and I thought, why would anyone ever
00:32:48
choose popsicle sticks over Legos?
00:32:51
And I don't know that I could think of a good reason other than maybe
00:32:53
there's some more flexibility with what you could design, even though
00:32:57
you'd have to glue them together.
00:32:58
I don't know.
00:32:59
Todd Miller: I'm old school.
00:33:00
I might take the popsicle sticks.
00:33:01
I don't know.
00:33:02
Ryan Bell: I kind of think I might if I really thought about it, but I don't
00:33:05
know that I have a good reason for
00:33:07
Todd Miller: maybe tongue depressors.
00:33:08
They're a little bit wider.
00:33:09
Boy, we are way off of rapid fire at this point.
00:33:12
Ryan Bell: And we're only on question one.
00:33:14
Let's go, let's go to question two.
00:33:16
Would you rather have a rewind or a pause button for your life?
00:33:21
David Fraser: ooh, that is, that's a good one.
00:33:23
You know, I try to live with a minimal amount of regret, but I
00:33:25
would like to pause certain moments.
00:33:27
Like, I mean, my kids are, I have an 11 year old daughter now, she
00:33:31
just turned 11 and uh, you just blink and they're, they're 11.
00:33:35
Um, so there's some moments where they're just.
00:33:37
You know, we're in this little cool groove.
00:33:39
I have four kids.
00:33:40
I have one more on the way, and I just would like to pause
00:33:42
some of these moments together.
00:33:43
It's it's been really nice, but it's going fast.
00:33:46
Ryan Bell: Yeah, that's, you know, that's, so my daughter is nine and
00:33:51
that's something that just hit me and I said to my wife, like last week, I'm
00:33:54
like, she's halfway through her time at home with us and, and she's going to
00:33:59
be out of the house before we know it.
00:34:01
And it just hadn't dawned on me, but yeah, I, I, I would take the pause button too.
00:34:06
David Fraser: we have 18 summers with their kids.
00:34:08
You know, and at that point, that you've you've spent 90 percent plus of the
00:34:13
time you'll ever get to spend with them.
00:34:14
And it's, uh, It's a, it's a huge thing.
00:34:17
Todd Miller: I was telling a girl dad the other day, man, you gotta take some time
00:34:21
once in a while and listen to that Stephen Curtis Chapman dance with Cinderella song.
00:34:25
Um, and that'll that'll get you and bring you back to reality.
00:34:28
That's for sure.
00:34:29
Ryan Bell: Yeah.
00:34:30
Todd Miller: number 3, what is a skill that you believe is
00:34:34
undervalued in today's world?
00:34:36
David Fraser: Asking for help.
00:34:38
Todd Miller: I like that.
00:34:38
I wouldn't have thought of that.
00:34:39
Ryan Bell: Good answer.
00:34:41
Especially when you can ask chat GPT or Google for help, but about anything now.
00:34:47
All right.
00:34:47
Question number four.
00:34:48
What's the weirdest thing you've ever fixed with duct tape?
00:34:53
David Fraser: Uh, well, I, I built an entire suit of armor to duct tape one
00:34:56
time and as a, at a, at a camp, uh, thing.
00:34:59
So there's basically a duct tape suit of armor.
00:35:02
Todd Miller: Can I give my answer to that one also?
00:35:04
This is interesting.
00:35:05
So my mother has these wood columns on the front of her house.
00:35:11
Um, you know, on the front porch and, uh, one summer a rabbit, I don't
00:35:16
know, a woodpecker decided to go after one of these wood columns big times.
00:35:20
I mean, that thing put a hole in there that was probably
00:35:24
an inch and a half diameter.
00:35:25
So I'm trying to figure out how you fix a hole in a piece of wood like
00:35:29
that that's decorative and milled and everything, and it's not easy.
00:35:33
Um, so it got fixed with matching color duct tape, and it's
00:35:36
still there three years later.
00:35:38
No one's noticed.
00:35:39
David Fraser: Are you an HOA though?
00:35:41
Todd Miller: No, no, we're not.
00:35:42
David Fraser: so
00:35:44
Todd Miller: Yeah, my mother lives two doors down, but no, we're not in an HOA,
00:35:47
so I may not have gotten by with that.
00:35:49
Well, question is that is it my turn now?
00:35:51
Yeah.
00:35:52
Question number five.
00:35:53
Um, oh, what's one thing on your bucket list that you have yet to do?
00:35:57
David Fraser: my wife and I really want to go Hawaii.
00:35:59
That's been a dream of ours for a long time.
00:36:01
So I can put Hawaii.
00:36:02
Todd Miller: And you said you got that list of people over
00:36:04
there that want bunkies, right?
00:36:06
David Fraser: We have, we've been offering, Hey, we'll even come with the
00:36:09
bunkies to make sure they get there.
00:36:11
So that's an open offer.
00:36:12
If you're listening and you're Hawaiian, well, I'll personally come with the bucky.
00:36:16
Ryan Bell: There you go.
00:36:17
Todd Miller: I will tell you in Hawaii though, the only roofing
00:36:20
material is going to be an aluminum roof because, uh, uh, salt water
00:36:24
goes after that steel real quick.
00:36:26
So, yep.
00:36:26
Ryan Bell: Question number six.
00:36:28
If you had to choose between never using social media or never watching
00:36:32
movies again, which would you pick?
00:36:35
David Fraser: Oh, that's actually a pretty good question.
00:36:37
Um, I, I also, I'll be honest, I, I am on a lot of social media, my faces,
00:36:42
but I don't actually have any of the social media apps on my phone at all.
00:36:45
And it's really try to limit it to business use cases only because it
00:36:48
is a bit of a time suck, at least for myself at this current phase of life.
00:36:51
But, um, But I don't watch a lot of movies either, other than like, you know, Paw
00:36:55
Patrol, Paw Patrol and Descendants and, you know, whatever the kids are into.
00:37:00
So, um, I'm not, I'm not getting a lot out of either form right now, but I, I
00:37:05
mean, a great movie is a great movie.
00:37:06
I just, I just, I haven't seen a lot of them come out recently.
00:37:09
Todd Miller: That is true.
00:37:11
That is true.
00:37:12
Well, last question.
00:37:13
If you could have dinner with anyone dead or alive, who would you choose?
00:37:18
David Fraser: Probably Jesus Christ.
00:37:19
Todd Miller: There you go.
00:37:20
David Fraser: Actually, not even probably, definitely.
00:37:21
Todd Miller: Love it.
00:37:22
David Fraser: gravitas, maybe
00:37:26
Todd Miller: There you go.
00:37:27
David Fraser: you know, the average lunch.
00:37:30
Todd Miller: I hear you.
00:37:31
Ryan Bell: Good
00:37:32
Todd Miller: Yeah, a little little fish by the Sea of Galilee or something.
00:37:35
There you go.
00:37:35
David Fraser: Yeah.
00:37:36
Ryan Bell: Well, David, thanks again for your time today for anyone who
00:37:39
wants to get in touch with you.
00:37:40
What's the best way they can do that?
00:37:42
David Fraser: So probably the best bet is check out Bunkielife.
00:37:44
com.
00:37:44
Uh, you can check out all of our products there, all of the things that we do.
00:37:47
And if you're ready to start a conversation, you can go to Bunkielife.
00:37:49
com slash start to kind of start the journey with us.
00:37:52
Ryan Bell: Awesome.
00:37:52
We will make sure to get that in the show notes.
00:37:55
Um, well, before we close out here, we need to recap our
00:37:58
challenge words, uh, success.
00:38:00
David, you were quite the overachiever working yours and I don't even know
00:38:04
how many times, uh, but your challenge phrase, I guess I should say was
00:38:09
David Fraser: Heavens to Betsy.
00:38:11
Ryan Bell: to Betsy.
00:38:12
David Fraser: not something Canadians say in case you're listening going,
00:38:14
what the heck is this Canadian doing?
00:38:16
You
00:38:22
Ryan Bell: Oh, great job.
00:38:23
Uh, Todd.
00:38:24
Yeah,
00:38:25
Todd Miller: run run forced run and it was kind of awkward, but I got it in there.
00:38:30
David Fraser: got it.
00:38:30
I think it works.
00:38:31
Ryan Bell: was pretty obvious.
00:38:32
Maybe, uh, that one might've stood out a little bit, but, and, uh, mine was obvious
00:38:38
to mine was, you got the res, no cap.
00:38:41
So no idea what that means, but, uh, that was my challenge phrase.
00:38:45
And so we were all successful.
00:38:46
Well done guys.
00:38:47
Todd Miller: you use that all the time, Ryan.
00:38:49
That came very natural to
00:38:50
Ryan Bell: I'm going to start, uh, honestly, I've, uh, we've talked
00:38:53
to our, our teenagers about some of these phrases they use, and we
00:38:57
try to remember them and use them sometimes because they don't like it,
00:39:01
David Fraser: Yeah, exactly.
00:39:03
Todd Miller: Don't use our secret language.
00:39:04
Ryan Bell: I sleep there around their friends.
00:39:08
Well, thanks again, David.
00:39:09
This was a great time and a pleasure to have you on and learn about Bucky's.
00:39:14
David Fraser: Oh, likewise.
00:39:15
Thanks so much for your time guys.
00:39:16
Ryan Bell: And thanks for tuning into this episode of construction disruption
00:39:20
with David Fraser, founder of Bunkie Life.
00:39:23
Please watch for future episodes of our podcast.
00:39:26
We are always blessed with great guests.
00:39:28
Don't forget to leave us a review on Apple podcast or give us a thumbs up on YouTube.
00:39:33
Until the next time we're together, keep on disrupting and challenging those in
00:39:36
your world to better ways of doing things.
00:39:39
And don't forget to have a positive impact on everyone you encounter,
00:39:42
make them smile and encourage them.
00:39:44
Two simple yet powerful things we can all do to change the world.
00:39:48
God bless and take care.
00:39:49
This is Isaiah industries signing off until the next episode
00:39:53
of construction disruption.
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