![](/assets/artwork/1x1-42817eea7ade52607a760cbee00d1495.gif)
358 episodes
![](/assets/artwork/1x1-42817eea7ade52607a760cbee00d1495.gif)
The Fort - An Entrepreneurship Podcast Chris Powers
-
- Business
The Fort is an entrepreneurship podcast.
Here, we uncover the proven strategies, insights, and inspiring stories of today’s greatest leaders in the worlds of business, real estate, entrepreneurship, and investing. Each episode’s mission is to help you to level up your entrepreneurial game by hearing directly from the men and women in the arena. Chris is able to uniquely uncover things not commonly discussed because he is an entrepreneur himself. We not only cover business, but we also cover the personal side of entrepreneurship.
The Fort began in 2018 as a way for Chris to publicly explore the fascinating world of entrepreneurship. Since he was a child, he’s been characterized as obsessively curious about the world around him.
The Fort has now been downloaded over 2M times, across more than 50,000 unique listeners.
Each week features conversations with entrepreneurs, Founders, CEOs, and Executives from some of the leading companies in America. Past guests have represented companies such as JLL, Hillwood, S2 Capital, Chick Fil A, Morning Brew, Founders Podcast, Tiny Capital, Permanent Equity, Fort Capital, Matthews REIS, Bonobos, and ConvertKit.
🐦 Follow Chris on Twitter: www.twitter.com/FortWorthChris
💡 Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/
📹 Subscribe to The FORT on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FORTpod
-
#358 - Phillip Huffines - Co-Founder @ Huffines Communities - The Art Of Building Award-Winning Master Planned Communities
Continuing a practice of three generations of business and community work in the Dallas area, Phillip and his twin brother, Co-Owner Donald, have developed their Land Development and Land Investing legacy by creating superior master-planned communities and multifamily community living styles. The firm has developed over 15,000 single-family homesites, and 2,800 multifamily units in the DFW metroplex, and invested in thousands of acres of land. The Huffines name has become widely esteemed within the industry and the State of Texas. Huffines Communities has assembled over 100 limited partnerships, created hundreds of jobs in North Texas, and generated billions in asset values. In 2021 alone, Huffines Communities invested over $120 MM in land.
We discuss:
How Huffines creates incredible Master Plan communities
City/state incentives
Design, architecture, and amenity strategies after 30 years of building communities
We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners.
https://www.thefortpod.com/survey
Links
Huffines Communities
Topics
(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:04:10) - Getting kicked out of military school
(00:08:47) - Master Plan communities
(00:16:00) - Phillip’s secret sauce
(00:20:11) - Finding a site for a community
(00:24:24) - State and city incentives
(00:29:47) - Establishing school districts
(00:34:03) - Experiences during the GFC
(00:36:28) - Entitlements
(00:39:50) - Entrance design & amenities
(00:43:13) - Community events
(00:45:51) - Planning
(00:53:52) - Thoughts on the market
(00:57:20) - Home builders and the DFW market
(01:02:19) - Nearly going bankrupt in the 80’s
(01:07:53) - Does anything concern you in the macro right now?
(01:11:10) - The importance of profit
Support our Sponsors
Better Pitch: https://bit.ly/42d9L0I
RE Cost Seg: https://bit.ly/3oC7JcY
Fort: https://bit.ly/FortCompanies
Follow Fort on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fort-companies/
Chris on Social Media:
The Fort Podcast on Twitter/X: https://x.com/theFORTpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefortpodcast
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd
Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX
Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys
Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0
Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts -
#357 - Dov Hertz - Founder @ DH Property Holdings, LLC - The Greatest Land Assembler New York City Has Ever Seen
Before founding DH Property Holdings, Dov was the Executive Vice President of Acquisitions of Asset Management at Extell Development Company. During his 13+ years at Extell, Dov negotiated and supervised the acquisitions of over $20 billion of New York real estate. Dov was directly responsible for sourcing some of the most notable transactions over the last 10 years, including The Ring Portfolio, One 57, Nordstrom Tower, and One Manhattan Square.
We discuss:
Stories from Dov’s career assembling iconic NYC sites
Pivoting to Class B Industrial
How to Negotiate in RE
We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners.
https://www.thefortpod.com/survey
Topics
(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:01:56) - Dov’s early career
(00:05:02) - Land assemblage and zoning in NYC
(00:13:12) - Tenant risks
(00:16:06) - Assembling Central Park Tower site
(00:27:21) - Assembling 1 Manhattan Square site
(00:32:45) - The Ring portfolio
(00:48:19) - Hiring Japanese actors to finalize a deal
(00:56:42) - Venturing into Class B Industrial
(01:13:58) - How would outsiders perform in NYC trying to assemble land?
(01:15:00) - The power of negotiation
Links
DH Property Holdings
More on Dov Hertz
Dov in The Real Deal
Dov in Crain's New York Business
Dov's Real Estate Investment Blog
Support our Sponsors
Relay Human Cloud: https://bit.ly/3sjQcaY
Fort: https://bit.ly/FortCompanies
Follow Fort on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fort-companies/
Chris on Social Media:
X: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd
Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX
Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys
Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0
Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts -
#356 - Larry Brogdon - Partner @ Four Sevens Oil Company - Tales From The Barnett Shale
Larry Brogdon is a geologist and Partner with Four Sevens Oil Company with over 40 years of experience in the oil and gas industry. He has been involved in developing several major oil and gas plays, including the Barnett Shale.
We discuss:
- The early days of the Barnett Shale
- The impact of horizontal oil wells
- The role of natural gas in the world and predictions for the energy industry
We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners.
https://www.thefortpod.com/survey
Support our Sponsors:
Better Pitch: https://bit.ly/42d9L0I
Topics:
(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:02:07) - Larry’s entry into the oil business
(00:05:00) - George Mitchell & the Barnett shale
(00:19:07) - Capitalizing on the success of horizontal wells
(00:26:32) - Building and exiting the business
(00:33:21) - The role of natural gas in the world
(00:39:55) - Larry’s investing thesis
(00:45:40) - 10-year predictions
Chris on Social Media:
X: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd
Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX
Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys
Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0
Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts -
#355 - Michael Fishman & Michael Baum - Shareholders of Global RE Practice @ Greenberg Traurig, LLP - Legal Best Practices & The Egoless Partnership
In today’s episode I sit down with Michael Fishman & Michael Baum are Co-Chairs of Global RE Practice @ Greenberg Traurig, LLP - one of the world's largest real estate practices. Their practice focuses on real estate, real estate finance, private equity and real estate fund formation.
Their clients include institutional investors, investment advisors, public and private real estate companies, REITs, and financial institutions. They’ve worked to form domestic and cross-border real estate funds and joint ventures and regularly represent lenders on real estate projects throughout the United States and globally. In addition, their experience with mezzanine finance, mortgage finance, lease finance, and loan defeasance transactions. They regularly advise clients with regard to the acquisition, disposition, leasing, and management of multi-family, industrial, office, retail, and hotel properties in the United States and globally.
We discuss:
Fishman and Baum’s cross-border PE work
The future of the law profession
The state of the RE market
Links:
Greenberg Traurig
A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe
Michael Fishman
Michael Baum
Support our Sponsor:
Associated Insurance
Topics:
(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:02:38) - The egoless partnership
(00:12:51) - The process of doing business in Mexico
(00:17:27) - What makes a great lawyer?
(00:28:17) - Is it fair that most situations could be resolved without litigation?
(00:31:46) - Making the jump to Greenberg
(00:42:08) - Cowboy ethics
(00:45:11) - What does your team look like today?
(00:50:23) - Thoughts on AI’s impact on the legal profession
(00:58:21) - Are young people wanting to be lawyers?
(01:03:42) - What are you seeing in the real estate market?
(01:20:43) - Data Centers
(01:22:09) - Is there any Federal legislation on the horizon that listeners should be aware of?
(01:26:15) - What is the biggest real estate risk people take without knowing?
Chris on Social Media:
X: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd
Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX
Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys
Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0
Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts -
#354 - Don Tepman (@StripMallGuy) - Strip Malls, Creating Value, Leasing Strategy, X/Twitter, Charlie Munger
Don Tepman runs a real estate fund that focuses on buying neighborhood strip centers throughout the United States and also runs the 'StripMallGuy' account on X and LinkedIn. Mr. Tepman started his career in 2002 and led his first strip center purchase in 2006. He has completed 40 purchases and raised over $150M in LP capital.
We discuss:
Don’s career and mentors
What makes a successful strip mall acquisition
Building @stripmallguy and the future of the brand
We'd appreciate you filling out our audience survey, so we can continuously work on providing relevant content to our listeners.
https://www.thefortpod.com/survey
Links
StripMallGuy on X
Resquared
Topics
(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:04:56) - Don’s upbringing and career background
(00:08:40) - The dynamics of suburban retail
(00:12:42) - Don’s mentor & learnings
(00:21:25) - Restaurants in strip centers
(00:26:35) - Tenant mixes
(00:30:20) - TI
(00:35:41) - Where do folks waste money on exteriors?
(00:37:18) - Drive-thrus
(00:38:36) - Don’s hold period strategy
(00:42:39) - Why do you stick to smaller deals?
(00:45:26) - What is your approach to entering a new market?
(00:53:02) - Why does Price per foot matter so much?
(00:53:44) - Leasing
(00:59:41) - Taxes and insurance
(01:01:19) - StripMallGuy
(01:08:45) - Working a deal through the system
(01:12:44) - Thoughts on the market
(01:18:22) - Luxury retail
(01:19:53) - Meeting Charlie Munger
(01:27:08) - Plans for SMG in the future
Support our Sponsors
Better Pitch: https://bit.ly/42d9L0I
Juniper Square: https://bit.ly/45yiYUq
Fort: https://bit.ly/FortCompanies
Follow Fort on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fort-companies/
Chris on Social Media:
X: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd
Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX
Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys
Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0
Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO
The FORT is produced by Johnny Podcasts -
#353 - Chris Powers & Jason Baxter - Foster: How Fort Is Harnessing The Power of Advanced Data & Artificial Intelligence
I couldn’t be more excited to release today’s episode that shares in great detail how Fort is thinking about and using AI. Jason and I discuss our proprietary operating system, FOS, and how we’re leveraging AI to build Fort's next chapter. We’ve been building this technology for years and now the fun really begins.
Jason Baxter joined Fort in 2015, bringing more than 25 years of real estate industry experience, an acute passion for entrepreneurship, and a vision for transforming big ideas into reality. As Chief Executive Officer/President, Jason oversees Fort’s strategic vision and execution of acquisitions, finances, and annual planning. In addition, Jason oversees the Fort Leadership Team and Investment Committee.
Chris is a serial entrepreneur with 19 years of real estate development and investment experience. He founded Fort and to date, the company has invested over $2.1B in Class B industrial, commercial, multifamily, student housing, and land development projects throughout the state of Texas and the Sunbelt. In 2016, Chris made the decision to focus on Class B Industrial full time and that is where the firm has dedicated the majority of its resources since.
On this episode, Chris and Jason discuss:
Finding a single source of truth
Building Fort’s AI thesis
Examples of Foster at work
Links:
Fort in the WallStreet Journal - Harnessing the Power of Advanced Data
FOS Overview
Foster Overview
Fort: https://bit.ly/FortCompanies
Follow Fort on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fort-companies/
Topics:
(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:00:42) - The importance of technology
(00:05:00) - Finding the single source of truth
(00:09:24) - Building Fort’s AI thesis
(00:11:48) - How the world uses AI vs. how Fort uses AI
(00:18:15) - Examples of Foster at work
(00:28:35) - What does Foster think Foster is?
(00:31:46) - Why does all this matter?
Chris on Social Media:
X: https://bit.ly/3BYIjcH
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/45gIkFd
Watch The Fort on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3oynxNX
Visit our website: https://bit.ly/43SOvys
Leave a review on Apple: https://bit.ly/45crFD0
Leave a review on Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Krl9jO