This feature ran in the last issue of our Community Matters magazine.
Some businesses are built on plans and projections. Others start with a true leap of faith. For Brittani and Dirt Coker, B&D Construction Services started with a phone call, one that would change everything.
“My husband called me out of the blue at work in February of 2020 to tell me he quit his job, was on his way to buy a mini-ex and was going to work for himself,” Brittani said. “The rest is really just history writing itself.”
That leap came at the onset of COVID-19, when much of the world was facing uncertainty in both employment and business. But even in the face of that unknown, Brittani knew it was never about timing. It was about faith.
“I have the most faith in that man,” she said. “I knew that owning his own company was always where we’d end up. He is the most driven and hardworking person I have ever met.”
That same night, the dream began.
“I got home from work to see a brand new JCB mini-ex on the trailer hooked to his 1996 Ford F250,” she said. “I walked in the house and immediately taught myself how to file for an LLC and got to work on marketing our new business. We stayed up all night designing business cards, creating marketing pages, sending emails and messages to everyone we knew to spread the word, making business shirts, and all the things.”
“Now, here we are… six years later and we are bigger and better than we could have ever dreamed of,” she added.
B&D Construction Services, owned and operated by the husband-and-wife team, specializes in a range of services, including excavation work, site preparation, underground utilities, land clearing, demolition and much more. Alongside that, the couple also runs B&D Building Development, focusing on construction projects such as decks, fencing, pole barns, lean-tos as well as remodels.
Behind the scenes, Brittani handles the business side, accounting, marketing, payroll, client relationships and day-to-day operations for both companies, while Dirt leads the work in the field.
“Let me say this, Dirt and I are best friends first, before we are husband and wife, before we are business partners, before anything else, we are best friends,” she explained. “We support each other in every crazy leap-of-faith idea the other has, without question. We have faith in one another that we will always find a way to make our dreams a reality, plus we are both too stubborn to take no for an answer, so we never settle for less. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows, but we are a team that just works.”
She added, “We stay in our own lane of expertise while we perfect our own skills, and we collaborate when necessary to thrive. That just works well for us.”
While their relationship provides the backbone of the business, at its core, the business has always been rooted in a simple philosophy.
“Dirt always says, ‘we are tryin’ to make a livin’, not a killin’, which truly embodies what we stand for,” Brittani said. “We want to provide our clients with the most affordable options while giving them the most top-notch care and attention to whatever job they hire us to do for them.”
She added, “We are family-based and believe that you should treat each and every client as if they were your own family. We have made so many life-long friendships through this line of work, and we are so blessed every day to have received and still receive the abundance of support that we do from those around us. We do a lot of commercial work these days, but we still believe in our roots and love working to help our community thrive in any way that we can, as often as possible.”
That mindset showed early on, especially in the long hours it took to get the business off the ground.
“Dirt never said no to a single job. I believe that is what has made us the most successful,” she shared. “He didn’t take a day off for the first two years we were in business — literally not one. He worked anywhere from 12 to 16 hours a day, seven days a week. People took notice of his work ethic, his ambition and they knew how dependable he was, so word of mouth spread and allowed us to continue to grow.”
Dirt and crew members of the B&D Construction team on what has become a regular day of work (Brittani Coker)
With that same relentless work ethic driving the duo, B&D Construction has grown from one truck and one machine into a full operation with multiple crews, trucks and more than 10 pieces of equipment, allowing the company to take on a wide range of projects while continuing to serve the local community.
And for the Cokers, that community remains at the heart of everything they do.
“Engaging with our community is our favorite part,” Brittani said. “Seeing the reactions of our clients and leaving their homes knowing they are satisfied with our work is a kind of reward that cannot be explained. The more jobs we are hired for, the more services we can perfect, which in turn allows us to venture out and offer even more services to our clients. Our community is the reason behind our growth, and we are forever indebted to them.”
For the Cokers, that community connection goes beyond the business. Whether it’s supporting local teams, organizations or causes, Brittani said giving back is one of the things they are most proud of.
“Looking back, we are most proud of the causes and organizations we’ve been able to support,” she said. “I hope other small local businesses see the effort we put into supporting our community, and it inspires them to follow suit. I hope they take as much pride in their work as we do, learn to treat every client like family and never stop trying to achieve their goals.”
While B&D Construction continues to grow, Brittani said the mission hasn’t changed, and it won’t.
“We want every single client to feel important,” she said. “They are more than an invoice number or an address for us. They are the fuel to our fire. Once we work for you, we consider you part of our family, and we strive hard to make you feel heard, appreciated and satisfied with the work we do for you.”
As for what’s next, the answer is simple.
“Our aspirations are exponential, and the sky is the limit,” she said.
And if the first six years are any indication, B&D Construction Services, helmed by the workhorses who are Brittani and Dirt, is just getting started.
www.facebook.com/BnDConstruction
