Dirt Talk Podcast: Episode 386

Guest: Jared Kuepfer, ARRO Crushing
Host: Aaron Witt, BuildWitt
Release Date: October 30, 2025

Episode Overview

In this candid and wide-ranging conversation, Aaron Witt sits down with Jared Kuepfer, founder of ARRO Crushing, to discuss entrepreneurship, the construction and crushing industry, generational shifts in leadership, company culture, and the challenges that come with building and scaling a business from scratch. Jared shares his journey from family stonework to starting and growing a mobile crushing business in Ontario, his lessons learned, and his reflections on the state of the industry. The episode covers everything from the nuts and bolts of owning a crusher to existential considerations of work, family, and legacy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Jared’s Background and Starting ARRO Crushing

[01:43–04:52]

• Jared’s family came from natural stone fabricating; he transitioned to civil contracting before launching his crushing business in 2019.
• Started ARRO Crushing with two partners, all "farm boys" with no prior crushing experience.
  • “I never ran a crusher in my life until I bought one, which is ridiculous!” —Jared ([02:21])
• Saw an opportunity in the market as traditional excavating seemed oversubscribed.

Key Quote:

“We didn’t even know if we were a crushing company or not. But really, we have a crusher. So let's go find stuff to crush.” —Jared ([06:28])

2. The Realities and Economics of Crushing

[04:52–08:41]

• Crushing is capital-intensive. Even a basic crusher costs about $1 million ([05:21]).
• Their startup phase meant renting other essential equipment, taking high personal and financial risks.
• Differentiation between crushing for quarries (permanent plants) and for mobile recycling.

[07:03–08:41]

• “We’re the guy in the middle of the process. ... We’re just turning waste into something that they can then sell as road base or base for a parking lot or anything like that.” —Jared ([07:41])

3. Building the Business with No Blueprint

[13:04–19:46]

• Early days were pure trial and error, with little knowledge about costing or pricing jobs.
  • “There's not a How to Crush for Dummies anywhere. You can't just go read a book or... Did you buy an online course?” —Aaron ([13:04])
• First projects came from ads in local newspapers targeting farmers with barn demolitions—phones began "ringing off the hook."

Notable Segment:

• Jared learns pricing the hard way—sometimes losing money—to get experience ([14:56]).
• Lesson: You just have to get your feet wet and learn by doing.

4. Early Lessons & Partnership Challenges

[19:04–21:19]

• One of the business partners was bought out within the first year due to partnership tensions.
• Jared reflects on being open-minded and the arrogance of just "winging it."
  • “That arrogance got me somewhere, and it got me some good places. But... get some advice. Listen to some advice.” —Jared ([21:13])

5. Work-Life Balance, Family, and Motivation

[22:45–26:59]

• Jared started ARRO Crushing with a newborn at home: “I’m working like literally 20 hours a day, six days a week. I'm never home, gone all the time. And that’s—turns out that’s really hard on a marriage.” —Jared ([22:58])
• The pressure of supporting a young family was both a huge stress and a motivator.
• The “burn the boats” mentality: being fully committed with no fallback.

Anecdote:

• Cortez’s story of burning ships as a metaphor for total commitment. ([25:42])

6. Quality of Life and Entrepreneurship Realities

[29:38–34:02]

• Both discuss the harsh side of business ownership: stress, long hours, risk, and occasional doubts about quitting.
  • “From a quality of life perspective, it’s not a very good quality of life… I wouldn't trade my life for anybody else's, but... a lot of people I know, they've got houses now, a nice job, some money, vacation time… It's pretty good. But when you’re working 20 hours a day, that doesn't work.” —Aaron ([29:45])
• Despite progress, the underlying sense among both is that more is always possible, and the sacrifices often feel greater than the visible rewards.

7. Mental Health, Burnout, and Ownership Responsibility

[34:14–35:50]

• Both admit to “staying up at night” with stress even years into the business.
• Ownership means being permanently responsible—no simple “shut off.”
• Importance of learning not to dwell on regret but to recognize mistakes as part of growth.

8. The Industry, Generations, and Legacy

[60:09–70:22]

• Discussion on retirement and the need for purpose post-career.
• Critique of industry elders selling out or leaving without passing knowledge on:
  • “Hey, there’s a whole bunch of guys that still work here that they want to hear from you.” —Jared ([63:12])
• Respect for older generations who remain as mentors or figures within their companies (e.g., Veit, Ames).
  • “One of the things he said on the way out (was), ‘I'm not needed here anymore.’ And I’m like, where is that bad thought coming from? You are so needed here. Like, you got 35 years of experience!” —Jared ([64:40])

9. Culture, Company DNA, and Growth Challenges

[76:02–77:02]

• The value of keeping a business personal and small-business “scrappy.”
• Many companies lose their “DNA” as they grow, becoming cold and bureaucratic, losing the warmth and legacy that made them great ([71:23]).
• “I think the business is Aaron and it should be, and it should be proud of that.” —Jared ([71:31])

10. The State of the Industry: Systemic Issues & Opportunity

[55:01–58:43]

• Industry-wide stasis: “Same conversations. Let's just walk around in circles and it gets a little worse every year, but we're making more money, so let's just keep shoving it in the backseat.” —Aaron ([55:45])
• As the market slows down, deep-rooted issues are becoming more visible.
• The need for honest dialogue, cross-generational collaboration, and industry-wide action to tackle declining worker satisfaction, increasing demands, and systemic inefficiencies.

11. On Podcasting, Vulnerability, and Changing the Conversation

[82:03–85:56]

• Jared shares his experience starting ‘The Impact Chamber’ podcast: using the platform to speak honestly and to address tough topics that are often ignored in construction.
• Mental toll of podcasting and the need to genuinely enjoy and “put your heart into it” or the content suffers.
• “You got to enjoy it. If you're not enjoying… it’s just going to be a shitty product.” —Aaron ([84:08])

12. Workforce Realities: Recruitment, Retention, and Truth-Telling

[90:32–96:53]

• Many companies are not “speaking on a human level” or delivering what they advertise.
• Wages haven’t kept up with cost of living even during historic infrastructure spending; people are often overworked, underpaid, and undervalued.
• Need to be honest about the hardships of the work: “The US Marines just tell you it sucks. They don’t miss their recruiting numbers.” —Aaron ([118:20])

13. Generational Divide & Reconciliation

[110:25–113:44]

• Both generations need to meet in the middle: respect the past, embrace change (citing Dave Ramsey’s approach).
  • “The future generation, you have to have the respect of the previous generation because they do have that 30, 40 years of experience... But then at the same time, the past generation has to meet the future generation halfway and acknowledge, hey, the world is changing.” —Aaron ([110:40])

Memorable Quotes & Exchanges

• On taking risk:
  “I had the itch to start a business… but I looked around and I see everybody with a mini ex and a skid steer… I don’t want to do that.” —Jared ([03:48])

• On pricing and failure:
  “If I lose ten grand in this job, it’s a lesson. But at least I was doing something and trying.” —Jared ([14:56])

• On the grind:
  “Every day is a bar fight, like literally. I mean it just doesn’t stop.” —Aaron ([23:34])

• On industry legacy:
  “Can you help out a little bit here? ... We need what you have. Like, we, we, it's bigger than you, me, this company, that company, this state. Like, this is about the industry and then this is about the future of like society that we're toying with right now.” —Aaron ([63:22])

• On company culture:
  “That heart and soul is what makes us who we are. Like, that's our competitive edge against large companies.” —Jared ([76:36])

Important Timestamps

• [01:43] — Jared’s introduction and ARRO Crushing origin story
• [05:21] — Economics of acquiring crushing equipment
• [13:04] — Learning the ropes with no blueprint
• [14:56] — Early jobs and pricing lessons
• [19:04] — Partnership challenges in year one
• [22:58] — Family life during startup
• [29:45] — Realities of entrepreneur “quality of life”
• [34:14] — Business stress and regret
• [60:09] — Rethinking retirement/motivation for older generations
• [63:12] — Need for passing down industry wisdom
• [71:23] — Keeping the business personal and legacy-driven
• [76:36] — Small business soul vs. growth pressure
• [84:08] — The importance of joy in podcasting
• [90:32] — Industry’s lack of human-level communication
• [96:53] — Generational opportunity and responsibility
• [110:40] — Generational collaboration (Dave Ramsey)
• [118:20] — “Marines tell you it sucks”—on honest recruiting

Final Thoughts

This episode is a masterclass in business honesty and a provocative look inside the construction and crushing world. Jared and Aaron’s openness about mistakes, partnership struggles, pricing, and hard truths about the industry echo throughout, with both calling for more human-centered leadership, honest dialogue, and bold action across generations.

Find Jared:

• Podcast: "The Impact Chamber" ([121:02])
• LinkedIn: Jared Koepfer
• Company: ARRO Crushing, Southern Ontario

Summary prepared by Podcast Summarizer AI | [BuildWitt Dirt Talk, Episode 386]