The Legal + Financial Stuff No One Warns You About When Starting a Machine Shop, 459
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
Release Date: 04/14/2025
Gorilla 76 In the House: A New Era for Manufacturing Media, 464
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
What happens when a young marketer decides to stop chasing every client and instead zeroes in on one industry? You get Gorilla 76—a leading agency that’s spent nearly two decades helping B2B manufacturers connect, grow, and lead. In this special episode of MakingChips, the team sits down with Joe Sullivan, co-founder of Gorilla 76 and host of three powerhouse podcasts, to officially welcome him into the MakingChips Network. Joe opens up about the early missteps of trying to be everything to everyone—and how discovering a niche in mid-size manufacturers changed the game. The conversation...
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The Home of MFG: Uniting Events, Podcasts, and Tools for the Manufacturing Nation, 463
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
What if every trade show, manufacturing podcast, and business resource you needed was just a few clicks away? That’s the vision behind The Home of MFG, a new online hub created by Chris Stevens—a manufacturing leader who got tired of fragmented information and decided to build a centralized, open-access platform for the industry. In this episode, we dig into Chris’s journey from sweeping shop floors to launching an ambitious initiative aimed at organizing the chaos of manufacturing content. We talk candidly about how hard it’s been to simply find the right events to...
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Meet MAESTRO: How Hexagon is Turning Quality Into a Power Play, 462
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
If inspection is the bottleneck in your shop, you’re not alone—and this episode might just be your blueprint for breaking through it. We sat down with the team behind MAESTRO, the latest release from Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division, to explore how a complete reinvention of the coordinate measuring machine (CMM) is shifting quality control from a necessary evil to a productivity enabler. MAESTRO isn’t just faster or sleeker—it’s smarter. Built from the ground up with the realities of today’s shops in mind, it tackles challenges like workforce shortages, inconsistent...
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Machines Are Just the Start (How to Build a Shop That Lasts), 461
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
If you’re in the trenches of manufacturing like we are—running a shop, growing a business, or even dreaming of starting your own—this episode is going to hit home. We’re diving deep into the real challenges and choices that come with equipping a machine shop. It’s not just about what machine to buy; it’s about how to make smart, future-proof decisions that keep your business agile and competitive. We walk through what it really takes to get started, from the very first piece of equipment to building an infrastructure that can handle growth. It’s a real-world conversation on...
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Funding Your Dream Shop: Creative Ownership Strategies You Haven’t Heard Yet, 460
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
Dreaming of owning your own machine shop but hitting a wall when it comes to the money? You’re not alone—and you’re definitely not out of options. In this episode of MakingChips’ Machine Shop MBA series, host Mike Payne sits down with Jon Hughes, Principal and CFO Consultant at CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA), to unpack what it really takes to fund a manufacturing business in today’s economy. Too many would-be shop owners assume they need a mountain of cash sitting in the bank before they can even begin. But what if we told you that buying an existing shop—yes, even one with tired...
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The Quiet Cut That's Loudly Threatening Small Manufacturing
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
Most small manufacturers don’t realize they’re being quietly supported by one of the most impactful public-private partnerships in the country. The Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) has long been the hidden backbone behind training programs, grant facilitation, process improvements, and critical tech upgrades for shops across the U.S. But recent Federal decisions to defund these programs—without clear communication or reasoning—have sparked confusion and alarm among industry insiders. In this episode, a passionate roundtable of manufacturers and advocates reveals just how...
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The Legal + Financial Stuff No One Warns You About When Starting a Machine Shop, 459
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
Most people who dream of launching a manufacturing business obsess over machines, processes, and parts. But here’s the thing: that dream can die before a single spindle turns—if you miss a few less-glamorous (but absolutely critical) steps on the front end. Legal structure? Tax setup? Insurance? Naming your shop? These early decisions carry more weight than most first-timers realize. In this episode of MakingChips, we pick up where part one left off and get granular with the real-life process of starting your shop the right way. Guests Brad Boettcher and Nick Vargosko of CLA return to walk...
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Shop Formation 101: Entity Types, Tax Traps, and Long-Term Strategy, 458
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
In this episode of the Machine Shop MBA series, we go beyond vision boards and get into the meat and potatoes of launching your shop legally—with the right entity type and structure to support your short and long-term goals. Whether you’re looking to stay solo, bring on partners, or position for future investment or acquisition, your business formation choice can be the foundation—or the friction—of your growth. In this episode, the team dives deep into the critical, yet often overlooked, process of legally forming a manufacturing business. The hosts, alongside experts Nick...
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Breaking Boundaries: Building the Entrepreneurial Mindset, 457
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
In this episode of MakingChips, we dive into the entrepreneurial mindset, drawing inspiration from three of the most influential figures in modern business: Titan Gilroy, Elon Musk, and Steve Jobs. Through clips from these legendary leaders, we explore the grit, vision, and resilience required to launch and grow a business in the challenging world of manufacturing. As we share our experiences and reflect on the realities of entrepreneurship, you’ll gain a firsthand look at the mindset necessary to succeed—if you dare to take the plunge. This episode is essential for anyone...
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Machine Shop MBA: How to Become a Top Shop with Brent Donaldson, 456
Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders
What if you could measure your shop's success against the industry’s best—and discover exactly where you can improve? In this episode, we’re launching a groundbreaking new series with Modern Machine Shop to help you do just that. We’re joined by Brent Donaldson, who walks us through the powerful Top Shops program—a game-changing benchmarking tool that reveals everything from machine utilization to employee engagement. The Top Shops survey isn’t just another tool; it’s a blueprint for success. By comparing your shop to the industry’s top performers, you’ll uncover where...
info_outlineMost people who dream of launching a manufacturing business obsess over machines, processes, and parts. But here’s the thing: that dream can die before a single spindle turns—if you miss a few less-glamorous (but absolutely critical) steps on the front end. Legal structure? Tax setup? Insurance? Naming your shop? These early decisions carry more weight than most first-timers realize.
In this episode of MakingChips, we pick up where part one left off and get granular with the real-life process of starting your shop the right way. Guests Brad Boettcher and Nick Vargosko of CLA return to walk us through the practical decisions you’ll face—how to choose (and register) your business entity, why the wrong name could haunt you, what documents you actually need before making parts, and how to build a business that’s ready for growth, not just survival.
If you’ve ever thought “I’ll figure that stuff out later,” you’ll want to hear the cautionary tales in this episode—plus the steps that will keep you out of trouble, off your state’s audit list, and firmly in control of your own success. We also unpack how to structure ownership if you’ve got a business partner (especially if it’s family), and why your garage may not cut it forever, even if you love the rent.
This one’s for the aspiring owners, the side hustlers-turned-founders, and anyone helping someone else start a shop from scratch. Whether you’re building your dream or advising someone else on theirs, it’s time to get real about what it takes to launch smart—and stay that way.
Segments
- (0:10) Intro to Part 2 with CLA and why they had to split the conversation
- (0:48) Take The Modern Machine Shop Top Shops Survey
- (02:22) Recap of Part 1: entity types, startup missteps, and choosing the wrong structure
- (4:21) Choose a business name that doesn’t pigeonhole you (so you don’t have to rebrand)
- (12:09) State registration: what paperwork and filings are really needed
- (12:12) Legal structure & governance: operating agreements and partnership dos and don'ts
- (15:33) Getting your EIN and opening a bank account
- (18:04) State tax registration, permits, and the overlooked W-9
- (19:16) Grow your top and bottom-line with CliftonLarsonAllen
- (21:15) Opening a business bank account and choosing financial software
- (23:04) Go beyond “budget”: When to spend the money
- (26:11) Business insurance: what’s essential at launch, what can wait
- (28:11) Facility considerations: licenses, permits, and where you’ll actually make parts
- (30:27) Leasing vs. buying your shop space (with a cautionary tale)
- (33:04) Why many owners keep their real estate separate from the business
- (33:58) Tax differences between leasing and buying your facility
- (35:37) Labor market considerations: where you build affects who you can hire
- (36:43) Wrap-up: who this episode is for, and why it’s worth sharing
- (39:56) Why you need to check out the MakingSparks podcast
Resources mentioned on this episode
- Take The Modern Machine Shop Top Shops Survey
- Grow your top and bottom-line with CliftonLarsonAllen
- [email protected]
- Connect with Nick Vargosko on LinkedIn
- Connect with Brad Boettcher on LinkedIn
- ProShop ERP