Hidden Gems: Meet Matt Lambert of Building the Dream Duluth

Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Lambert.

Hi Matt, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My background is in chemical research; I have a B.S. in both Chemistry and biochemistry / molecular biology. 3 months after graduating from UMD, the start-up company I was working for was on the verge of bankruptcy, so I had to make a pivot. I ended up going back to a PCA job working nights that I had worked at in college until I could find another “big boy job.” My student loan repayment grace period was ending in 3 months, so it was crunch time.

Classically trained scientists are taught nothing about making money, so I had to start researching from scratch. I began reading books on finance and business and consuming every piece of business related content I could find on YouTube. I stumbled upon the idea of a traveling iPhone repair and flipping business and I ran with it! I bootstrapped some start-up capital by flipping a few Pokemon cards on eBay that I found at a garage sale, and ended up doing over $20,000 in sales for my phone business that year. I was bit hard by the entrepreneurial bug, and there was no stopping there.

From that experience, I quickly learned that there is far more variables that impact the success of a business than I had originally thought; Legal structure, tax efficiency, digital marketing, branding, etc. I thought back to one of the books I had read that said the people who got rich during the gold rush were the ones selling the shovels rather than doing the digging, and I wanted to position myself as the one selling the tools needed to build a successful business. That’s one of the big reasons I co-founded the digital marketing company Building the Dream Duluth. The other reason is that the business community on YouTube did so much for me in my first venture that I wanted to be that resource to promote and grow local businesses in the Twin Ports community.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
We started the business in November of 2019 and filed for our LLC in February 2020, right before the first wave of Covid-19 hit. Due to the business closures brought on by the pandemic, we lost a few of our clients in the bar and restaurant sector. This was tough for us, but we also quickly realized that demand was growing to help other types of businesses pivot to a virtual storefront.

As you know, we’re big fans of Building the Dream Duluth. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
At Building the Dream Duluth, we offer Web development, Search Engine Optimization, Social media management, and Digital marketing services. What sets us apart from the rest of the competition is our value first strategy. We educate and inspire the local community through interviews with local entrepreneurs and business professionals that we share on our social platforms and podcast. Our content focuses on highlighting the people behind the business or position by sharing their struggles, successes, and the paths they took on their professional journey.

How do you define success?
I am a very goal and systems driven person. Success, to me, means that my projected outcomes met or exceeded my initial expectations.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: buildingthedreamduluth.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buildingthedream_duluth/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BuildingtheDreamDuluth/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCJ2eGELLMEnL6Rn0O1kC8Q