Jesse Mahan I’ve been in the roofing business long enough to know that being good at roofing and running a profitable roofing company require two very different skill sets.
You can have great crews, a packed schedule, and more work than you know what to do with, and still wonder where all the money went.
That’s part of what brought us to Cardone Ventures’ The Elite Edge in Scottsdale, Arizona, October 9–11, 2026.
At Sales Rabbit, we work with roofing contractors and home service businesses every day. I’ve owned roofing companies, still own one today, and was a founding collaborator on RoofLink before Sales Rabbit acquired it. I’m always interested in learning what’s helping contractors build stronger businesses.
We attended Elite Edge to get a firsthand look at what Brandon Dawson, Natalie Dawson, and the Cardone Ventures team are building for entrepreneurs. We wanted to understand their business coaching programs, meet the people behind them, and see what the experience could offer the contractors we serve.
After three days of learning and meeting business owners from across the country, I came away impressed. If you run a roofing company and you’re wondering whether it’s worth the time, my short answer is yes.
Tim Storey’s Message About Getting Uncomfortable
One of my favorite sessions of the weekend came from Tim Storey.
Tim talked about the difference between being almost, being your most, and becoming your utmost. His point was that reaching your full potential requires getting uncomfortable.
That stuck with me.
Owning a roofing company gives you plenty of opportunities to get uncomfortable, whether you’ve volunteered for them or not.
Sometimes it’s having a difficult conversation with an employee you’ve worked alongside for years. Sometimes it’s looking at your financials and realizing your revenue has been growing a whole lot faster than your profit.
And sometimes it’s admitting that the way you’ve been running your business for the past 10 years isn’t going to work for the next 10.
Throughout Elite Edge, we heard direct talk about the realities of scaling a company. The sessions covered financial performance, investment, leadership, and the operational decisions that become increasingly important as a business grows.
Anybody can tell you to grow your revenue. Understanding why you’re working harder than ever and still struggling to see the financial results you expected is a much more useful conversation.
Tim’s message connected with much of what we discussed throughout the weekend. Getting better at running a business usually starts with being willing to look at the things you’d rather avoid.
What Brandon and Natalie Dawson Are Building at Cardone Ventures
One of the biggest reasons I wanted to attend Elite Edge was to get a closer look at Brandon and Natalie Dawson and the organization they’ve built alongside Grant Cardone.
I’ve attended plenty of industry events over the years, and I always pay attention to the people behind them. I want to know who’s delivering the education and whether they understand the businesses they’re trying to help.
What impressed me about Brandon and Natalie was the amount of personal investment they’ve put into helping entrepreneurs succeed. You can see it in the team they’ve assembled.
We spent time with members of their leadership team, including people who have built roofing and home service companies, operated them successfully, and eventually exited those businesses. That experience matters.
When you’ve owned a roofing company, you know how complicated the work can get. Customers change their minds. Crews need answers. The weather has a remarkable ability to make your carefully planned Tuesday completely irrelevant.
Having someone who understands those realities makes a difference when you’re talking about business strategy.
What I appreciated was how much attention Cardone Ventures has given to building a team with that experience. Their 10X Roofing initiatives bring people who know the industry into conversations about financial performance and building companies that can grow beyond their owners.
Brandon and Natalie have also created a strong community around their programs. Throughout the weekend, we saw their team spending time with attendees, answering questions, and getting involved in conversations about the challenges business owners were facing.
We had some excellent discussions with their leadership team about the roofing market and opportunities to help contractors build stronger businesses.
It’s clear they’ve put a lot of energy into this organization, and the people they’ve brought together reflect that.
The Contractors and Conversations That Made Elite Edge Worthwhile
Some of the best learning happened outside the sessions.
Over lunch, during happy hours, and in conversations around the hotel, we spent time with roofing contractors and other home service business owners from across the country.
We met a father and son from Florida who are building a company together. We talked about their business and the legacy they’re creating.
I really enjoyed that conversation.
A lot of contractors start their businesses because they want to create something for their families. As those companies grow, they begin thinking about what happens 20 years down the road and who might carry the business forward.
We also met a construction company owner who’s exploring new technology products and looking at how AI could help him grow his business.
That conversation was right up our alley.
At Sales Rabbit, we’re spending a lot of time thinking about how technology can help contractors work more efficiently. Through RoofLink and our work on Roof Rabbit, we’re exploring ways to improve the systems roofing companies use every day.
We had opportunities to show contractors what we’re building, hear their feedback, and talk about where they see the industry going.
I think this is something Brandon and Natalie have done particularly well with Elite Edge. They’ve created an environment where business owners are comfortable sharing what they’ve learned.
Someone would bring up an idea from a session, and another owner would explain how they’d handled that issue in their own company.
Sometimes it worked beautifully. Other times the story ended with an expensive lesson and a very strong opinion about what never to do again.
Both are useful.
You might spend months trying to solve a problem in your own business, then meet somebody over lunch who dealt with the same thing two years ago.
That’s a pretty good return on a conversation.
A Little Weather and a Lot of Roofing Contractors
We also managed to pick quite a weekend to gather a bunch of roofing contractors in Scottsdale.
Storm cells moved through the Phoenix metro area, bringing heavy rain, blowing dust, and a haboob. We were watching moisture from the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel moving into Arizona.
Meanwhile, contractors from Florida were keeping a close eye on Hurricane Isaias, which had made landfall on the Florida Panhandle Friday night, and what it meant for their communities back home.
So naturally, we ended up with roofing contractors and general contractors gathered around the Weather Channel in the hotel lobby.
It looked like Sunday football. Except instead of arguing about quarterbacks, everyone was studying storm tracks and checking conditions in their markets.
There’s something pretty funny about traveling across the country for a business growth conference and ending up in a hotel lobby with contractors watching weather radar like it’s the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl.
Of course, we all understand the serious impacts those storms can have on communities. Many of the people watching were thinking about their customers and the work their teams might be facing when they returned home.
Apparently, even Mother Nature wanted a little time on the Elite Edge agenda.
Would I Recommend Cardone Ventures Elite Edge to Roofing Contractors?
Absolutely. After attending Elite Edge in Scottsdale, I’d recommend it to roofing contractors and home service business owners who want to improve how they run their companies.
The event gave us a firsthand look at the Cardone Ventures approach to business growth, including its 10X360 programs and the work they’re doing through 10X Roofing.
The speakers were excellent, and the conversations covered financial and operational challenges that contractors deal with every day.
I also think there’s real value in the community Cardone Ventures has built. Spending time with other owners who understand the challenges you’re facing can help you think differently about your own business.
I can’t speak to the results of completing their longer-term coaching programs based on attending one weekend event. I can speak to the experience we had and the commitment we saw from their team.
Brandon and Natalie Dawson have surrounded themselves with people who care about helping entrepreneurs succeed. Their investment in the roofing industry is encouraging, and we’re looking forward to continuing the relationships we started this weekend.
I keep coming back to Tim Storey’s message about becoming your utmost.
After years in roofing, I’m still learning new things about running a business. Sometimes those lessons come from a speaker on stage. Other times they come from another contractor sitting across the table at lunch.
And sometimes they come from recognizing that something you’ve been doing for years could probably be done a whole lot better.
That’s a big part of what made Elite Edge worthwhile.
Thank you to Brandon Dawson, Natalie Dawson, and the entire Cardone Ventures team for a great weekend in Scottsdale. We appreciated the hospitality and enjoyed getting to know your team. You’ve built something special, and we’re looking forward to what’s ahead.
Jesse Mahan is a VP at Sales Rabbit, a roofing business owner, and a founding collaborator on RoofLink, which Sales Rabbit acquired in November 2024. He focuses on strategy, partnerships, and helping contractors grow through better technology and business practices.
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