Meet Simon Pepa (and his brother Gjovani). This pair knows what it means to be 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 👷♂️👷
Thinking differently isn’t always about big ideas, but the small ways you show up for clients. From cold calls and office walk-ins with donuts to high-profile builds nationwide, 5Points Construction was built on hustle and family values.
Today, Simon serves as VP of Business Development, helping clients bring their projects to life. We asked him...
𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧?
Our family came to America from Albania in the early 90s, and our father was always working in construction, whether as a laborer or a building super. By the time I was 6 and my older brother Gjovani was 10, we were tagging along with him and our uncles on small Brooklyn and Queens renovations.
After college, I took my father’s advice, got my GC license in Florida, and together we started chasing clients. Sometimes that meant calling retailers cold, other times it meant walking into property management offices in New York City or Florida with a box of donuts. Those small beginnings helped us break into the retail market and beyond, and since then we’ve been fortunate to build projects across the nation.
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧?
1. Don't point fingers. Mistakes will happen. What matters is showing up with solutions, not blame. A partner of ours always says, “come with solutions, not problems,” and it stuck with us.
2. Master the drawings. Talent and hustle are great, but if you don’t study the plans deeply before a job starts, surprises will find you.
3. Flip challenges into opportunities. In construction, something will always go wrong. Every challenge is your chance to rise to the occasion and impress; it could be a retailer’s senior leader, a PM at your new firm, or a landlord on the project.
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲?
We make it a priority to treat every vendor and laborer like family. Without hardworking tradespeople, none of these projects would get built. When crews feel respected, they give their best to finish faster, quality goes up, and when things don’t go as planned, they’re eager to step in and help.
𝐓𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐮𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠:
On the business side, my partners and I have been focused on weaving AI into how we run our office and support field management. On the personal side, life just changed in the best way, my wife and I just welcomed our first child. I can say with confidence that learning to be a father is more complex (and far more rewarding) than building out a high profile retail store, hotel, or ground up project across the nation.
Thanks for sharing, Simon! 🤝