Build Más
BY Claudia Muñoz-Nájar
As the construction industry continues to innovate, many Hispanic contractors are being left behind – not because they aren’t skilled, but because they lack access to the right tools.
One day, I was talking to an investor who opened my eyes to this struggle for Hispanic contractors in construction.
Our conversation struck a chord with me. Over the past 10+ years, I have been both a startup founder and the founder of a university’s executive education division, successfully growing businesses from the ground up.
I understood firsthand what it takes to scale a company and how the right tools can make or break a business. Seeing Hispanic contractors lose money, time, and opportunities simply because they didn’t have access to the right digital solutions made me want to take action.
I learned more about this unmet need in our community and partnered with Armando Salgado, a construction expert and educator.
Together, we created Build Más to empower Hispanic contractors with an easy-to-use, bilingual platform that simplifies estimating, saves them time, and helps them maximize their profits.
Our mission is to make professional estimating accessible and affordable for small contractors so they can grow their businesses with confidence.
Receiving the LaunchLNK Grant
I was incredibly excited and deeply grateful When I learned that Build Más received the LaunchLNK grant.
This grant isn’t just about funding—it’s a validation of our work to empower Hispanic contractors and help them grow their businesses.
I immediately thought about the contractors we’re serving—how this support would allow us to move faster, reach more people, and give them the tools they need to succeed. The grant was also a huge milestone for our team, recognizing all the hard work we’ve put in to get to this point.
Most importantly, this grant will accelerate our impact on the Lincoln community.
Lincoln’s construction industry is vital to the Nebraska economy, with approximately 900 Hispanic construction businesses contributing an estimated $33M in annual sales revenue. These businesses are growing at an impressive 32% annually—far outpacing the 5% growth rate of other construction businesses—and now account for 20% of all construction companies in the region.
We are using the LaunchLNK grant to execute the first phase of our go-to-market strategy in Lincoln and Nebraska, focusing on three key areas.
First, we want to acquire early adopters. We are actively engaging with Hispanic trade contractors through a partnership with UHCA and a major General Contractor.
We’re hosting an in-person event in Lincoln to introduce Build Más, provide valuable resources, and create opportunities for Hispanic contractors to connect with larger projects.
This event will serve as a launchpad to generate leads, which we will nurture into long-term customers.
We also want to improve our onboarding process. A big part of making Build Más successful is ensuring that contractors can start using it quickly and effectively. The grant helps us develop bilingual onboarding materials, refine our platform’s user experience, and ensure that every new user can seamlessly integrate Build Más into their business.
Finally, we want to enhance our customers’ success. Retention is just as important as acquisition. We are building a strong support system to help contractors get the most out of Build Más.
From one-on-one assistance to educational resources, we are ensuring that users fully understand the value of digital estimating and how it can help grow their business.
By focusing on these areas, we are not only helping Hispanic contractors thrive, but also strengthening Lincoln’s economy. By making these businesses more profitable and efficient, we are creating jobs, increasing tax revenue, and positioning Lincoln as a hub for innovation in construction technology.
Facing a Learning Curve
One of the biggest challenges I’ve faced as an entrepreneur has been building a business in an industry I initially knew nothing about: construction.
Coming from a technology, business, and education background, I had experience starting and scaling businesses, but I wasn’t an expert in the trades.
When I first started Build Más, I knew I needed to deeply understand the pain points of Hispanic contractors to build something that would truly help them.
To overcome this, I took a customer-first approach from day one. I enrolled in the UNL Nebraska I-Corps Intro to Customer Discovery program, where I conducted dozens of interviews with small construction business owners to understand their struggles.
That’s where I met my co-founder, Armando Salgado. His deep knowledge of construction combined with my expertise in technology and business growth allowed us to create a platform that genuinely solves the challenges contractors face.
And I’m still learning. I believe that being a lifelong learner is essential as an entrepreneur. Every day is an opportunity to grow, adapt, and improve.
Another major challenge is funding. Building a startup takes resources, and while we’ve made significant progress, securing funding is always a hurdle. That’s why this grant is so important—it’s helping us move faster, reach more contractors, and refine our platform to make an even bigger impact.
When we started the pilot, it was meant to be a one-month experiment to test how well Build Más could help small contractors with their estimating needs. But now, three months later, they’re still working with us, even before the product's official launch.
Making Progress
Our company’s “biggest win” so far has been working with our paid pilot customers—and having them recommend us to other contractors.
When we started the pilot, it was meant to be a one-month experiment to test how well Build Más could help small contractors with their estimating needs.
But now, three months later, they’re still working with us, even before the product’s official launch.
It’s one thing to build a product; it’s another to have paying customers who trust it enough to recommend it to others.
Their feedback has been invaluable in refining Build Más before launch, and their continued engagement reinforces that we are on the right path to making a meaningful impact in the industry.
Reaching new milestones, such as acquiring customers and preparing our go-to-market launch, is exciting and validates our company’s vision.
As we receive more support, we can empower more Hispanic contractors with the tools and technologies to be successful.
It’s a win-win.
We’re excited to continue to learn and grow to serve our clients in Nebraska and beyond.
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