Building a Modern Brand With Community and AI, with Fourth Generation Retailer Meg Walbridge, Taylor's Do it Center

Want proof that local retail can be both high-tech and deeply human? We sat down with Meg Taylor, a fourth-generation leader behind 21 hardware stores in Virginia, to unpack how a family business blends community events, clear messaging, and practical AI to save time, grow sales, and earn lasting loyalty. Her journey, from Capitol Hill to marketing services to advocacy, builds a toolkit any independent retailer can use without losing the warmth that keeps neighbors coming back.

We dig into the shift from traditional buys to digital storytelling, where a simple annual Santa-and-trees event becomes a flywheel: content that resonates across generations, traffic that feeds relationships, and a brand memory that outlasts discounts. Meg explains how segmenting custom GPTs makes everyday work easier: writing cleaner emails, building OSHA-aligned training checklists, drafting social captions, and setting a consistent voice for internal updates. The result is fewer late nights behind the computer and more time on the floor with customers and teams.

We also talk about lowering the barrier to entry with playful experiments, like turning a family photo into a coloring page or testing new image editing tools that didn’t exist two weeks ago. The mindset is simple: try it, segment it, measure it, and keep what works. 

If you’re building an unmistakable brand in the built world, this conversation will give you concrete ways to earn trust, create shareable moments, and streamline the busywork. 

Topics we covered:
• Fourth-generation hardware and 21 stores across Virginia
• Lessons from Capitol Hill, media, and advocacy shaping leadership
• Moving from traditional to digital marketing with purpose
• Community events as memory makers and traffic drivers
• Practical AI via custom GPTs for HR, training, and content
• Segmenting tools to speed work and keep tone consistent
• Photo and imaging tools as low-risk onramps to adoption
• Focus on freeing time for staff and customers
• Spring buying context and coastal lifestyle touchpoints

Watch the Video Version

Catch this episode of The Grit Blueprint Podcast on YouTube:
👉 Stefanie Couch on YouTube

Subscribe to Built to Win

Get exclusive insights, tools, and updates from Grit Blueprint, designed to help you lead and win in the building industry.
👉 Subscribe to Built to Win

Connect with Stefanie Couch & Grit Blueprint

Grit Website: GritBlueprint.com
YouTube: Stefanie Couch
Instagram: @StefanieCouchOfficial
LinkedIn: Stefanie Couch
Stefanie’s Website: StefanieCouch.com

👉 What Is Grit Blueprint?

Grit Blueprint is a media and growth company for the building industry. We help ambitious businesses in the building materials and construction industries grow through visibility, storytelling media, and smart systems.

👉 Book a Strategy Call

...

Chapters

• 0:00 Cold Open: Why This Matters Now
• 0:37 Host Intro And Show Promise
• 1:30 Meet Meg And The Family Business
• 3:10 Career Path: Hill, Media, Advocacy
• 4:09 Digital Shift And Community Events
• 6:17 Sponsor And Market Floor Context
• 7:37 Practical AI: Custom GPTs And Training
• 9:30 Photo AI, Fast Tech, Try-It Mindset
• 11:16 Categories, Coast Life, And Family
• 12:46 Next Steps: Panels, Takeaways, CTA

Transcript

Stefanie Couch: 0:00

This is something that you can use today in your store to help you make more money, to help you sell more product, and have lifelong fans of customers.

Meg Walbridge: 0:08

It makes you spend less time behind the computer and more with your employees and your customers. Absolutely right. I actually really liked your session yesterday. We are pretty active using Chat GPT, even though I'm using it. There's just different tools that you use that I thought were fascinating.

Stefanie Couch: 0:24

The biggest thing with AI that I want people to know is it's not gonna go away and you should try it and just see what happens. It doesn't always have to be some epic thing for work that you're doing. Sometimes it's just to keep your four-year-old happy. Yeah. Welcome to the Grit Blueprint Podcast, the playbook for building unmistakable brands that grow, lead, and last in the built world. I'm Stephanie Couch, the founder of Grit Blueprint. And I'm a lifelong building industry insider. I was raised here, built my career here, and now my team and I help others win here. The truth is, you can be the best option in your space and still lose to someone else who simply shows up better and more consistently. Each week on the Grit Blueprint, I'm going to show you how to stand out, earn trust, and turn your brand into a competitive advantage that lasts. If you're ready to be seen, known, chosen, and become unmistakable, you're in the right place. Let's get started. Welcome to the Grit Blueprint Podcast. I'm your host, Stephanie Couch, and today I'm here on the market floor in Indianapolis with my friend Meg. Meg, welcome to the show. Thank you for having me. And I'm excited to talk to you because you are also a born and raised lumberyard, well, hardware store girl. I'm a lumberyard girl, hardware store, but you're a hardware girl. And we both left our family businesses and went out into the world and did other things. And then you came back and you're now working at the family business. So tell me a little bit about the businesses and tell me a little bit about you.

Meg Walbridge: 2:05

Yeah. So we have um Taylor's Do It Centers and Pleasants Hardware in Virginia. Um the Taylor stores are in kind of coastal Virginia, and then the Pleasant Stores are in Richmond, Virginia. Um we have 21 locations. Wow. So it's you guys, there's cool five of us in the fourth generation now involved, and it's cool. It's fun. That is cool. So do y'all all divide and conquer, do different things at different stores? Yeah, luckily we are all in different roles, which is wonderful. Um, and then we have a lot of great, great team members who have been with us forever.

Stefanie Couch: 2:34

I'm sure 21 stores. That's that's a lot of stores to to wrangle. I love that. But like we said, you actually went to college and then you went off and did some other things. I think that learning skills in a different industry or outside of the family business, it's actually a really great tool. I feel like I learned so much of what I was able to implement in my life because I did some other things. But you actually took an even more interesting path. You went to Capitol Hill.

Meg Walbridge: 3:05

So tell me about your time in DC. I think it's so interesting for me because I never thought I would actually come back and work for the family business. It was always an and something I was interested in, but I kind of wanted to take my own path. But it's interesting how it's led me back here in some ways. Because I worked on Capitol Hill for the congressman from our area. So it was serving the same people we serve our customers. And then I left and went to Hanley Wood, which is in the same industry that we're now in. Yeah with the building, remodeling, construction industry. And I worked on their marketing services team. Wow. And then from there I went to back somewhat into government with advocacy advocacy communications with the Wine and Spirits wholesalers of America. Okay. Which is interesting because it's the distributor tier. Okay. So kind of learned that distribution side. And that tier of alcohol, it's all family-owned businesses. Oh, wow. So working with them and being a part of that really made me realize that I wanted to come back and and do what I was doing there, but with my family.

Stefanie Couch: 4:06

So you come back to the family business in what year? 2017. Okay.

Meg Walbridge: 4:10

So you've been back for eight years.

Stefanie Couch: 4:12

And what was your first job when you came back?

Meg Walbridge: 4:14

Mostly social media, digital media, um, kind of taking us back from the traditional stuff that we'd been doing for a long time and realigning that to what's working now and taking some of that, but also looking heavily towards the digital path.

Stefanie Couch: 4:31

It's always innovating on social media because what works today may not work tomorrow. They love to mess with the algorithm. Like, come on, guys, give me a few minutes. Yeah, I know. And it changes so much. It is crazy. It really is hard to keep up with for sure. But we see a lot now that the generations that are coming in, they love the social media posts. But I also see, I mean, there's a lot of Facebook posts that I see that go viral. And oh yeah, it's all generations that are watching. What have you found that people find the most interesting? You know, like what's working that you think is like really cool, even though you're not necessarily doing that day to day. But what do you guys think? Content-wise? Yeah, or just in your stores, you know, experiences that people love.

Meg Walbridge: 5:12

I know you do a lot of interesting stuff. Yeah, I mean, definitely the community events. We have one in particular that we do every year. It's a Santa event for our tailor stores, and that's with Christmas trees. We have vendors come out, grilling demos, Santa Claus. Yeah. And that's just a community event that we've really enjoyed. Someone in the family Santa Claus. No. It should be though. I feel like I think it should be Joe.

Stefanie Couch: 5:33

I feel like it should be Joe for sure. Yeah. I think that it's really cool when people have events because I remember going to things like this as a child. I'm sure you went to your own family events as a child at the hardware stores. Yeah. And there's something that sticks with you. You know, I know you have two young kids. I'm sure they love those events. Oh, they love it. And it's fun to have them there with us because it's what we did growing up. Yeah, absolutely. That's fun. Well, and we got to get them ready to be the fifth generation, right? Oh, yeah. Absolutely. You better teach these. They're both girls, right? Oh, yeah, both girls. Teach these everything you know about hardware and selling tools and all the things. That's awesome. So eight years ago you came back, and I know you've done a lot since. You actually have a lot of things you do in the business. So tell me about your day-to-day now.

Meg Walbridge: 6:15

So my day-to-day is a probably similar to a lot of family businesses. It's a little mix of everything. But my primary role was communications and social media. Um, and then a lot of marketing. Um, but now I've taken on a RHR right now, and that's kind of a transitional role that's been going on for a year. So we'll see how long I stay in that. Social media and HR is stretchy.

Stefanie Couch: 6:41

Yeah. Uh, can't see myself doing that. No, there's a little rules in HR. And social media is kind of not having rules, so it's a little bit of a different, different mode there. Yeah. Well, I love your spirit of just jumping in and helping, though. And that's kind of what independent business is, right? Yeah.

Meg Walbridge: 6:55

Yeah. Exactly. When things change, we all just kind of jump in where we can, and it's nice that we have so many people that are willing to help.

Stefanie Couch: 7:02

Yeah, for sure. This episode of the Grit Blueprint Podcast was sponsored by Do It Best Group. Do it best group is the largest co-op in the world, and they help independent hardware and lumber yards all over North America win. Do It Best offers services, products, and people that can help you win long term. They are the champion of independence. Well, we're here at the Do It Best Market, and you have a family history, obviously, long ties with Do It Best, and you've had a lot of years of, I'm sure, coming to these markets. What's exciting to you? Have you seen anything super cool or something that you really thought was awesome, or are they doing anything that's exciting you right now? Um, I actually really liked your session yesterday.

Meg Walbridge: 7:47

Thank you. We are pretty active using Chat GPT, even though I'm using it. There's just different tools that you use that I thought were fascinating. So what what I'm curious, which tools did you like? I guess the different GPTs, I just use it, yeah. Type in whatever I needed that day and just have kind of built it that way. Yeah. But segmenting them I thought was really cool.

Stefanie Couch: 8:08

Absolutely. And I I will say, so, you know, what we're talking about, I did a session on AI yesterday, and we were talking about chat GPT, which is by far the thing I use the most. But it within that, you can create a custom GPT for, I mean, you could create hundreds of them if you wanted. So if you wanted to have one just for writing LinkedIn posts or just for writing an email, or um, you know, all of the things that I like to do with the comparison and using it like a coach, that's something that I find is the most valuable.

Meg Walbridge: 8:37

Absolutely. And because it goes back to like messaging back to employees and then different to customers, absolutely kind of building out what you want to say there. But we've even used it everything from marketing to like compliance with OSHIS and making our own certifications for employees and making sure that we're hitting those. It's yeah, it's been awesome.

Stefanie Couch: 8:56

It's a great training tool. Um, you should definitely try with those custom GPTs. It gets a little crazy if you have too many documents and that knowledge. Yeah. And you want to be doing HR and social media. So I would definitely segment them for sure. I love if your HR GPT started writing your social media post. Actually, that's probably a really good idea. We should write your social media post if your HR lady did it like a meme. That would be hilarious. I think that's a really good idea. We just came up with actually awesome. Um, so I think if you did it with different segmentations on your GPTs, though, and you were able to test it and see how I would love to see what your content metrics were based on like writing a certain way or you know, using a certain thing to see what you do. And your team is your team using it? I'm curious, always curious.

Meg Walbridge: 9:46

I think there are there's definitely several people in our office that use it. Um, I know our IT manager is big into it too. Yeah. And then obviously our family members. Yeah. For different areas because it works from everything from inventory management to IT.

Stefanie Couch: 10:00

So have you ever played with the photo imaging, like actually making photo images from it or using it to edit photos? Somewhat. I actually used it last week.

Meg Walbridge: 10:10

I had a photo of my daughter, yeah, and had it turn into a coloring page.

Stefanie Couch: 10:14

Oh, that's so that was the best. Yeah. I mean, that's the thing is it doesn't always have to be some epic thing for work that you're doing. Sometimes it's just to keep your four-year-old happy. Yeah. I love that. Well, there's a new technology called Nano Banana that's um Google came out with, and it's an editing for photos and stuff. And my creative director messaged me yesterday and sent me, she's like, I know you're really busy at the show, but I just need to tell you that I'm having an absolute moment because I just did this and she sent me something. It's unbelievable. And two weeks ago, that wasn't possible. So I think the biggest thing with AI that I want people to know is it's not gonna go away, and you should try it and just see what happens. It's not gonna hurt anything. There's very little that you could break. You can't really break it. Yeah. So I'm excited to hear back how you use it. You'll have to send me something from your your I will, I will. Once I segment them out. Yes. Make sure you send it from your HR GPT. It seems like that's the one that's not gonna be us naturally. Yeah. I always ask uh mine to tell me to be nice, don't sound too rude, but be firm. You know, you're telling it exactly how to nuance the languaging. Well, from your family business's perspective, are there any uh products or categories that you guys are here? So it's a small market, but you're mostly buying for spring. Do you guys have a big outdoor living section and any resource? So you guys have, I'm sure you're at Virgin Virginia Beach. Do you sell surfboards?

Meg Walbridge: 11:44

We don't, but we did use to sell Hobie surfboards. I think I believe my dad probably touch on that. But yeah, that was I think they were the first Hobie surfboard dealer on the East Coast, but don't quote me on that. That's cool. Dad, sir. Oh, yeah. Really?

Stefanie Couch: 12:00

Okay, well, I'm definitely gonna double clip on that. He surfs and sails boat, or does this he told me last night about the sailing when we were talking at dinner, and that's super interesting. What do you like to do for fun? I know you have two daughters, so you're probably pretty busy.

Meg Walbridge: 12:14

Yeah, I guess just spending time with my friends when I get the chance. That's really what I love to do. And then I do play golf a little bit. Oh yeah, okay. Well, he was talking about do you keep up with him on the course? No, no, no, no, no. He's evidently a we're on this there, but that's kind of mostly I'm with my girls. That's awesome. And what do they like to do? They love to go to the park, go to the pool, and then we do the beach a lot, which is mostly with my parents too.

Stefanie Couch: 12:39

It's amazing. Well, I love that. Well, I'm excited to see number one, how this HR social media twin roll plays out for you. Gotta segment it out. And I'm also excited to continue to collaborate because I would love to see you at the at the spring market. I would love that. Maybe we'll do a panel. If you test out this AI stuff, let's do a panel on how this works in your life. Because that's the thing is I want to know and show people that this is not some weird thing that tech people that spend hours and hours doing research use. This is something that you can use today in your store to help you make more money, to help you sell more product and have lifelong fans of customers.

Meg Walbridge: 13:19

And spent like it makes you spend less time behind the computer and more with your employees and your customers. Absolutely right.

Stefanie Couch: 13:26

Yeah.

Meg Walbridge: 13:26

More efficient. For sure.

Stefanie Couch: 13:28

Well, thank you for joining me on the I will see you soon. Sounds good. Thank you. Thank you for listening to the Grit Blueprint podcast. If this episode helped you think a little differently about how to show up, share it with someone in your building world who needs it. If you're ready to turn visibility into growth, then head to gritblueprint.com to learn more and book a call to talk to us about your growth strategy. Until next time, stay unmistakable.