What does it take to build a thriving business at 20 years old out of a converted school bus, with no bank loan, and a product almost nobody was making?

In this episode of The TrustBuilt Podcast, host Alan Bennett sits down with Stella Rodda, founder of Zenith Coffee Company, a mobile coffee business built on one bold premise: coffee that's actually good for your body.

Together, Alan and Stella dig into what it really means to build a team you can trust, why hiring for personality beats hiring for a résumé, and how systems and vulnerability can coexist in a tiny mobile workspace. Alan also unpacks the three pillars of trust — clarity, connection, and consistency — and how Stella is already applying them without even realizing it.

👉 If you're a business owner who's doing everything yourself and wondering how to step back without things falling apart, this episode is for you.

Learn more about how TrustBuilt helps business owners build trust-driven teams: trustbuiltsolutions.com

⏱️ Chapters

0:30 – Welcome & Intro: What Is Zenith Coffee Company?

2:25 – The Concept: Coffee That's Actually Good for Your Body

3:16 – How She Funded It

8:27 – Alan's Three Buckets

11:27 – The Trust Challenge: Handing Your Business Off to Other People

13:04 – Understanding Your Behavioral Style as a Leader

15:47 – Why Most Hiring Posts Attract the Wrong People

21:46 – How Zenith Got 150 Applications in 4 Hours

24:11 – Monthly Meetings, Feedback Loops & Leaning Into Strengths

26:59 – The Three Pillars of Trust: Clarity, Connection & Consistency

28:55 – Why Recognition Can Backfire (and How to Get It Right)

33:24 – The Missing Piece in Most Onboarding Processes

37:30 – Employee Engagement: Communicating Constraints to Your Team

41:29 – How Stella's Team Solves Problems Together

44:13 – Exit Planning, Business Value & Reducing Owner Dependence

47:26 – Where to Find Zenith Coffee Co

Connect with Stella & Zenith Coffee

🌐 https://www.zenithcoffeeco.com/

💻 https://www.linkedin.com/in/stella-rodda-a9a440204/