About Us

What's something exciting our business? How we came to be.   

Stephen Groce, is a Father of 3, has an MBA from Trident University International in Strategic Leadership, is a 2017 graduated Fellow of the SD Regional Chamber of Commerce Public Leadership Institute, and most recently he received a Professional Development Certificate from Duke University in Visual Perception and the Brain. He's a business owner, who is a volunteer centrist, and believes in people over profit grounded in fiscal responsibility.

 Stephen Groce's career started out in retail and commercial Loss Prevention with companies such as Sport Chalet, Anna’s Linens, and L.L. Bean to name a few. He held roles at the Executive to mid-manager levels within each. Then in 2008, at the height of the economic crises, He was laid off. The interesting thing about the situation is that on the same day at the exact moment that HR was informing him that he was going to be laid off, his wife called to tell him she was pregnant with their first child. At that moment, he couldn’t be happy or sad. 

On the bright side, the company cared enough for him that they provided him a generous severance package, approved his unemployment, and gave him a great reference. This allowed him to concentrate on his “honey do” list in preparation for their new arrival. Nine months passed, and their son was born. Stephen then spent the next six months as a stay-at-home father and took the opportunity to re-invest in himself by continuing his education. He returned to the workforce when his son was around seven months but after about two months he had a moment one night while playing with my son’s cute baby feet when he realized that working in Loss Prevention wouldn’t allow him to create the life he wanted for his new family.

Stephen's son and his baby feet were the inspiration for the company he wanted to create.  The company was then BUILT By PN Industries, Inc., BUILT is an acronym for Brands for Utility, Interaction, Learning & Thought. Since then, two daughters have inspired other brands and projects. The corporation operates two separate divisions; one in products with 6 supporting brands and the other in services. Stephen was quoted saying, "While I really enjoyed the work I did in retail, I love the chance to dig in much deeper with one of our brands, which is why I’m so excited about this opportunity to share it with you."