This $15K/Person Grant Feels Like a Cheat Code

Happy Friday!

In case you forgot, I’m that guy (@thekoerneroffice on the socials) that you probably found in a short form video talking about random business ideas.

In today’s newsletter, I’m spilling the beans on a government grant cheat code, that anyway can use, and is making my friend Hector very rich.

Who am I? I’m Chris Koerner: Dad of 4, husband of 16 years and proud Texan. I’ve started 75+ business (3 worth over $10m) and give away all of my learnings for free in a once/week email.

In this weekly newsletter I get super tactical about cool, random business ideas and how to launch them. You’re getting this email because I gave you a free business plan and toolkit («-bookmark this!)

Let’s get to it, shall we?

On Wednesday I released a podcast with a guest that really fired me up.

(But first, I’m hosting a webinar on franchising this Tuesday at 4pm CST. Join us!)

This guest, my neighbor, Hector, talked about a multi-million dollar opportunity that has a low barrier to entry, but people walk past every single day. Oh, and it also makes the world a better place.

It’s great for people starting a new business, and it’s really great for people that already own a business in certain industries.

Hector stumbled into this opportunity purely by accident… Then scaled it to $2.4 Million in his first year completely on government grants. With a zero dollar marketing budget.

It started with a random phone call. A little curiosity. And now he helps people build businesses that leverage government funding to solve real problems.

And if you’d rather watch me talk to him about how he runs his businesses or to soak up all this information as a podcast, you can check it out here: Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts.

Okay, get this:

For every five skilled tradespeople who retire, currently only one person is getting trained to replace them.

The country is hemorrhaging electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians, and pest control specialists faster than we can train new ones.

The government knows this is a crisis. That’s why they've allocated billions of dollars to fix it through grants that pay entrepreneurs $5,000 to $15,000 every time they train someone for a trade job.

The students don't pay a dime. Uncle Sam cuts the checks.

Most business owners have never heard of this system. And the ones who have think it's too complicated or sounds like a scam.

That's exactly why it's such a goldmine for the few who figure it out.

The Step-by-Step Money Machine:

Step 1: Find a white-label course

Companies create comprehensive training programs for every trade imaginable. We're talking complete curricula with videos, tests, certifications - everything you need to teach someone a skill from scratch.

HVAC repair. Medical billing and coding. Pharmacy technician. IT help desk. Pest control. Pool maintenance. Solar installation. The list goes on.

These course companies sell their programs to anyone who wants to start a school. Cost ranges from $300 to $800 per complete course package. You're essentially buying a business-in-a-box.

Step 2: Buy the course and rebrand it

You purchase the white-label course and slap your school name on it. That's it. You now legally own a trade school curriculum.

The course company has already done the heavy lifting - created all the content, structured the learning modules, designed the tests. You just put your branding on top and you're ready to teach.

Some of Hector's clients started with courses they knew nothing about. One guy bought an appliance repair course, took it himself for the first time after five years of selling it, and ended up fixing his own HVAC unit for 20 bucks.

Step 3: Find qualified students

Here's where it gets interesting. The WIOA grant (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act) targets specific groups of people:

• Anyone who's been laid off from their job

• People currently on food stamps

• Anyone impacted by the justice system

• Workers displaced by trade or technology changes

• Low-income individuals seeking better opportunities

These aren't hard-to-find people. They're everywhere. The challenge is most don't even know these grants exist.

Hector found his students by going directly to the sources:

• Churches and religious organizations

• Women's shelters and recovery centers

• Workforce development offices

• Community nonprofits

• Unemployment offices

Step 4: Government pays you directly

Check out the WIOA (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act) grants in your area. Every state has different regions, and every region treats the grant independently. That means different payment amounts:

• Central Texas: $7,500 per student maximum

• Some areas pay as low as $5,000

• Others go as high as $15,000

• Payment depends on the trade and regional demand

The government cuts you a check for each student who completes your program.
Not enrolls - completes. So you have skin in the game to actually help people succeed.

The trick is it must be a job title with the word “technician” in the name. If it’s a job title that they haven’t funded before you just have to be able to justify it.

The Real Numbers Breakdown:

Buy medical billing course: $500
Government pays you per graduate: $7,500
Train 10 students per month = $70,000 profit
Train 20 students per month = $140,000 profit

And you can run multiple courses simultaneously. HVAC, medical billing, pest control, solar technician. Each one generating $5,000 to $15,000 per completed student.

One of Hector's clients was charging students $2,000 out of pocket for nursing courses. Half couldn't pay her back. She switched to the government grant system, raised her price to $9,999 (because that's what the grant covered), and went from $25,000 a month to $150,000 a month.

Same courses. Same students. But the government pays.

It’s a Goldmine Nobody is Seeing:

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That’s because their data is so good. I can tell exactly how many of you made it to this part of the email. I can see exactly which links readers click. Track which emails actually drive sales. It’s ridiculous.

beehiiv is the newsletter platform I’ve used for over a year and a half, because of this data... well for multiple reasons… but especially because of that.

The A/B testing picks winners automatically. The analytics dashboard gives me business intelligence, not just vanity metrics. Most newsletter platforms tell you basic open rates and call it a day. beehiiv shows you what actually matters for growing a business.

Use the link beehiiv.com/chris for 30% off 3 months. You know I only recommend stuff that actually works. That’s why, every time you get this newsletter, it's powered by beehiiv. Also- after reading this newsletter go check out the case study they wrote about me!

Okay this is crazy. Apparently there's one masonry school in the entire state of Arizona. ONE. And there’s only one in-person appliance repair school in the entire state of Texas. Meanwhile every city has about 47 coding bootcamps.

The demand for skilled techs is insane. Hector told me about a dishwasher repair guy who learned everything from YouTube. Charges $450 for 15-minute fixes. Books out six to eight weeks in advance.

The government has billions allocated for this. The courses already exist. The students are desperately looking for opportunities. So why isn't everyone doing this?

You’ve got two ways to get into it:

Option 1: Start From Scratch 
Easy states: Texas, Arizona, Montana, Arkansas, Missouri. You can start selling courses to paying customers immediately while waiting for grant approval.

Hard states: California, Florida, New York. Two-year wait times. Rough. But that also means way fewer competitors.

Option 2: Add to Existing Business 
Already own a business that struggles to find good employees? Start your own training program. Get paid by the government to train your future workforce. Keep the best. Refer the rest.

The Action Plan:

1. Pick your trade. Look at what's in demand in your area. Check job boards. What has the most openings?

2. Find white-label courses. Google "white label [your trade] training courses." Compare prices.

3. Research your state requirements. Every state is different. Some take weeks. Some take years.

4. Start building your referral network. Churches. Workforce development centers. Nonprofits. Anyone who works with people who need job training.

5. Set up your systems. CRM. Sales scripts. Email campaigns. Most trade school owners are tradespeople, not business owners. That's your advantage.

Okay, you’ve maybe dismissed franchising as too rigid or too salesy.

But what if it quietly solves the biggest headaches of starting a business from scratch? And if it does… what tradeoffs are you making?

To open your eyes to a different way to start a business, I’m helping to host a webinar that breaks down the actual numbers, not opinions. 

Come get into it with me and Connor Groce: This upcoming Tuesday, Aug 19 at 3 CT / 4 ET. 

Link is here. RSVP now! It’s going to be great!

Why This Matters Beyond the Money

Here's what gets me fired up about this opportunity. We desperately need more tradespeople in every sector. Again, for every five who retire, only one is getting replaced. We're facing a massive skills shortage that's only getting worse.

When you start one of these schools, you're not just building a business - you're literally changing lives. Hector's goal was always to bring awareness to these grants and get people off government benefits into livable wages. The average graduate makes $25 to $30 an hour. That's life-changing money for someone stuck in warehouse work, retail, or fast food.

And here's the beautiful part- and probably why I like Hector so much. This business opportunity is a true win-win. The government gets people off food stamps and into taxpaying jobs. Important technical jobs get filled. Students get valuable skills and better careers. And you build a profitable business solving a real problem.

The infrastructure already exists. The white-label courses are sitting there waiting. The government funding is allocated and ready. The students are desperately looking for opportunities to better their lives.

There's literally no excuse not to explore this. The barriers to entry are lower than almost any other business model, the profit margins are insane, and you're actually making the world a better place while you do it.

This isn't some get-rich-quick scheme. It's a legitimate way to build wealth while solving one of the biggest problems facing our economy today.

The Bottom Line

People will always need their AC fixed. Their pools cleaned. Their trucks driven. But the people who know how to do this work are aging out faster than we can replace them.

Smart entrepreneurs will bridge that gap. The government will pay you handsomely to do it. It's about building a real business that solves a real problem. While getting paid by Uncle Sam to do it.

Everything is figureoutable if you put a little time and curiosity into it. Even government grants.

Again, if you want to actually want to watch this conversation or listen to this as a podcast, you can check it out here: Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts.

And if you’re as excited about this as I am: you can contact Hector himself here.

Let's get after it!

Chris

P.S. I share deep dives on business ideas and complete playbooks three times a week on YouTube and every podcast platform.