Misha Panchishak is the owner and face of WinniDesigns on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. Misha continually inspires his millions of followers with bathroom contracting and building content uploaded daily. Architessa had the pleasure of interviewing Misha about how sharing his work as a contractor on social media changed his life.

"I want people to know that construction is intellectual, fun, and you can get paid well in any field. Being a contractor is a creatively fulfilling career, and I love inspiring others to see that. If I can shine a positive light on construction, that's the impact I want to have."

Where were you born?

"I was born in Ivano-Frankovsk, Western Ukraine, and I lived there until I was 12 years old."

Can you tell me about your family growing up and now?

"I was very close with my grandparents. I lived with them in their village, herding animals on their farm. My father moved to the U.S. for a couple of years before we were all able to come. I have three brothers, a mom, and a dad. I'm the middle child."

"My dad was an orthopedic surgeon in Ukraine, and my mom was a nurse in Ukraine. After moving to the U.S., my mom worked as a cleaning woman, and my father found work as a carpenter - giving up their valued careers for their children's futures. My older brother is a dental technician, and one of my younger brothers is a civil engineer. My youngest brother is in college for business."

"I have two kids with my wonderful wife, Catherine. My 4-year-old son's name is Oak; he was born on Halloween. My younger son is named Lev, and he's just starting to talk. I moved from New York to New Hampshire to focus more on the family."

How has your background shaped your career?

"When we came to the U.S., we only had $300 to our name. We helped my mom clean houses after school and on weekends. The Ukrainian community was strong in our area - I learned construction, painting, and other cash jobs to help my parents."

"I went to college for civil engineering and dropped out during my senior year to start a construction business in New York. I was 22 years old, chasing big jobs and hiring many people. Office jobs were not for me. My first company went bankrupt because a G.C. screwed us over."

How did you start WinniDesigns?

"Catherine and I started WinniDesigns after moving to New Hampshire, and it's been perfect for us. The name WinniDesigns comes from the lake we live near."

"My wife Catherine worked in school admissions at a private school in New York. She focuses on the design and has excellent communication skills - That's her superpower. The husband and wife duo was and still is popular. That's how we started WinniDesigns."

When did you start utilizing social media, and how has that experience been so far?

"Before COVID really escalated in 2020, I listened to an entrepreneur/motivational speaker on a podcast, and he kept talking about TikTok. I said screw it - I'm going to do it, and I committed."

"My first viral video was about a cat in a hardware store with 90,000 views. My account started growing, and I got on the Tea with Gary Vee podcast. I dedicate 3-4 hours a day to social media. I haven't missed a day of posting on TikTok for a year since April 2020 - I'll have 2 million followers this week! I took over Instagram on Christmas, and now we have a huge organic following that continues to grow."

What are some of your pet peeves?

"I hate when people ruin my hard work with an ugly paint color..."

What do you love about your job?

"I love the actual tiling process of a shower - I use an artistic approach. It's cool because eventually, someone will be standing a foot away and staring at my work often (if they shower often). I love working with designers like Catherine, who provide challenging and beautiful work in terms of design."

"I want people to know that construction is intellectual, fun, and you can get paid well in any field. Being a contractor is a creatively fulfilling career, and I love inspiring others to see that. If I can shine a positive light on construction, that's the impact I want to have."

What's your go-to karaoke song?

"The ABCs - I sing this to my kids before they go to sleep."

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Architessa appreciates contractors, builders, and designers like Misha who make our trade possible. Leave a comment below if you have thoughts on this interview!