DJ Smith runs a business built on a single truth: you only get one shot a year to get it right. As the founder of Holiday & Harvest Tree Farm in Austin, he operates in a world where Christmas isn’t a season — it’s a high-stakes sprint that determines the entire year.

DJ Talks About:

• Running a seasonal, zero-margin-for-error business where one weekend can make or break everything.

• How growing up between entertainment and education shaped his work ethic and creativity.

• Starting at the bottom in his father’s business — and learning nothing is handed to you.

• Door-to-door sales in 116° heat and the humility and grit it taught him.

• Building a Christmas tree lot focused on experience, loyalty, and family magic.

• The behind-the-scenes reality of flying in trees, forecasting demand, and surviving seasonal pressure.

• Using the business as a way to give back — because holidays are joyful for some and painful for others.