$30 Million Company w/ Half Ex-Convicts (w/ Scott Gates)
On this episode, Darren sits down with Scott Gates (President of Awake Window & Door Co.) to discuss his company’s bold hiring model: more than half its workforce is made up of formerly incarcerated individuals.
Darren Shearer sits down with Scott Gates, president of Awake Window and Door Company, to explore how faith drives a business built on redemption and second chances. After leaving his corporate role in 2020, Gates founded Awake — a $30 million window and door manufacturer where over half the workforce is made up of formerly incarcerated individuals. Rooted in the belief that everyone deserves dignity through work, Awake helps break cycles of recidivism by offering purpose and employment to those society often overlooks. Guided by Christian principles and a mission-first mindset, Gates has created a thriving culture of gratitude, accountability, and hope — proving that profit and purpose can coexist. Through partnerships, retention success, and stories of transformation, Awake reflects Gates’s conviction that business can be both a ministry and a movement for change.
Key Takeaways 💡
- Faith at Work – Scott Gates’ Mission of Redemption – After decades in manufacturing, Scott Gates felt called to fuse business with ministry, founding Awake Window and Door Company to give second chances to the formerly incarcerated through meaningful work and restoration.
- From Profit to Purpose – Realizing employment was the key to breaking cycles of recidivism, Gates built Awake around a simple truth: people need “Jesus and a job.” More than half his workforce are ex-offenders whose gratitude and loyalty have transformed the company’s culture and success.
- Building God’s Kingdom Through Business – By uniting excellence with empathy, Awake has grown into a $30 million enterprise proving that faith-led leadership and high performance aren’t opposites. Gates’s story challenges business leaders to see hiring as discipleship — and work as worship
Christian Business Leader is the show for marketplace Christians seeking to explore and apply God’s will for business. If you want to learn more about how to do business for the glory of God and shape culture through discipling the business world, this show is for you.
BIG THANKS to this episode’s sponsor: High Bridge Books
High Bridge Books helps Christ-centered authors build a legacy by crafting and publishing messages and stories that glorify God in all spheres of culture.
- High Bridge Books’ professional book publishing package: https://www.highbridgebooks.com/publishing/
- High Bridge Books’ proofreading, line editing, developmental editing, and co-writing services: https://www.highbridgebooks.com/editing-and-proofreading/
- Examples of our books: https://www.highbridgebooks.com/bookstore/
We’re extremely proud that …
- 45% percent of our 204 books under contract were written by authors who have published more than one book with us, and
- 51% percent of our books under contract were referred to us by authors who have previously published with us.
Contact High Bridge Books’ CEO Darren Shearer at [email protected] to get a conversation going about your book!
