A private investor and construction company founder, Yvonne Hermina-Biebel ran Milford, Connecticut’s J. Frederick Construction alongside her husband and mother-in-law between 1993 and 2013. Under her guidance, the company completed numerous design-and-build projects for notable clients, including Hasbro, Mohegan Sun Casino, M&M’s, Six Flags, and Hershey Foods. Yvonne Hermina-Biebel also managed a variety of projects throughout New York City, ranging from the production of more than 1,100 flood control boxes for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to work for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The company also completed jobs for the Mayor’s Office of New York City.
Yvonne Hermina-Biebel drew on her experiences at J. Frederick Construction during her 13-year tenure as the head of Art Metal Industry (AMI) in Brookfield, Connecticut. She continued to acquire and complete projects throughout NYC, including several as a licensed MTA design-and-build firm. She oversaw the completion of interior construction projects for several celebrity bars and restaurants, prototyped various flood control devices for the MTA, and developed award-winning city benches, among other projects.
Moreover, Yvonne Hermina-Biebel is an active car hobbyist. She has shown cars at all of the nation’s major concourses and established a children’s restoration and repair program at the Saratoga Automobile Museum. She has also donated to the Antique Automobile Club of America.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
I have a daily routine that starts and ends with my dog, Scarlett. The time in between is divided between personal care and business interests—managing Yvonne’s Attic Collectibles, overseeing real estate investments, and staying active. Structure creates productivity. Knowing what anchors your day frees mental energy for the work that matters.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I study the idea in my head first, then put it on paper. Whether sourcing rare automobilia for a museum or designing a custom man-cave installation, the process is the same: think it through completely before taking action. The paper stage forces clarity—if you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.
What’s one trend that excites you?
Getting up every morning and starting my day with a positive attitude, making the best of the day. After surviving pancreatic cancer and building businesses across multiple industries, I’ve learned that outlook determines outcome. The trend I value most is choosing optimism deliberately, not waiting for circumstances to justify it.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
A positive attitude, no matter what happened yesterday. A new day means new beginnings. This isn’t naive optimism—it’s practical discipline. Carrying yesterday’s frustrations into today’s work guarantees diminished results. I stay healthy with Zumba and water aerobics, tend my garden, and approach each day as a fresh opportunity.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Finish school and continue my education to meet the goals I had promised myself. Education compounds over time in ways that are difficult to appreciate when you’re young. The formal credential matters less than the discipline of completing what you start and the knowledge you accumulate along the way.
Tell us something you believe that almost nobody agrees with you on.
Relying on my gut feeling. In an age of data-driven everything, trusting intuition is unfashionable. But after 35 years of collecting and dealing in antiques, automobilia, and petroliana, I’ve learned that gut feelings are often pattern recognition operating below conscious awareness. When something feels wrong about a deal or a piece, it usually is.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Trust in yourself. Building businesses as a female and Hispanic minority-owned enterprise in construction and manufacturing required believing in my capabilities when external validation was scarce. Self-trust isn’t arrogance—it’s the foundation that allows you to take necessary risks and recover from inevitable setbacks.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
Meditate and keep to myself. Solitude creates space for processing. The instinct when overwhelmed is often to seek input from others, but sometimes the most productive response is to step back, be quiet, and let your own thinking clarify itself.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
Keep going and doing. Don’t give up no matter what. Yesterday is gone; tomorrow you can always change the outcome. At J. Frederick Construction, we grew to 125 employees. At Art Metal Industry, we became the top custom metals company in our region. Neither happened overnight. Consistent effort over years—that’s the strategy.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
I had to bankrupt a business due to people owing money. The lesson: hold your ground on getting paid. I learned to be clearer about payment terms upfront and more disciplined about enforcement. Cash flow problems kill more businesses than bad ideas. Protecting your receivables isn’t being difficult—it’s being responsible.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
I’m discovering the new AI tools. After decades in business, I’m genuinely excited about technology that can accelerate research, communication, and analysis. The willingness to learn new tools at any stage of your career is what keeps you relevant and productive.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
Money spent for the food pantry in my town, trying to make sure everyone has a great Christmas. Generosity grounds you. When you’re focused only on your own business and success, you lose perspective. Contributing to your community—especially helping those in need—provides meaning that pure commerce cannot.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
Cookbooks. This might seem like an unexpected answer, but cookbooks teach you to follow processes precisely, understand how components work together, and appreciate that quality results require quality ingredients and proper technique. These principles apply far beyond the kitchen.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
The Saints on Fox. I love history. Understanding where we’ve been helps you understand where we’re going. Historical content grounds me in perspectives longer than quarterly results or annual planning cycles.
Key learnings
- A positive attitude is a daily discipline, not a personality trait—choose it deliberately each morning.
- Trust your gut feelings; they’re often pattern recognition operating below conscious awareness.
- Hold your ground on getting paid; cash flow problems destroy more businesses than bad ideas.
- Study marketplace gaps between what exists and what people need.
- Generosity and community contribution provide meaning that pure commerce cannot