About the show
As we hear The Startup Story of some of the most successful companies in the world our focus is singular…
To give you the belief and courage to Start Your Story.
Every successful startup began with a single decision. It’s not about the dream, it’s not about the vision, it’s about having the courage to take that very first step -- to start.
How did UBER grow to $50 billion? How did Spanx become massively successful without one dime of venture capital? The stories are out there. But The Startup Story goes even deeper. What exactly did they do to go from idea to launch? What was that first step and how did they decide to take it?
Each week, hear from the courageous founders behind some of the most successful brands in the world as they share their Startup Story. We’ll unpack the early beginnings, and uncover those first steps that ultimately led them to where they are today.
Whether you’re an entrepreneur who’s in the thick of it and not making much progress, or feeling stuck in the fear of failure, not sure if you have what it takes, this podcast was created for you.
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Episode List
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Catherine Stiles, founder of Barbecue Wife
June 25th, 2019 | Season 1 | 51 mins 55 secs
Our guest this week is Catherine Stiles, founder of Barbecue Wife. Barbecue Wife is a cocktail mixer brand that began as a platform to tell the unique stories of some amazing women within the barbeque industry. Barbecue Wife has grown to be a well-recognized cocktail mixer within the state of Texas. After researching the barbecue industry and the beverage industry, I became incredibly intrigued by Catherine’s story and knew it would make for a great episode!
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Meghan Asha, founder of FOUNDERMADE
June 18th, 2019 | Season 1 | 52 mins 54 secs
This week on the podcast my guest is Meghan Asha, founder of FOUNDERMADE. Meghan and the FOUNDERMADE team are focused on bringing consumer brand companies together with some of the largest retail buyers in the world. Meghan has helped hundreds of startups in the consumer product space elevate their brand. She also has a real passion for connecting the right people together for mutual value. I love what this can do for startups in this space and I loved hearing Meghan’s personal startup story.
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Chad Phillips, co-founder of Highpoint Brewing Co.
June 11th, 2019 | Season 1 | 46 mins 44 secs
This week’s featured founder is Chad Phillips, co-founder of Highpoint Brewing Company in San Dimas, California. This episode combines a few things that I love dearly, small business and creativity. When it comes to beer and brewing, I don’t think many people would have thought about the creative side of it all. Chad will discuss just how personal beer making is to him and how his beers are a personal expression of his creativity.
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Michael Alvarez Jr., founder of Vision Media
June 4th, 2019 | Season 1 | 48 mins 27 secs
I’d like to introduce you to Michael Alvarez Jr., founder of Vision Media. Vision Media is a fulfillment and logistics company that services movie studios and television networks. In fact, if you walk into almost any movie theater today, I am confident that all marketing collateral you see has come through one of Michael’s warehouses. Vision Media has experienced some tremendous success, but Michael’s journey in bringing it to its current state was not without incredible trials.
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Zack Swire, founder of Good Grains
May 28th, 2019 | Season 1 | 1 hr 10 mins
This week I welcome Zack Swire, founder and CEO of Good Grains, to the show. Good Grains delivers better cereal, better coffee, and better gear for a happier and healthier day. As you’ve heard in this podcast from numerous founders, there are some aspects of their journey that are similar. And yet, there are others unique to their story. For Zack, his entrepreneurial mindset started at a young age. In fact, by the time he was 16, he already had his second business. Zack’s story is one underlined by familial motivations and aspirations.
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Eva Gerrits, founder of Energetek
May 21st, 2019 | Season 1 | 47 mins 56 secs
This week I would like to introduce you to the co-founder and CEO of Energetek, Eva Gerrits. Energetek is an energy brokerage and consultant company that is also focused on renewable alternatives. If you are unaware of the commercial and industrial industry space then know that Eva is paving a way for other female entrepreneurs and leadership as this industry is heavily dominated by males.
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Ladan Davia, founder of Beeya
May 14th, 2019 | Season 1 | 51 mins 48 secs
This week’s featured founder is Ladan Davia of Beeya. Beeya is a company that is changing the way recruiters and job searchers are connecting. Improving the job search process has been attempted numerous times, it’s true. But so has online dating and that never stopped innovation. Beeya is the real deal and so is its founder, Ladan Davia.
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Mia Plecic, founder of Her Organics
May 7th, 2019 | Season 1 | 1 hr 11 mins
Our guest this week is Mia Plecic. Mia is 27 years old and has started 6 companies all leading her towards her current startup, Her Organics Australia. Her Organics is a subscription service through which women can sign up to have tampons delivered automatically each month. The company, Her Organics, is Mia’s 6th startup and her 5th e-commerce startup. In fact, when she was just 22 years old she launched her first e-commerce product and reached $30,000 in daily revenue within 6 months! However, that success did not come without some very serious challenges, which we discussed in this fascinating episode.
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Jon Verlee, founder of Breeze
April 30th, 2019 | Season 1 | 51 mins 31 secs
Jon Verlee is the founder of Breeze Church Management Software. I was given Jon’s name from a friend who was emphatic about Jon’s story being told. Part of her enthusiasm for Jon’s story is that it is one that so many people can look to as a potential template for their journey.
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Emma Rose Cohen, co-founder of FinalStraw
April 23rd, 2019 | Season 1 | 52 mins 36 secs
This week’s featured founder is Emma Rose Cohen, CEO and co-founder of FinalStraw. FinalStraw is a collapsible and reusable straw for a sucking alternative that will help reduce plastic waste across the globe. The inspirational and educational side of her story includes a Kickstarter experience that many hope for when they launch their Kickstarter campaign. In fact, FinalStraw raised $1.89 million during their campaign.
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Darbie Angell, founder of Darbie Angell
April 16th, 2019 | Season 1 | 1 hr 3 mins
This week’s featured founder has a remarkable story and provides powerful inspiration for other entrepreneurs. Today I welcome Darbie Angell, creator/designer/founder of “Darbie Angell,” a brand icon and maker of bold and fashionable dinnerware.
Darbie started her company without a single contact in the industry. While she was working at one of the largest law firms in the country she went into labor with her daughter when she was five months pregnant. It was then that Darbie was put on bed rest for four months, and while on bed rest, she decided that she wanted to start a company by combining her passion to impact the world with her knowledge in design. The real startup story of Darbie Angell is that Darbie wanted to show her soon-to-be daughter how to dare to dream big!
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Goli Kalkhoran, founder of USIE Booth and Creator/Host of the Lessons From A Quitter Podcast
April 9th, 2019 | Season 1 | 54 mins 7 secs
Our guest this week is an overachiever in all areas of life. Goli Kalkhoran is the founder of USIE Booth and Creator and Host of the Lessons From A Quitter Podcast. Goli attended Law School at California Berkley and became a successful attorney, earning a high six-figure salary. But she was absolutely miserable. During her time on maternity leave, she explored what her life could be if she could design it to be fully aligned with how she was wired. In doing so, she became a quitter!
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Neely Powell, founder of Charleston Shoe Company
April 2nd, 2019 | Season 1 | 1 hr 56 secs
This week’s guest is an absolute fireball of a human being. I’d like to introduce you to Neely Powell, the founder of The Charleston Shoe Co. Her story runs at 100 mph from the minute her journey gets rolling. She started her business as a side hustle in college. Since then, the growth that The Charleston Shoe Company is experiencing is remarkable. At the time of this recording, Neely has opened 20 stores and is in the midst of opening another 6 stores nationwide within the next 6 weeks!
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Ilana Zivkovich, founder of WERQ
March 26th, 2019 | Season 1 | 1 hr 5 mins
In January, I posted a call for Female Founders on our LinkedIn company page with hopes of being introduced to more female founders to feature on The Startup Story. Today’s guest was mentioned more times than any other person. After spending some time with her, I am fairly confident I know why she was thought of by so many other people…because she is someone that is always looking to help others.
This week I am joined by Ilana Zivkovich, the founder of WERQ; a strategic leadership advisory firm. WERQ helps teams look at their strategy, process, and people to ensure all of these pillars will best support their business.
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Tiffany Sorya, founder of Novel Education Group
March 19th, 2019 | Season 1 | 56 mins 2 secs
When I started The Startup Story I would have never expected to be interviewing a founder
of a homeschool group, but here we are. This week, Tiffany Sorya, founder of Novel Education Group, shares the many unconventional pieces that have comprised her entrepreneurial journey to this point. It makes sense that her story would be unconventional since her goal is to meet the educational needs of those whose lives are unconventional. Her first two clients were Kylie and Kendall Jenner, and she continued working with other high-profile children such as those of Fortune 100 executives. -
Clint Harp, co-founder of Harp Design Co.
March 12th, 2019 | Season 1 | 1 hr 36 mins
This week’s episode was a special one for me to create. Why? Well it was not due to the celebrity status of our featured founder nor was it due to his gift for handcrafted woodworking (although I am fascinated by woodworking). This episode was special because of how incredibly similar my entrepreneurial story was to this week’s guest, Clint Harp.