Foundr Magazine Podcast | Learn From Successful Founders & Proven Entrepreneurs, The Ultimate Startup Podcast For Business

Meet the business behind the name. In 2009, Simon Sinek gave a TED Talk that has since become one of the most-watched videos of all time on TED.com, with 37 million plus views. His talk spurred NY Times best-selling books, speaking engagements, consulting gigs with globally-recognized brands, a podcast, a publishing arm, and viral quotes shared across social media. And it all started with the question–why?  Listen to Nathan and Simon discuss: What he learned from growing up internationally  Why he fell out of love with his first business Finding his why concept and sharing it with others How his time with military leaders inspired Leaders Eat Last Why there’s no such thing as “winning business” Why optimism Building a business around a personal brand What’s the most important thing for an entrepreneur  And much more advice on purpose… To learn more about Sinek’s principles, check out his books, or visit simonsinek.com. Who do you want to see next on the podcast? Comment and let us know! And don'

After running a small cafe chain for over a decade, Abigail Forsyth experienced firsthand the amount of packaging waste used in the food and beverage industry. So, in 2008 she co-founded KeepCup and created the world’s first barista standard reusable cup. In the last 15 years, she built KeepUp into a multi-million dollar brand with reusable cups and bottles sold in 65 countries worldwide. Learn how she’s built a mission-driven business and adapted to the changing nature of sustainable products.  Listen to Nathan and Abigail discuss: Bringing KeepCup to life while running her cafes Getting her first B2B order using a shoebox Why behavioral change is the hardest thing to do The challenge of having B2B and B2C customers Scaling internationally and managing a growing team Becoming one of the first Australian B Corporations When a TV program doubled orders overnight The impact of Coivd-19 on the reusable industry  How to deal with copycats  And much more on mission-driven business… Enjoy 25% off Keep

Do you want to be a great leader? Do you want to build life-changing relationships with your team, customers, and colleagues? Then this is the episode for you. Dr. Adam Bandelli is a business psychologist whose childhood love for athletics motivated him to study great teams and leaders. After earning his doctorate in industrial-organizational psychology, he spent 15 years consulting on succession plans, working with boards, and coaching CEOs. Then he started a firm in 2015 called Bandelli & Associates. His firm focuses on consulting with CEOs and senior executives on hiring and onboarding senior talent, executive coaching, and executive education and learning. Bandelli is also the author of two books Relational Intelligence and What Every Leader Needs.  Listen to Nathan and Adam discuss:  Industrial-organizational psychology The 4 differentiators of his firm 3 things that make leaders great 5 keys to building life-changing relationships The leadership “mirror test” The 5 Cs of building trust Emotional

This past year, we've interviewed our most diverse selection of founders ever. So, as a special year-end treat, we're bringing together their best lessons, stories, and business advice in one final episode for 2022.  In this special episode, you'll hear valuable insights from:  Reid Hoffman and his learning experience with the PayPal mafia.  Emma Grede on developing SKIMS, Good American, and Safely.  Marc Lore and how he built a billion-dollar business in less than two years. Scooter Braun on discovering Justin Bieber. Toni Ko and how she became a self-made millionaire in her 20s.  Ed Mylett and his power of “one more” mindset. Jamie Kern Lima and why she believes in the power of authenticity.  Kendra Scott and how she built her makeup empire during a recession.  And much more... Who do you want to see next on the podcast? Comment and let us know! And don't forget to leave us a 5-star review if you loved this episode. Wait, there's more… If you enjoy the Foundr podcast, check out our free trainin

Josh Reeves and his fellow co-founders wanted to tackle a problem they could spend decades fixing. But they didn’t want to solve something for Silicon Valley–it had to affect the masses. In Reeves’ experience, the hassle of setting up payroll and benefits was the problem to tackle. So, in 2011, the three Ph.D. dropouts spent a year building a payroll system that eventually became Gusto, a modern, online people platform that helps small businesses take care of their teams. On top of full-service payroll, Gusto offers health insurance, 401(k)s, expert HR, and team management tools. Today, Gusto has offices across the U.S and serves over 200,000 businesses. Nathan and Josh discuss: How his parents influenced his entrepreneurial mindset  Studying at Stanford and falling in love with problem-solving Why his first business didn’t have a purpose  Learning how to write code and building a payroll platform  The experience of the Y Combinator accelerator  How word of mouth and referrals drove Gusto’s initial sal

Mowbray is the co-founder of ZURU Toy Co., ZURU Edge, ZURU Tech, and Rhodes Pet Science. In 2018, he was named Entrepreneur of the Year in his home country, New Zealand, and he’s listed in the World Entrepreneur Hall of Fame. He and his siblings, co-founders Mat and Anna, are worth more than $3 billion, while the company revenue was north of $2 billion AUD in 2022. Despite their success, the siblings didn’t go into the toy business with a deep knowledge of business or manufacturing. In fact, they didn’t even know much about toys. They just had one hot air balloon model, a lot of hustle, and a willingness to learn from their mistakes. Listen to Nathan and Nick discuss: How a childhood hot air balloon model inspired the business Borrowing $20K from his parents to relocate to Hong Kong The growing pains of the early days and learning through failure  Their first toy megahits, Robo Fish and Bunch O Balloons Running a lean business using automation and no inventory The company’s 2% improvement philosophy 

Sourcing specialist Kian Golzari returns to the podcast to discuss how to develop a product from research to launch. Golzari is one of the world’s top sourcing experts. He has manufactured products for top companies and NGOs, including Tesco, the United Nations, the 2012 Olympics, Google, and more. In all, he’s sourced more than 2,500 products and works with 100 of the top sellers on Amazon. Listen to Nathan and Kian discuss: Branding vs selling Choosing a customer avatar Researching the competition  How to pick your flagship product Branding your products  Choosing a supplier How to test and adapt products And much more product development advice… Who do you want to see next on the podcast? Comment and let us know! And don't forget to leave us a 5-star review if you loved this episode. Wait, there's more… If you enjoy the Foundr podcast, check out our free trainings. Get exclusive, actionable advice from some of the world's best entrepreneurs.  Speak with our friendly course experts to get clar

If you don’t know Mike Evans, you’ve probably used his first business when the craving for takeout hits you on a Saturday night. Evans started GrubHub in 2002 as a hobby and built it into one of the largest food delivery companies in the US, going public on the stock exchange in 2014. After exiting GrubHub, Evans took a break until he felt the pull to start a business that could benefit a community and customer base. In 2017, he started, Fixer, a “right now" home repair service that offers superior customer experiences while creating skilled employment paths in the building trades for men and women. Listen to Nathan and Mike discuss:  Starting GrubHub as a hobby website  Quitting his job and cashing out his retirement  How cofounder Matt Maloney helped scale the business Why creating value is more important than profit How delivery turned the business on its head His book Hangry and lessons on greed and empathy  Why quitting is okay Starting and building Fixer And much more founder advice… Who

If you've hosted a webinar or live event that fell flat, then this episode is for you. Casey Zeman is the CEO and founder of EasyWebinar, a live-stream platform and marketing automation tool. As a former actor and mortgage broker, Zeman was fed up with having little control over his success. So with the encouragement of a friend, he became a video marketing consultant focusing on YouTube. His work as a consultant tapped into the capability of live videos and webinars as a sales tool. So, in 2015 he reinvested his earnings as a consultant to develop a plugin called EasyWebinar, which allowed people to create a live webinar through their website. In 2018, he changed EasyWebinar's model to a SaaS business, offering full services to any online business looking to engage and convert its audience.  Listen to Nathan and Casey discuss: How the 2008 recession spurred his career in digital marketing Becoming a video marketing consultant before it was a thing Investing his consulting earnings into developing EasyWeb

Following a 20-year career in media, Trinny Woodall established herself as the expert in all things style, skincare, and makeup. Inspired by her unique design of stackable makeup pots, she established Trinny London in 2017 with the mission to give everyone the tools they need to feel their best. In this episode, Trinny shares her experience in product development, funding, personal branding, and how to develop a diehard fan base and community.  Listen to Nathan and Trinny discuss:  One of her early businesses selling socks to trade investors  Her weekly fashion column in The Daily Telegraph  Why the dot-com bust was the lowest point of her career What she learned from 20 years of television and What Not to Wear Selling her clothing to raise funds for Trinny London Launching and building Trinny London without paid ads   The personalization experience of Match2Me Starting a brand around your personal brand Nurturing the Trinny Tribe community  And more beauty business advice…  Who do you want t

After graduating from Harvard Business School alongside future tech giants like Mark Zuckerberg, Magnus Grimeland traveled the world as a consultant for McKinsey. After exploring Southeast Asia, he decided to lay down roots and leverage the region's enormous business potential. From 2013-2017, Grimeland built ZALORA into Southeast Asia's largest fashion ecommerce business. Now, he's supporting fellow founders through his latest business, Antler, a global early-stage venture capital firm that invests in the defining technology companies of tomorrow. In the last 2 years, Antler made 190 portfolio company investments and has opened offices in 14 cities across 6 continents.   Listen to Nathan and Magnus discuss:  The atmosphere at Harvard during the Facebook era His journey to Southeast Asia and seeing its potential  Creating the first cash and delivery system in the region  Building ZALORA from scratch  Why ZALORA was a breeding ground for entrepreneurs His 3 things to look for in good talent  What separa

Some might say Alex Bouaziz, cofounder and CEO of Deel, was simply in the right place at the right time. Deel, an international payroll, compliance, and HR solution, launched in 2019 and, by May 2020, raised $14M in funding. Currently, they have 8000 customers worldwide, including Dropbox, Airtable, and Shopify. But good timing will only get you so far. To launch and grow a company as successful as Deel takes leadership with a clear mission and a solid infrastructure. The idea was simple: Create a company that matched employers and talented workers from anywhere in the world and give them the opportunity to work for the best companies without having to relocate.   Listen to Nathan and Alex discuss:  What Bouaziz learned from his first failed business How his work visa struggles inspired Deel  Taking the idea for Deel to Y Combinator The massive growth from the Covid-19 pandemic  Scaling through infrastructure and the customer Deel’s talent development strategy  A passion for unlocking talent beyond bor

At 24, Guy Pearson turned down a partnership to start an accounting firm. His early clients were digital companies, and Pearson was jealous that there wasn’t an online commerce system for his industry. So in 2013, he launched a new company called Ignition to simplify and speed up the transaction process for professionals like him. To date, Ignition helped facilitate more than 1M client engagements and over $2B in client payments. Ignition has offices in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Philippines, South Africa, US, and the UK, with over 170 employees globally.   Listen to Nathan and Guy discuss:  How intrapreneurship transformed into entrepreneurship  The challenges of building the original software for Ignition  Expanding to new markets outside of Australia  Why he still sits in on candidate interviews  The heartbreaking moments of raising capital  Starting vs. scaling a business  The balance between an accounting brain and entrepreneurial heart  How to lead with an experimental mindset Transitionin

Does the word “sales” make you squeamish or intimidated? If so, then this episode is for you. AJ Cassata is a maverick B2B sales consultant who helps entrepreneurs grow their businesses fast with his straightforward, systematic, and scalable approach to sales growth. His company, Revenue Boost, helps clients create a system for lead generation instead of just winging it.    Listen to Nathan and AJ discuss:  Starting in door-to-door sales as a teenager  Persevering through failure in his first business  Starting Revenue Boost to focus on lead generation  Why not all leads are created equal  How to stand out amongst competitors Why cold emails are still powerful  Implementing a repeatable process to get clients  How to spend zero dollars on advertising  LinkedIn Navigator tips and tricks  Why subject lines should be a disguise  And much more B2B sales strategies...       Who do you want to see next on the podcast? Comment and let us know! And don't forget to leave us a 5-star review if you loved thi

33 years ago, Brian Scudamore was sitting in a McDonald’s drive-thru when he saw his future–a beat-up pickup truck filled with junk. Scudamore started a junk-hauling business to pay for college, but what was supposed to fund his education ended up inspiring him to drop out. Today, Scudamore’s transformed his junk hauling side hustle, 1-800-GOT-JUNK?, into a North American franchise business worth $600M. People told Scudamore that it was impossible to franchise his business, but he’s proven them wrong by expanding his model into other brands like WOW 1 DAY PAINTING and Shack Shine.   Listen to Brian and Nathan discuss: Rebranding his business name to 1-800-GOT-JUNK? Transitioning from a corporate to a franchise business Expanding his model into WOW 1 DAY PAINTING and Shack Shine How “The CEO Whisperer” Cameron Herold helped scale the business The 3 types of entrepreneurship paths The compounding growth of franchise businesses His new book BYOB: Build Your Own Business, Be Your Own Boss What Shaq taugh

Airtasker is Australia's #1 marketplace for local services. Over the past decade, they've acquired more than 4.3M registered users, built a worth of $255M, created a $1.7B value of job opportunities, and went public. But founder Tim Fung still feels the pains from the first 3 years, when everything he assumed about the business was wrong. He's learned that through the victories and failures of scaling a startup, remaining focused on providing value over profit is what lasts.    Listen to Nathan and Tim discuss:  The importance of going all-in on a startup Starting a business with 2 marketplaces  The 90-day wakeup call for founders  Inspiring users to use your product Sharing problems with your team Not putting off hard decisions Building a feedback muscle within your business And much more startup advice…     Who do you want to see next on the podcast? Comment and let us know! And don't forget to leave us a 5-star review if you loved this episode.   Wait, there's more… If you enjoy the Foundr podcast

Davie Fogarty created Australia's fastest-growing ecommerce brand, The Oodie, which sells wearable blankets and accessories. But success didn't happen overnight. After multiple failed businesses, at 24 years old, Davie had a chip on his shoulder to prove he could succeed. So in 2017, he started 2 ecommerce businesses, and they both took off immediately. In the past 4 years, Davie has grown his company of 5 major brands called the Davie Group to $400M in sales. In this episode, you'll learn exactly what it takes to build an incredible ecommerce brand in 2022 and some of the pitfalls to avoid.    Listen to Nathan and Davie discuss:  Davie's early failed business attempts  The pros and cons of having something to prove Why bootstrapped founders become a jack of all trades  What was special about The Oodie as a product and brand How to create and test ecommerce products  How competition affects your ads  Why good marketing instills trust  Attribution tools and the changes in advertising  And much more ec

Jen Proctor loved being a performer. But when her dream to be a professional singer ended, she pledged to be a good person in the entertainment industry, something she knew wasn't a given. So in 2015, she launched her agency Cultivated Entertainment and works with clients like Meta, Pharrell, Drew Barrymore, the Obama Foundation, Stand Up for Cancer, and the Primetime Emmy Awards. She's built her agency based on the vision of seeing a need and filling it. So if you're interested in working with talent from actors to TikTok stars, this episode is for you.    Listen to Nathan and Jen discuss: Her early career as a field producer at Fox Why everything is an emergency in the entertainment industry Cultivating a superpower around talent Myths about working with celebrities and talent Why honesty is an essential part of relationship building Why she'll never forget an hour she had with Betty White  Working on the Dear Class of 2020 project with the Obama's  Negotiating and talent search tips   The three ga

Kendra Scott started her self-titled billion-dollar jewelry business out of failure. Her first business failed after 5 years, and she started selling handmade jewelry door-to-door as a side hustle. Now, Kendra Scott Jewelry is a billion-dollar business with 100 retail locations across the US. But success didn't come quickly. Through personal struggles, recessions, and rejections, Scott built a fashion business driven by an unforgettable customer experience.    Listen to Nathan and Kendra discuss: What she learned from her failed business  Fundraising and dealing with rejection The best piece of business advice she still follows  Shifting her business model from wholesale to retail The nightclub atmosphere of Kendra Scott stores  How philanthropy creates customer loyalty  How to weather the storm as a founder  Her new entrepreneurial memoir Born to Shine And much more founder advice…       Who do you want to see next on the podcast? Comment and let us know! And don't forget to leave us a 5-star revi

Michele Romanow joined the cast of CBC's Dragons' Den in 2014 after successfully selling her digital coupon business SnapSaves to Groupon. At 28 years old, she was the youngest "dragon" on the show, but that didn't stop her from innovating. During her second episode, Michele decided to flip the traditional Dragons' Den pitch from equity to revenue.    The decision led to the creation of the investment company Clearco and the invention of the revenue-based financing category. The model helps fund ecommerce companies fast and affordable, where founders pay a set percentage only when they make revenue. To date, Clearco has invested $4B in 10,000 founders in 11 countries across the world.    Listen to Nathan and Michele discuss:  Why her first business was a caviar fishery  Acquiring customers through sidewalk chalk  Creating the Clearco model by shifting the Dragons' Den model Accepting rejection as part of the job Taking advice from people that you want to be How to build the relentless muscle  How data