Finding Founders

Growing up in a city with no wilderness at close proximity, Joe Robinet found his love for nature through television shows such as Little House on the Prairie. With over a million subscribers on YouTube, Joe has been sharing his outdoors experiences since 2007. Joe goes on 1 - 2 week camping adventures. However, a dirt bike incident has resulted in Joe getting lots of nerve and ligament damage. The dirt bike incident has forced Joe into a hiatus on going on camping trips.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

 Have you ever wished you could capture a memory forever? Heather Maio-Smith and her team have made this reality through thousands of recorded interviews with Holocaust survivors. After working with them to create interactive testimony exhibits, Heather was inspired to develop new technology that not only captures a memory, but allows for the most unlikely of conversations to occur, crossing the boundaries of both time and consequence. Heather’s natural curiosity and love of learning have led her and her team to work with the USC Shoah Foundation and Institute of Creative Technologies and thus, StoryFile launched in 2017 with the goal of bringing this technology to everyone with a device, some good lighting, and a story to tell. Heather has come a long way from growing up in a family-owned business to her own company being named the CES 2023 Innovation Awards Honoree. Likewise, StoryFile has evolved as quickly as technology itself has in the past decade, changing the way we communicate with businesses, future

Janel Hawkins was just scrolling on Craigslist looking at jobs when she noticed one hiring sand sculptors, no experience necessary. She worked there through college, but as she was going into her senior year, she decided to blow her life up. In one month she cut her lease, left a bad relationship, dropped out of college, quit her job, and moved back home to start her own sand castle sculpting business, Sand Castle University. Today Janel has a team of instructors, 335K subscribers on Youtube, and 871K on TikTok, all watching her as she builds, and destroys, her sand art. But before that, let’s begin with the first sand sculpture that shaped her path. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jamie Goulding has been an entrepreneur & leader since the age of 14. He has led two start-up sales teams to success and been a top salesman wherever his career has taken him, closing more than $2 million in sales. Jamie has now turned his passion for mentoring into a new mentoring platform, BeenThere, which connects mentees with mentors around the world who have already “been there.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Vietnam War put many people in the position to flee Vietnam. Marina Tran-Vu’s parents were one of the millions of people put into the position. Marina’s parents fled to Canada where Marina was born. As a refugee, it was hard to make a living as Marina’s mother worked hard to get their family from a basement to the back of a store to a house in a nice neighborhood in Toronto Canada. Nonetheless, her parents’ hard work paid off as Marina went to study marketing at the University of British Columbia. When Marina’s father got sick due to late stage lung cancer Marina made the choice to move from Canada to Vietnam to be with her family. Marina saw her nephew stepping on trash everywhere they went in Vietnam which led to the idea of EQUO. Now Marina is the CEO of a successful company that offers 100% plastic free straws, utensils, dishwash, and drinkware made of materials like sugarcane, coffee, coconut, and rice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This author holds the title for having written the most shoplifted novel in British publishing history. Meet Irvine Welsh, the author of the critically acclaimed novel “Trainspotting”. Famous for his harrowing depictions of heroin addicts and imbuing them with humanity, it may be no surprise that Welsh had a similar tract in life to his characters with a troubled childhood– one that caused him to move constantly throughout different places, having difficulty feeling permanent security and a sense of belonging wherever he went. But thinking back to his childhood hometown, Welsh dwelled on the high drug usage and HIV rates which left Leith in decline and wrote his first novel as a thoughtful (and sobering) response. The book was an instant success, earning a cult following with those who recognized the harshness as a part of life while incurring mixed reactions from critics who did not. Despite the polarized reviews, Irvine has continued to write with ferocity since his first publication: publishing books, movi

Start-up millionaire nephew of former ABC chair Ita Buttrose, Andrew Spira has not had an easy life. But between the heavy drug use, childhood PTSD, and brushes with the law, he has managed to build several businesses, including a highly successful small loan business, Pineapple Funding, and a $10 million dollar real estate portfolio. But before diving into his success, let’s look at the mistakes and lessons he’s learned along the way… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

James Webb is a competitive eater from Australia who has completed over 400 food challenges and consumes as much 10,000 calories a day. As the #1 competitive eater in Australia and #5 in the world, James has learned how to navigate eating large amounts of food while maintaining his health, especially after recovering from Guillain-Barre syndrome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Patrick Bertoletti‘s ability to eat large amounts of food took him from an insecure teen to the high-competition circuit of professional eating. He competed in 47 contests in one year at the height of his Major League Eating career, from state fairs to the stage of America’s Got Talent, where he repulsed judge Heidi Klum by consuming 120 eggs. He’s competed against a bear on Nickelodeon, been ranked as high as No. 2 in the world, and has more world records than any other competitive eater, but let's go back to Chicago where he first earned the nickname “Deep Dish.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You just heard Josh Johnson recalling the moment where his worst nightmare came true: after finally stepping away from his safety net, he found himself jobless with the rug yanked out from under him. Now well known for his performances on Conan and Comedy Central, his tours with Trevor Noah, and a 2020 Emmy nomination, Josh has come a long way from his first script writing experience on the Tonight Show. Although this all seemed like a sudden rise to success there’s a lot of history behind these shining moments. Before late night talk shows and award ceremonies, there were years of non stop working. By night, he would tour the comedy circuits of Chicago and New York. And by day, he worked the early bird shifts at Aldi’s and Trader Joe’s. Believe it or not, his double life of growing comedian and grocery bagger continued well into his career. There was no ‘making it’, no easy way to fame. Instead, he remembered that for every one step forward, there was a chance at falling two steps back. This cautious approac

Watching as he racked up tens of thousands of new fans over the course of the day, Sean Sotaridona let out a sigh of relief he didn’t even know he was holding. This success, this new and unexpected online stage, was what he had been looking for all his life. It only took him 16 years to find it. Going by the username SeanDoesMagic, Sean’s masterful magic tricks have garnered more than 21 million followers on TikTok and 5.44 million followers on YouTube. From networking with meme accounts over Instagram dms to performing tricks for Addison Rae and Dixie D’amelio, Sean’s unparalleled tenacity and drive have taken him on a wild journey. However, before his trips to vidcon and tryouts for America’s Got Talent, before Sean was even born, his roots grew far away from the beaches of Los Angeles and Florida…across the Pacific in the Philippines… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From dreams of being in the NBA to personal assistant of multiple Hollywood stars, then a waiter, and finally becoming a YouTube sensation, Kevin Langue’s career path has been anything but conventional. Known for his genuine and fun-filled content, Kevin has always stayed true to being himself on and off camera. Now, with around a decade’s worth of experience in fostering an audience and creating a brand for himself, Kevin is keeping his focus on authenticity and creativity by setting ambitious goals and coming up with new ideas. Let’s find out how it all started. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Imagine being launched into YouTube stardom within hours… From his first channel playing video games with friends to joining SMOSH and co-hosting Smosh Gaming, Josh Ovenshire, better known as Joven, quickly became a pivotal figure in YouTube Gaming Channels. Smosh Gaming showed there was an audience for friends just having fun playing games. In consuming loads of content, Joven became a skilled storyteller selling shows to Marvel, ArcadeCloud Cartoon, and even making a puppet show for Dungeons & Dragons. Today, he’s working on new media projects and has a podcast with his friends. Let’s see how it started.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mari Takahashi’s first video for SMOSH, a YouTube sketch comedy channel, wasn’t immediately met with praise. And this gig was far on the side – she had a legitimate career as a professional ballet dancer. Youtube stardom wasn’t even a consideration… but eventually she’d have to make a choice. Today Mari has a large digital media presence, has won 2 Streamy Awards, produced shows like Smosh Pit Weekly, Maricraft, and Operation: Open World, and amassed over 2 billion collective views. Today, she’s focusing on her own YouTube channel and is the co-owner of SpacestationGaming. Let’s find out how she got here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s not every day Barbara Corcoran slides into your dms, but for Caleb Simpson this was suddenly the new normal. Now, if this name is sounding familiar at all, it’s because you’ve probably met Caleb before….on your For You page. Known for his casual house tours and the signature question “how much do you pay for rent,” Caleb has amassed over 7.1 million followers on TikTok and 2 million YouTube subscribers in the past few years. Traveling from house to house in New York to LA, Tokyo, and Hong Kong, he isn’t afraid to test out a stranger’s bed or play with your pets, or listen to a soundcloud music sample. But while these videos seemed to go viral in an instant, Caleb’s journey to filmmaking was anything but easy. From finding odd jobs on craigslist to sleeping behind a curtain in someone’s living room, Caleb had to build his skillset from the ground up while learning how to survive in NYC. And before tik tok was even invented, before Caleb first picked up a camera, his journey started in the unlikeliest of p

Jan Williamson is a dedicated artist and community leader who’s transformed Southern California's art scene over three decades. As the executive director of the 18th Street Arts Center, she has grown the organization into the region's largest artist residency center, supporting nearly 700 artists. She’s co-founded environmental art initiatives and led 18th Street through reinvention with new programs and significant grants. Active in her community, Jan serves on Santa Monica's Art Commission and Santa Monica Travel and Tourism board, demonstrating art's power to transform and unite communities. Let’s see what inspired her creative endeavors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This project, Shit Art Club, started from creative expression in high school. But from a high school rebellious art project, it grew into a thriving artistic community in Downtown Los Angeles. Dedicated to genuine creative expression, Shit Art Club rejects conventional form and function, embracing authenticity and anarchy. The collective invites everyone to join their creative crusade, fostering a space where beauty and discord coexist harmoniously. Their journey from a paint-soaked backyard to a vibrant hub in Skid Row exemplifies their commitment to real, unpretentious art that challenges norms and celebrates the true essence of creativity. But let’s start before all that, back at the beginning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Despite thinking his career was shattered by his injury, Eric Clem continued to follow his passion for woodworking. In 2010, Eric was able to mix his love for archery and woodworking through Bowyer Brooklyn, where he sold handcrafted bows and arrows to the people of New York. He would eventually move to Los Angeles where he realized his dream of sharing his craft with others, as he opened the doors to LA Woodshop, a haven for aspiring artisans seeking to carve their own path in the world of woodworking. Let’s go back to where it all started in Houston. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Midtown Lunch was a hit but we’ll come back to that later… because before Zach Brooks was looking for hidden gems in food he was looking for gems in music. Zach’s career would go from radio to food blogging, to eventually becoming the general manager at Smorgasburg where he operates the largest open-air food market in LA county. But let’s find where this love of food started and go back to his childhood. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So if you don’t know Berenice Abbott was a famous photographer known for capturing New York's transformation from low-rise to skyscraper-filled in the 1930s. Julia’s apprenticeship with this renowned photographer was just the beginning. Despite facing financial constraints, Julia's determination propelled her forward as she traversed the landscapes of the United States, capturing the essence of societal shifts and cultural nuances through her lens. Settling in Los Angeles, her passion for street photography flourished, leading her to establish the Julia Dean Photography Workshops, later evolving into the Los Angeles Center of Photography. Now she organizes an outdoor exhibit called Projecting L.A. that showcases stories about Los Angeles and its people. Let’s dive into how she got to where she is today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices