As a young programmer in the mid-2000s, Otis Chandler watched as dozens of niche web sites began to take off. When he decided to launch his own site just for book lovers, a respected colleague told him there was "probably not a very big market there." Otis figured he might prove him wrong, and in 2007, launched Goodreads, a book catalog and review site that ... Show More
Jun 1
UGG: Brian Smith. How an epiphany, surfers, and $500 launched an iconic sheepskin footwear company.
In 1978, Brian Smith quit his accounting job in Australia and headed to California with a surfboard, some savings, and ambition. He figured California was where he’d find an idea or a product to bring back home to Australia to build a business. A year in, he was still looking.But ... Show More
1h 28m
May 25
Justin’s Nut Butter: Justin Gold. He Was Waiting Tables, Then...He Reinvented Peanut Butter.
At 25, Justin Gold was making experimental peanut butter in his home kitchen with a food processor and a stack of recipe journals. His singular obsession: bring new life to a tired lunchtime staple.What started as late-night experiments with honey, cinnamon and banana eventually ... Show More
1h 27m
Mar 2022
Throwback: Building a Business Meant to Last with Peldi Guilizzoni of Balsamiq
Twenty pages into reading his first business book, Peldi Guilizzonni (@peldi) closed it for good and told himself, "This is not for me. I'm never going to start a business. It's insane." Not long after that, he rolled up his sleeves and got started building Balsamiq Mockups, whic ... Show More
46m 5s
Apr 2020
Amazon vs Walmart - The Big Bang Theory of E-Commerce | 1
<p>Ninety-six percent of Americans now shop online, snapping up everything from rare coins to industrial-sized barrels of hand sanitizer. Almost half of those purchases take place on one website: Amazon. </p><p>But before sales were a click away, Walmart was the top dog, dec ... Show More
23m 28s
Jul 2018
eBay vs PayPal - Going Once, Going Twice | 1
<p>At the dawn of the dotcom era, a Silicon Valley tech geek on a personal vendetta rolls out the world’s first e-commerce site. Vintage lunchboxes? Second-hand guitars? B-list celebrity autographs? It all finds a home on AuctionWeb, and before long the site’s growth is skyrocket ... Show More
23m 46s
Dec 2023
(IHP) TheGlobe.com Saga Part I
The story of the quintessential dotcom company. Also, if you squint, you can see the birth of social media. I said in the book, I think TheGlobe.com was the quintessential dot-com company. We spoke to one of the cofounders previously, Todd Krizelman. Todd was great, but he was ti ... Show More
49m 25s
Feb 2019
Ep 172: How many re-reads is too many re-reads?
Sean Larkin is a self-proclaimed “slow reader”, stay-at-home-parent, and freelance photographer. If you don’t relate to 100-book reading goals or refreshing your feed for the latest book news, Sean is the kindred reading spirit you’ve been waiting to hear from! Anne chats with Se ... Show More
47m 39s
Jun 2024
You could start a company this weekend, w/Noah Kagan
<p>Entrepreneur Noah Kagan wants everyone to feel empowered to start a business. That’s the core message of his new book, Million Dollar Weekend. He’s founded multiple companies worth at least a million dollars, including AppSumo. That’s his software marketplace worth more than $ ... Show More
32m 23s
Apr 2021
David Brown on The Art of Business Wars | 7
<p>Our new book, The Art of Business Wars, takes fans through stories they've heard on Business Wars and some that are completely new. Host David Brown is joined by Next Big Idea's Rufus Griscom to discuss how the book came together, what makes a great Business Wars story, and pr ... Show More
23m 46s