logo
episode-header-image
Mar 2018
40m 15s

1-800-GOT-JUNK?: Brian Scudamore (2018)

Guy Raz | Wondery
About this episode
Brian Scudamore didn't dream of a life hauling away other people's trash. But when he needed to pay for college, he bought a $700 pickup truck, painted his phone number on the side, and started hauling. Now 1-800-GOT-JUNK? makes close to $300 million in annual revenue. PLUS for our postscript "How You Built That," an update on Bloomerent, an online service t ... Show More
Up next
Aug 31
Late July Snacks: Nicole Bernard Dawes. Crackers and Cookies were Failing… Tortilla Chips Saved Them
Nicole Bernard Dawes spent much of her childhood hanging out in her dad’s potato chip factory on Cape Cod. She liked his kettle-cooked chips a lot more than the flavorless snacks in her mom’s health food store. But when she started her own business, she wanted the best of both wo ... Show More
1h 20m
Aug 27
Advice Line with Daymond John of FUBU
Today’s callers: Cristopher from Chicago wants to expand his family’s salsa brand from farmers markets into retail. Next, Darcy in Australia considers adapting his protein bar brand’s messaging to reach beyond his core enthusiasts. Finally, Seema in Canada seeks strategies to inc ... Show More
42m 55s
Aug 24
YETI: Roy and Ryan Seiders. How Two Brothers Turned a $400 Cooler Into a $2 Billion Brand
Roy and Ryan were avid outdoorsmen who wanted a cooler that wouldn’t break. So they built one themselves.The result was YETI: a high-end cooler that early retailers thought nobody would buy. But serious outdoorsmen did—and eventually YETI escaped its niche, becoming a status symb ... Show More
1h 25m
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2019
Got Junk? Brian Scudamore’s Got The Solution
“I think at an early age while some people dream of being Superman or Wonder Woman or a fireman or whatever it might be, I really dreamt of running a business.” Brian Scudamore started 1-800-GOT-JUNK more than 30 years ago with a single truck and a simple business plan. Today, he ... Show More
47m 40s
Apr 2024
CEO of 1800-GOT-JUNK? Shares How To Grow a Business To Hundreds of Millions
In this episode, you'll hear from Brian Scudamore, the visionary CEO behind the incredible success of 1-800-GOT-JUNK?. Tune in, as Brian addresses questions from participants, offering practical advice and inspiration for entrepreneurs aiming to take their ventures to the next le ... Show More
11m 11s
Apr 2024
Is The Customer Always Right?
In this episode, we'll hear the inspiring story of Brian Scudamore, the CEO of 1-800 GOT JUNK?, who faced a major business setback but was able to turn things around by embracing failure and focusing on his team. Through personal anecdotes and lessons learned from other successfu ... Show More
12m 1s
May 2024
The junkyard economist
On today's episode, we ride through the streets of San Francisco with a long-time junkman, Jon Rolston. Jon has spent the last two decades clearing out houses and offices of their junk. He's found all sorts of items: a life-time supply of toilet paper, gold rings, $20,000 in cash ... Show More
25m 36s
Feb 2019
Discussing Early Days with Brian Scudamore & Building Blocks with Lil Keed in NYC | DailyVee 534
<p>A typical day as Chairman of VaynerX, meeting CEO of 1-800-GOT-JUNK, Brian Scudamore and discussing his early years of starting from a single truck. Instagram live with Entrepreneur University, where they walked me through 5 steps to get me to speak at an event, well almost. L ... Show More
14m 5s
Mar 2018
274: The Middleman Method: A Real-Life Example of Turning Trash into Treasure
John made $1614 before 11am the day we recorded this episode. His business model? Buying industrial byproducts, the kind of stuff that’s used for shipping like pallets, cardboard boxes, crates, and so on, and selling them on for a profit. John Wilker started out buying or being g ... Show More
37m 48s
May 2025
190 - This guy turned $1,800 into a $1B+ business (crazy story) | Scooter Braun
Get JD's new playbook Website Selling Machine here. Today, Jon gets into the background of Scooter Braun, the man behind some of the biggest names in music, such as Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande. Discover how he turned an $1,800 investment into a billion-dollar empire through s ... Show More
36m 44s
Aug 2015
800k embezzled plus a 7-figure swing and a miss with J. Massey
J wasn't always the Real Estate Investor, published author and entrepreneur he is today. His road was paved with challenges he had to overcome. J literally went from having zero and squatting in bank-owned property, to owning more than 300 units of property across several states. 
22m 18s
May 2025
How To Buy A $2.1M Small Business While Working A Full Time Job (Took 221 Cold Calls)
Connect with Drew:IG: @drewdoescashflowIG: @summitcollectivellcWant To Replace $20,000 + / Month in cashflow? Inside our community Action Academy [w/ over 700 members & $428M in deals done in 2025 alone ] we help high performers escape corporate America through buying small busin ... Show More
51m 36s
Jan 2024
SaaS CEO QUIT His Job To Start A Trash Company
Episode 537: Shaan Puri (https://twitter.com/ShaanVP) and Sam Parr (https://twitter.com/theSamParr) talk about alternative New Year’s resolutions and Sam meets a SaaS CEO that quit everything to start a +$1M trash collecting business.  No more small boy spreadsheets, build your b ... Show More
1h 6m