Growing up, Tim Brown discovered he was very good at two things: design and soccer. While playing professional soccer in New Zealand, he was turned off by the flashy logos on most athletic gear. He started making simple canvas shoes for his teammates, but soon discovered a better material: soft merino wool from his country's plentiful sheep. Meanwhile, on th ... Show More
Jun 29
e.l.f. Cosmetics: Joey Shamah. The Dollar Store Formula That Built a Cosmetics Giant
In 2004, Joey Shamah and his partner launched a cosmetics company built on an idea that made almost no sense:Sell high-quality makeup for just $1.At the time, high quality beauty products were supposed to be expensive. The biggest brands spent fortunes on celebrity endorsements, ... Show More
1h 14m
Jun 22
STARR Restaurants: Stephen Starr. How a Non-Foodie Built Thriving Restaurants on Gut Instinct
Stephen Starr didn’t plan to get into the restaurant business.He set out to be a radio DJ. Then a nightclub owner. Then a music promoter.Along the way, he booked a young Jerry Seinfeld for $75, promoted shows for U2 and Madonna, and spent years pretending to be more successful th ... Show More
1h 14m
Jul 2020
Allbirds Founder Tim Brown On Building A Billion Dollar Business Around Comfortable, Stylish, and Sustainable Footwear
A native of New Zealand, Tim Brown was always well versed in the magical qualities of merino wool. He was always inherently curious. That's why while he was playing professional soccer he began asking himself why such a remarkable, sustainable resource was virtually absent in the ... Show More
53m 2s
Nov 2020
Nike’s Phil Knight: How to sell without selling
Great branding is about identity – and it’s about matchmaking too. No one knows this better than the legendary co-founder of Nike, Phil Knight. When he and his partner, Hall of Fame track coach Bill Bowerman, started the sneaker company, they never tried to force-feed customers a ... Show More
35m 40s
Apr 2023
#668: Derek Sivers — The Joys of an Un-Optimized Life, Finding Paths Less Traveled, Creating Tech Independence (and Risks of the Cloud), Taking Giant Leaps, and Picking the Right “Game of Life”
Brought to you by Allbirds incredibly comfortable shoes, Wealthfront high-yield savings account, and Shopify global commerce platform providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business. Derek Sivers (@sivers) is an author of philosophy and entrepreneurship, know ... Show More
2h 54m
May 2023
#672: Seth Godin — The Pursuit of Meaning, The Life-Changing Power of Choosing Your Attitude, Overcoming Rejection, Life Lessons from Zig Ziglar, and Committing to Making Positive Change
Brought to you by AeroPress 3-in-1 coffee press for delicious brews, Allbirds incredibly comfortable shoes, and Shopify global commerce platform providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business. Seth Godin is the author of 21 international bestsellers that hav ... Show More
1h 38m
May 2021
Sponsored: Small Business Stories | Columbia Sportswear | 2
This episode is brought to you by Wondery in partnership with Dell Technologies. In honor of small businesses, we're featuring inspiring stories of successful companies that started out small.It’s 1970 and Gert Boyle’s life is in ruins. Her husband’s just died, and now, as a midd ... Show More
31m 23s
Mar 2018
Nike vs Adidas - The Defectors | 6
The rivalry between Nike and Adidas has been intense for decades, but always respectful. But with intensity comes… defectors. Just three at the beginning, who set out to create a “Disneyland for designers.” And it worked. For the first time in a long time, the Swoosh was outperfo ... Show More
19m 20s
Apr 2022
#590: Tony Fadell of iPod, iPhone, and Nest Fame — Stories of Steve Jobs on “Vacation,” Product Design and Team Building, Good Assholes vs. Bad Assholes, Investing in Trends Before They Become Trends, The Hydrogen Economy, The Future of Batteries, and More
Brought to you by LinkedIn Marketing Solutions marketing platform with ~770M users, LMNT electrolyte supplement, and Eight Sleep’s Pod Pro Cover sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating. More on all three below.Tony Fadell (@tfadell) is an active investor and entrepreneu ... Show More
1h 52m