Founders | Page 3

Side Hustle

She and Her Sister Started a Side Hustle to Help People Elevate Their Homes — Now Their Brand Pulls In Hundreds of Millions: ‘Get to Work’

When Lee Mayer moved from New York City to Denver, Colorado, she wanted to find an affordable, fun way to decorate her home.

By Amanda Breen

Building a Business

An Accident at Age 18 Inspired Her to Start a Business — Then Build a Brand With $35 Million in Sales: ‘Everyone Wants a Slice’

By Amanda Breen

Business Funding

This One Founder Mistake Can Tank a Deal — Even If Your Business Is Solid

By Kishore Dasaka

Building a Business

‘Immediately Profitable’: Former Lululemon Executives Turned Their ‘Side Project’ Into an 8-Figure Brand Worn By Olympians — and You’ll Probably See It This Summer

By Amanda Breen

Building a Business

After This LGBTQ Couple Lost Their Jobs Within 30 Days of Each Other, They Started a Business — With Goats. It Led to More Than $150 Million.

Josh Kilmer-Purcell and Brent Ridge bought a farm in upstate New York as a weekend getaway — but a series of unexpected events led to a global brand.

By Amanda Breen

Thought Leaders

The Most Successful Founders Take Retreats — Here’s Why You Should, Too

If you're looking for a way to shake up some of the stagnant thinking and difficult roadblocks you've faced as a founder, then retreats could be the answer for you.

By John Boitnott

Thought Leaders

This Founder Noticed a Stark Change at a Local Pride Parade — and Says It Creates a ‘Real Opportunity’ for Small Businesses

Tanner Graham, co-founder and CEO of General Idea, reveals how business leaders can step up this month and beyond.

By Amanda Breen

Building a Business

Selling as a Founder Is Brutal — It Was Also the Reason We Reached $400M in Revenue

Selling is one of the hardest parts of building a startup, but arguably the most important. This piece shares hard-won, tactical lessons from my early days, offering a blueprint for founders navigating the messy reality of doing sales with no team, no leads and no playbook.

By Zain Jaffer

Thought Leaders

How to Know When It’s Time to Sell Your Business — Before It’s Too Late

It's not always simple to recognize when it's time to move on. Here are three signs to look for to help you make the decision.

By Jessica Fialkovich

Thought Leaders

Are You Running Your Business — or Is It Running You? How to Escape ‘Founder Mode’ and Learn to Let Go

How the shift from doing to leading unlocked growth and scale.

By Karim Alam

Thought Leaders

Raised By an Immigrant Single Mom, She Experienced ‘Culture Shock’ Working at Goldman Sachs. Here’s What She Wants You to Know About ‘Black Capitalism.’

Dr. Rachel Laryea shares what it means to be a Black capitalist — and how anyone can use capitalism as a force for social good.

By Amanda Breen

Building a Business

Are You the Bottleneck? 3 Ways to Overcome Founder’s Syndrome

Founder's syndrome can strain interoffice relationships and prompt disengagement and high turnover rates, but its risks can be overcome and mitigated with the right intervention.

By Magdalena Nowicka Mook

Building a Business

The ‘Hustle’ He Started Out of His Station Wagon Became a Nationwide Business That’s About to Hit $300 Million: ‘Everything We Do Is Pretty Simple’

Mike Adair, founder and CEO of Red's All Natural, quit finance to give entrepreneurship a shot.

By Amanda Breen

Building a Business

I Revamped a Men’s Product for Women. The Bootstrapped Business Was a Hit — and Pledged $20 Million to Support Women Entrepreneurs.

Audrey McLoghlin, founder and CEO of Frank & Eileen, was no stranger to entrepreneurship when she launched her fashion brand.

By Amanda Breen

Building a Business

The Business He Started in Response to a Frustrating Grocery Store Experience Surpassed $1 Billion in Sales and Counts Ray Dalio Among Its Investors

Steve Magami, co-founder with Thomas Snyder of Fruitist, was tired of playing "berry roulette."

By Amanda Breen

Buying a Franchise

She Turned a Temporary Post-College Job Into Starting a Business at 23. Then Some ‘Eye-Opening’ Advice Helped Her Grow It to $5 Million.

Brooke Wilson turned a part-time, temporary role into a $5 million business with a combination of ambition, team-building and learning to delegate.

By Carl Stoffers

Building a Business

I Sold My Company for Nine Figures. Here Are 3 Hard Lessons That Got Me There

These strategies helped me build Briogeo, and it's now part of what I teach other founders

By Nancy Twine

Thought Leaders

What 8 Years in Corporate Life Did — and Didn’t — Prepare Me For as a Founder

What eight years in consulting helped me master — and the skills I had to build from scratch as an entrepreneur.

By Karim Alam

Building a Business

A Cambodian Refugee Paralyzed By Polio Says ‘Not Much’ Was Expected of Him. He and His Wife Built a Multimillion-Dollar Business That Beat All Odds.

Steve and Brittany Yeng were discouraged from pursuing their unique idea, but they didn't listen to the naysayers.

By Amanda Breen

Side Hustle

She Quit Her Job at Trader Joe’s After Starting a Side Hustle With $800 — Then She and Her Brother Grew the Business to $20 Million

Jaime Holm and Matt Hannula teamed up to build a business in an industry that "didn't exist" yet.

By Amanda Breen

Buying a Franchise

This College Student Pitched His Parents a Business Idea. Now, He Runs a $7 Million Ice Cream Brand.

What started in a garage has scaled to 17 locations thanks to smart tech, strong culture and made-to-order desserts.

By Carl Stoffers

Thought Leaders

This Founder Didn’t Want to Be the ‘Face’ of Her Brand. But She Pushed Through the Discomfort — and Now She’s a Household Name.

Why the founder of Angie's List was resistant to being 'Angie,' but came to embrace it.

By Jason Feifer

Buying a Franchise

This Is The One Video Every Emerging Franchise Should Start With

Emerging franchisors are often told to prioritize sales decks, FDDs and digital ads. But if you're not capturing this story on video, you're skipping the one thing that builds trust faster than anything else.

By Trevor Rappleye

Building a Business

No Sales Experience? No Problem. Here’s How to Confidently Turn Conversations Into Revenue.

Here's a practical, no-fluff guide for founders who need to sell but don't see themselves as "salespeople."

By Julie Thomas

Building a Business

The Business I Built From My Garage Was Weeks Away From Failure. Then I Had an Idea That Helped It Grow 6,000% in 2 Years.

When Daniel Haarburger's dog Milo was recovering from surgery, the founder had a business breakthrough.

By Amanda Breen

Building a Business

She Started a Sustainable Business After a ‘Near-Death Experience.’ It Led to 8-Figure Sales and Replaced Over 656 Million Pieces of Plastic.

Lauren Gropper, founder and CEO of Repurpose, didn't always want to be an entrepreneur — then circumstances changed.

By Amanda Breen

Thought Leaders

Here’s What It Takes to Evolve From Hands-On Founder to Strategic CEO

Making the leap from founder to CEO requires more than just growth — it demands a shift in mindset.

By Nicholas Leighton

Side Hustle

This Couple Started a Side Hustle to Improve a ‘Terribly Made’ Bathroom Essential. Now the Business Earns More Than $3 Million a Year.

Michael Fine and Lisa Schulner-Fine launched lifestyle brand Quiet Town in 2016 and have been growing it ever since.

By Amanda Breen

Marketing

This Critical But Misunderstood Strategy Can Help Your Business Grow — Here’s How to Use It the Right Way

Learn how to use founder branding to make your company (not yourself) the industry-dominating name.

By Marina Byezhanova

Building a Business

She Spent $1,000 to Start a Business in Her Apartment. Now Revenue Spikes Each Spring — On Track for Over $50 Million This Year.

Courtney Claghorn was a recent college grad when she noticed a gap she wanted to fill.

By Amanda Breen