How Success Happens

Need funding to launch or grow your business? Meet two founders who successfully took an often-overlooked approach to fundraising: grants. Jessica Martin Eckerly, CEO and co-founder of Forward BIOLABS, and Alex Tyink, co-founder of Fork Farms, each received transformative awards from WEDC, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. And on this special episode, we find out what it took to win...

Kwamane Liddell, Founder of Thrive Link, 2024 American Nurses Association Innovation Award Winner, shares his journey from trauma nurse to accomplished business leader and healthcare lawyer. Witnessing the impact of barriers to social determinants of health, he created ThriveLink, which empowers families to enroll in health insurance, food stamps, and discount medication programs via phone. Join u...

Bobbi Lloyd, CEO of Magnolia Bakery, shares her journey from culinary school graduate and former chef for Calvin Klein to leading an iconic brand renowned for its amazing cupcakes and out-of-this-world banana pudding, a favorite of host Robert Tuchman. After working under former guest Danny Meyer, she saw what it took to run a successful restaurant and used her newfound insights to help create her...

Amy Errett, the visionary behind Madison Reed, shares her journey of building a successful omnichannel beauty brand specializing in the hair color space. Despite reaching the top of the Venture Capitalist industry, Amy felt a burning desire to create her own venture. Recognizing a gap in the hair color market riddled with harmful ingredients, she seized the opportunity to offer safe, high-quality...

One in four employees are now using AI at work – a significant jump from the adoptions rates seen in 2023. So how are businesses leveraging AI in the workplace? We sit down with Christina Janzer, SVP of Research and Analytics at Slack, to discuss how businesses are embracing AI to increase productivity, make data-drive decisions, drive innovation and how Slack AI is enabling people to work smarter...

Carly Zakin and Danielle Wesberg, entrepreneurs behind The Skimm, discuss creating a successful Media company. Danielle and Carly fresh out of college identified a significant gap in the media landscape, there was a lack of media outlets specifically tailored to Women. Despite Women making upwards of 90% of household financial decisions, there was a lack of content that catered to their perspectiv...

Fran Maier is the entrepreneurial powerhouse behind BabyQuip, as seen on SharkTank, and is also the co-founder of Match.com . In this episode, Fran delves into the pivotal moments shaping her journey, including her decision to join Match.com in its early stages and the launch of BabyQuip, a platform connecting traveling families with baby gear rental services. Fran highlights the transformative po...

Lois Robbins is an actor and the founder of Watskin, a clothing brand that uses UPF 50+ fabrics for their designs. Known for her daytime television roles on All My Children and One Life to Live, Lois decided to create Watskin out of necessity when she learned of a cancerous cell on her face. Watskin now sells over 10 different types of sun-protective products and donates 5 percent of every purchas...

Brian and Scott Rudolph are the co-founders of Banza, a food brand that creates chickpea-based alternatives of your favorite comfort foods. Founded in 2014 by brothers Brian and Scott, Banza entered the scene with their high protein plant-based pasta products and have now expanded into pizza, rice, and waffles. Banza is now available domestically in more than 25,000 retail locations including Targ...

Bobby Bitton is the CEO and Co-Founder of O Positiv, a women’s health business that focuses on addressing health needs that have been historically overlooked. Co-founded in 2018 with Bobby’s sister Brianna, O Positiv created FLO, a science-backed all-natural, and hormone-free PMS vitamin. O Positiv now has more than 1.3 million customers and was most recently launched in Target this December. Bobb...

Bryan Barletta is the Founder of Sounds Profitable, a podcast and newsletter dedicated to exploring podcast advertising and monetization. With over 13 years in the ad technology space, Bryan has helped podcasters and advertisers navigate the ever-evolving landscape of audio content. He founded Sounds Profitable in 2020 after working at podcasting companies, Megaphone and Claritas. Bryan was also a...

Lo Bosworth is the Founder of Love Wellness, a total body care company for women. Previously known for her appearances on MTV’s Laguna Beach and The Hills, Lo founded Love Wellness after her own health challenges in 2015 and aimed to create clean and safe wellness products for women. Since its founding, Love Wellness has expanded to be featured in three major national retailers, including Target,...

Wade Foster is the Co-Founder and CEO of Zapier, an automation platform that connects over 6,000 different apps to streamline workflows. Founded in 2012, Zapier currently supports over 2.2 million businesses automate their workflows, from startups to Fortune 100 companies. Only raising $1.3 million funding in 2012, Zapier has grown exponentially under Wade’s leadership and was valued at $5 billion...

Sarah Jessica Parker is a renowned actress and an accomplished entrepreneur, known for her iconic role as Carrie Bradshaw in the hit TV series "Sex and the City." In addition to her successful acting career, Parker ventured into the wine industry, partnering with Invivo Wines to create her own collection, ‘Invivo X, SJP.’ The multi Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning actress also established a pre...

Joanne Wilson is an early-stage angel investor, entrepreneur, and philanthropist with over 150 companies in her investment portfolio such as Food52 and Eater. Her latest venture, Gotham, is a female-founded cannabis concept space that’s curates and shares one-of-a-kind products, art, and experiences that reflect New York’s rich history and influence. She is also the chairperson of Hot Bread Kitche...

Mike Cessario is the CEO and Co-Founder of Liquid Death, a forward thinking canned water start-up with the branding and flare of an energy drink. Pulling from his marketing and creative directing experiences, Mike turned his passion for health into a $700 million business. In just a short amount of time, he’s built the fastest growing water brand in the country, collaborating with celebrities such...

Aerin Lauder is the Founder & Creative Director of AERIN, a global luxury lifestyle brand. Granddaughter of Estée Lauder, the founder of her eponymous cosmetics brand, Aerin has been key to supporting the growth and success of the family-owned luxury giant and currently serves as the Style and Image Director for her family brand. Aerin has emerged as a distinct voice in the world of beauty, fa...

Gary Hirshberg is the CEO of the Hirshberg Entrepreneurship Institutes and Co-Founder of Stonyfield Farm, the world’s leading organic yogurt producer. Gary was previously on the Boards of many organic and natural brands including Annie’s, Honest Tea, and Sweetgreen and currently continues to serve on several corporate plant based boards. He is the author of Stirring It Up: How to Make Money and Sa...

Godard Abel is the Co-Founder and CEO of G2, the largest and most trusted software marketplace, making B2B tech buying easy by connecting buyers to vendors based on authentic customer reviews and real-time ratings of business software and services. Previously, Godard built cloud CPQ pioneers BigMachines (acquired by Oracle) and SteelBrick (acquired by Salesforce). He is also chairman of Logik.io a...

Constance Schwartz-Morini is a Partner and the Co-Founder of SMAC Entertainment (Sports, Media and Culture), a talent management, music, business development, and production company launched in 2010 with Michael Strahan. She produces ABC’s “$100,000 Pyramid” and has produced the highly rated Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Sports Awards for the past five years. Constance also is a Partner of Wear by Erin...