The Founderz Lounge

The Founderz Lounge Episode #94 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t, Don and Steve break down why growth exposes the founder before it exposes the business. They start with a wild franchise story about the second-largest Arby’s franchisee adding 155 restaurants in a single year, then dig into the real lesson behind it: the best franchise brands do not just kno...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #93 with Brad Dunn. In this episode, Don and Steve sit down with Brad Dunn of Reliant Fitness to talk about why so many men lose themselves in their 30s and 40s, and what it really takes to rebuild your body, mindset, and identity. Brad shares how he went from chaos, bad priorities, and a life that needed radical change to becoming a firefighter, a father, and eventuall...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #92 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t, Don and Steve break down the rise of the super franchisee and what it means for the future of franchising. They get into how larger operators and private equity groups are buying up more territory, why mom-and-pop franchisees may be getting squeezed out, and the risk franchisors take when gro...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #91 with Jeff Washington. In this episode, Don and Steve sit down with Jeff Washington of Mission Fit to talk about what it really takes to build a gym people actually believe in. Jeff shares how his military background, coaching experience, and frustration with gimmicky workouts helped shape Mission Fit into a fitness brand built around strength, coaching, and real com...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #90 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t, Don and Steve break down why nostalgia marketing is winning in 2026 and why old-school brand experiences are suddenly feeling fresh again. They get into Pizza Hut’s move back to its classic look, why Gen Z and younger millennials are burned out on constant digital noise, and how things like m...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #89 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t, Don and Steve break down why community still wins in a distracted digital world. They talk about the startup boom in America, what the rise in entrepreneurship really means, and why more people are trying to build businesses than ever before. They also unpack Peloton’s comeback, how smart bra...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #88 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. In this episode, Don and Steve sit down with Matt Hall to break down what actually makes a successful franchisee. Matt shares his story from the factory floor to becoming one of the top operators in the Clean Eatz system, and why consistency, process, and community involvement matter more than hype. They get into what most franchisees...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #87 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t, Don and Steve break down why simple businesses will win in 2026. They talk about Clean Eatz 2.0, why the brand is moving back toward a faster and more human customer experience, and how overcomplicated systems are making business harder than it needs to be. They also get into the comeback of...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #86 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Why do franchisees and business owners fail even when they have access to better tools, stronger systems, and more information than ever before? In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t, Don and Steve break down the real reasons franchisees and business owners fail in 2026. What starts with travel pet peeves, streaming frustration, a...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #85 with Scott Balaban. What actually keeps people playing mobile games, watching ads, coming back the next day, and spending money inside an app? In this episode of The Founderz Lounge, Don and Steve sit down with Scott Balaban, co-founder of Gameblend Studios, to break down the business of game development, user retention, gamification, and mobile monetization. Scott...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #84 with Jamie Mottram. How do you turn a viral sports moment into a product fans will actually buy before the hype disappears? In this episode of The Founderz Lounge, Don and Steve sit down with Jamie Mottram, president of BreakingT, to break down the business of real-time sports merch. Jamie shares how BreakingT built a brand around speed, licensing, and cultural timi...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #83 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Everyone’s an expert now. Everyone’s a guru. Everyone has advice. And somehow, half of it sounds like it came from the same recycled LinkedIn post. In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t, Don and Steve dig into the fake guru era, unsolicited business advice, personal brand echo chambers, and why so many people are trying to positio...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #82 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. AI is everywhere, fake experts are multiplying, and somehow modern business keeps rewarding noise over real execution. In this episode of Business & Bullsh*t , Don and Steve break down what happens when AI hype, white-labeled apps, surface-level business advice, and instant-expert culture start replacing actual experience, judgment...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #81 with Matt Davis. What actually makes video work now that everyone has a camera, content is everywhere, and AI can fake almost anything? In this episode of The Founderz Lounge, Don and Steve sit down with Matt Davis, founder of LifeStage Films and Harvest Filmworks, to talk about why authentic video is becoming even more valuable in a world full of polished, overprod...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #80 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Don and Steve are back with another round of Business & Bullsh*t, where real entrepreneurs break down what founders actually face versus what business culture pretends is true. This episode challenges the modern obsession with “CEO mode” and the polished playbook that makes leadership look clean, strategic, and hands-off. In realit...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #79 with Mike Manzo. What does it take to grow a franchise brand without drifting away from the things that made it work in the first place? In this episode of The Founderz Lounge, Don and Steve sit down with Mike Manzo, former COO of Jersey Mike’s, to talk about the discipline it takes to build a brand that lasts. From franchisee profitability and operational standards...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #78 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Don and Steve are back with another round of Business & Bullsh*t, where real entrepreneurs break down what founders are dealing with right now, what’s changing in business culture, and what most people get wrong about leadership and growth. This episode kicks off with Founderz RoundUp stories from the field, including lessons from...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #77 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Don and Steve are back with another round of Business & Bullsh*t, where real entrepreneurs break down what brands are doing right, what they are doing wrong, and what is changing in culture. This episode kicks off with the business behind GORUCK and how a founder built a massive brand around something most companies try to avoid: p...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #76 with Chris Wunder. In this episode, Don Varady and Steve Bon sit down with Chris Wunder, Founder and CEO of Leap Brands, to talk about executive recruiting, private equity growth, and the realities of building a high-performance company from scratch. Chris shares how he left corporate roles at NBC Sports and Samsung to start his own recruiting firm in 2016, eventual...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #75 with Nikki Boxler. In this episode, Don Varady and Steve Bon sit down with Nikki Boxler, founder of The Maple Farmer, to talk about the truth behind maple syrup, farm entrepreneurship, and what most people don’t realize about how real maple products are made. Nikki shares her journey growing up on a dairy and maple farm in Western New York, leaving for corporate wor...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #74 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Don and Steve are back with another round of Business & Bullsh*t, where real entrepreneurs break down what brands are doing right, what they are doing wrong, and what is changing in culture. This episode kicks off with Taco Bell opening a real wedding chapel in Las Vegas and what it says about owning your brand instead of playing i...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #73 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Don and Steve are back with another round of Business & Bullsh*t, where real entrepreneurs break down what’s happening in business, what’s changing in culture, and what owners need to stop whining about and start fixing. This one starts light, then gets real fast. They rip through the top menu trends shaping 2025, from boba and Dub...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #72 with Scott Volquartsen. In this episode, Don Varady and Steve Bon sit down with Scott Volquartsen of Volquartsen Firearms to unpack what it really takes to scale a legacy business without compromising quality, culture, or craftsmanship. Scott shares the story of growing up in a family-owned company, taking over the business with his brother, and navigating the chall...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #71 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Don and Steve are back with another round of Business & Bullsh*t, where real entrepreneurs break down wins, screwups, and what actually moves the needle, without the corporate fluff. At one point, Quiznos had more than 5,000 locations and was one of the fastest-growing franchise brands in the world. A few years later, it was in ban...

The Founderz Lounge Episode #70 with Don Varady and Steve Bon. Don and Steve are back with another round of Business & Bullsh*t, where real entrepreneurs break down wins, screwups, and what actually moves the needle, without the corporate fluff. It starts with a simple observation. Protein is suddenly in everything. From Sweetgreen’s 106-gram protein bowl to protein water showing up on shelves...