The Keri Croft Show

Send us Fan Mail Whenever Chef Nikki pulls up, you know the episode is going to be a vibe. Join in on this impromptu hang as we go everywhere. Food, travel, energy, and what it really looks like to build an experience brand that’s global, intimate, and completely its own lane. Nikki’s the founder of High End Affair and she’s out here producing microdosed supper clubs and “adult field trips” (yes,...

Send us Fan Mail Ever feel like a rudderless ship in the ocean—moving, busy, maybe even working hard… but not actually steering toward anything? That’s where Mental Athleticism comes in. In this episode, we introduce the  first foundational pillar of MA: anchoring yourself to a bold vision for your life. Because when you know where you’re going and who you’re becoming, your entire trajectory will...

Send us Fan Mail How do you build a profitable, sustainable company without losing your marriage or yourself? In this episode, Cameron Mitchell shares how he turned a turbulent childhood and a chip on his shoulder into one of the most successful restaurant groups in the country. But this isn’t just a business conversation. His incredible wife, Molly, joins the discussion, offering the unfiltered,...

Send us Fan Mail What if we’re spending more time training our kids to compete than we are teaching them how to cope? In this conversation, I sit down with Amy Jo Hamilton, founder of The Balanced Child Method, to talk about something that feels urgent right now: raising emotionally regulated kids in a world that feels anything but calm. Amy shares her journey through miscarriage, fertility strugg...

Send us Fan Mail Katalina’s didn’t become a beloved Columbus restaurant by accident. In this conversation with founder Kathleen Day, we talk about staying power, what it takes to build something people love, keep it standing through hard seasons, and still care deeply about the work years later. We bounce from wild life stories to music obsessions, famous run-ins, creative intensity, and the unfil...

Send us Fan Mail Confidence isn’t something you magically wake up with one day. It’s built quietly, consistently, and often when no one’s watching. In this episode, I sit down with mental performance coach and podcast host Sean Fee to talk about what it actually takes to believe in yourself again, especially after burnout, major life changes, or a season that knocked the wind out of you. We get in...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when a brand like Homage hits year 19? You get a conversation that’s equal parts thoughtful, absurd, and completely unfiltered. This sit-down with Homage founder, Ryan Vesler jumps from nostalgia and creativity to sales plans, leadership, and the strange realities of building a brand for nearly two decades. Sometimes serious, sometimes sarcastic, and occasionally inte...

Send us Fan Mail I don’t usually sit down with history professors, but after this conversation, I might need to start. In this episode, I’m joined by Hasan Kwame Jeffries, College of Arts and Sciences Alumni Associate Professor of History at The Ohio State University, and I’ll be honest, I was little intimidated.  What followed was one of those conversations that stretches you. Not because it’s he...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when the validation disappears and you’re left alone with yourself? In this episode, Keri sits down with Achea Redd for a raw, honest conversation about counterfeit relationships, people-pleasing, and learning how to trust your intuition. Achea shares how being married to NBA Hall of Famer, Michael Redd, sharpened her ability to spot fake energy, forced her to protect...

Send us Fan Mail This week, I’m sitting down with Ashtyn Pharis, founder of Pilates by Ashtyn, the largest Pilates studio in Ohio, to talk about the long game of building: discipline, identity, and knowing when to go all in… and when to walk away. We unpack her path from elite athletics to heavy weightlifting, shutting down a decade-long online fitness business, and rebuilding from the ground up w...

Send us Fan Mail We weren’t planning on dropping another episode before the new year, but when the timing feels right, you listen. This is a special holiday re-share of my conversation with Vanessa Torres from Freedom a la Cart, an organization doing some of the most important, powerful work in our community. In this episode, Vanessa shares her personal story of surviving human trafficking and wha...

Send us Fan Mail It’s just you and me today, friend—and this one has been a long time coming. I’m giving you the full behind-the-scenes download on everything we’ve been building: why the show has been quiet, what’s happening inside our tiny-but-mighty team, and why 2026 is about to be our biggest year yet. I’m also breaking down the heartbeat of all of it: Mental Athleticism. How I use it. Why it...

Send us Fan Mail This Halloween, we’re taking you inside Columbus’s viral goth bakery— Bite This —where the bagels are skull-shaped, the playlists are heavy metal, and the owner, Annie Dixon , is redefining what it means to build a brand with bite. In this raw and wildly fun conversation, Annie opens up about her journey from elder emo to entrepreneur — including the dark humor, brutal honesty, an...

Send us Fan Mail The Riveter’s Amy Nelson joins me on the pod to launch The Brave Shift Live Series—a brand-new collaboration between The Riveter and The B Lab that helps people in business build through the mess. Together, we go deep on what it really means to make a brave shift—the kind that changes everything. From career pivots and business reinvention to mindset and mental athleticism, this e...

Send us Fan Mail This week, I’m sitting down with Joel Furno, the founder of Citrin—a valet company that started with $200 and a dream—and now employs over 700 people across the country. But this episode isn’t just about business growth. It’s about personal growth. Joel gets real about the shadows behind success—depression, marriage struggles, and what happens when achievement isn’t enough—and how...

Send us Fan Mail Everyone’s out here glued to their follower count like it’s the stock market. But let me hit you with some truth: likes don’t pay the bills. Revenue does. In this Ask Amy x The Keri Croft Show mashup, Amy Nelson and I go all in on the difference between chasing vanity metrics and actually building a business that works. We dig into: ✨ The wild ROI of email marketing (and why it’s...

Send us Fan Mail Let’s just call it like it is—Troy Allen has a reputation. Some people call him a visionary. Others? An a**hole. On this week’s episode, I sit down with the man behind Pins, 16-Bit, and some of the biggest nightlife and entertainment concepts in Columbus and beyond. Troy’s been building incredible brands people actually feel for decades—and he’s not afraid to ruffle feathers along...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when you stop reasoning with yourself, stop waiting for permission, and just decide? You get Cory Gregory. This week we packed up the mics and headed out to Buckeye Lake to sit down with Cory on his turf—Muscle Island. And let me tell you…this place isn’t just a slice of paradise. It’s a masterclass in vision, grit, and relentless execution. We’re talking about: ⚡ Th...

Send us Fan Mail This week, Amy Nelson is back in the studio with me—and we’re talking about something I honestly wish we didn’t have to: the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Not from a political lens, but from a human one. From the lens of being parents trying to raise kids in a world where violence is live-streamed, group chats move faster than the news cycle, and childhood innocence feels harder...

Send us Fan Mail Some dreams take everything you’ve got. And then they ask for more. Today, I sat down with Krista Guagenti, founder of Panacea Luxury Spa Boutique, whose story proves what it really means to keep moving —even when the setbacks pile up and the odds feel impossible. Krista didn’t grow up with a roadmap to entrepreneurship. She was the first in her family to graduate college, worked...

Send us Fan Mail Before you can build a business, you’ve got to build belief. This week I’m pulling back the curtain on a very special B Lab client of mine—Megan Goodman. Megan came in with a head full of ideas, a ton of passion, and (like so many of us) a little voice in her head that kept saying who am I to do this? In this episode, we talk about what it really looks like to start from scratch—w...

Send us Fan Mail Amy Nelson is back! Every time we sit down, I walk away fired up and inspired to do more, be more, and lead with more clarity. This time we dove into women in leadership and how damn hard it can be to walk the line between being “too soft” or “too much.” We get into: ⚡ Leading with authenticity ⚡ Why being “bossy” is actually a compliment ⚡ Why asking for forgiveness beats wait...

Send us Fan Mail What do you do when someone tells you you’ve only got seven months to live? If you’re Jason Tharp, you decide to do the exact opposite of giving up. You strip away the masks, you stop apologizing for who you are, and you start spreading joy in the most unexpected ways. Jason is an author, artist, and cancer survivor who’s beating the odds every single day. In our chat, he shares h...

Send us Fan Mail You can’t plan for the moments that change you, but you can decide what to do with them. That’s what I loved about my conversation with Sarah Gormley. Sarah is a Columbus local and the owner of Sarah Gormley Gallery in the Short North—and she’s lived one hell of a story. We got into everything: standing on the porch screaming “F***” with her daughter in response to her mom's...

Send us Fan Mail Michael Flinner spent 17 years building a successful logistics company—only to walk away and start from scratch with something completely different: The Fluff , a premium pickup-and-delivery laundry service in Central Ohio. We get into the unsexy realities of building something sustainable, why convenience is the new currency, and the importance of staying “in the mud” when you’re...