The Unconventional Path: Entrepreneurship and Innovation Stories and Ideas.

Today we are excited to be joined by author Nathan Perez.  Nathan co-wrote The 20-Minute Networking Meeting . He is an executive career and job-search coach at Career Innovation, LLC. Nathan is a formally trained actor with a BFA in Theatre. Nathan’s 20-year career in the arts and entertainment world prepared him well for connecting with people. He also worked in the corporate world in places...

Today we are excited to be joined by joined Dan Burcaw.  He is a serial tech entrepreneur founding several software technology companies  He is currently the Co-Founder & CEO of Nami ML.  Nami ML develops machine learning software to enhance mobile application subscriptions for a wide spectrum of businesses.  We discussed the challenges in starting technology businesses tha...

Today we are excited to be joined by joined Anthony Minessale.  Anthony is a pioneer of internet-based communications, having started 3 companies in the internet space.  He is currently the CEO and co-founder of SignalWire. SignalWire is a three-year-old company that provides internet-based telecommunication (voice and video) to companies.  Anthony has a great story about being a te...

Today we are excited to be joined by Ed Vincent, founder of FestivalPass, which is a global subscription marketplace for the live events industry. Ed is a serial entrepreneur and has a background in data analytics and the media industry.  We discussed how he funded the business and the impact COVID has had on his plans.  It’s a crowded space and Ed’s approach is novel. You can check out...

Today we are excited to be joined by Sam Holmes.  Sam is a sailor and has a YouTube channel to help fund his passion for sailing.  While working for Disney during the week, on the weekends Sam discovered sailing.  He sailed from California to Hawaii solo.  During the trip, he recorded some videos, which he uploaded to YouTube,  to share with his friends and as a memory of...

Today we are excited to be joined by Yael Joffe.  Yael is a serial entrepreneur and the founder of her current business, 3X4 Genetics, a nutrigenetics company that launched in 2018. 3X4 Genetics does genetic testing and focuses on genetic aspects of diet, exercise, lifestyle, and health. Yael has co-authored two books on genetics and is also an adjunct professor at Rutgers University. Yael jo...

Today we are excited to be joined by Jason Forrest.  Jason is the CEO of the Forrest Performance Group.  Jason works with companies to maximize their sales effectiveness, through a combination of training, hiring, and culture building. We also discuss compensation strategies and building a high-performance sales team. You can check out Forrest Performance Group here: https://www.fpg.com/...

Today we are excited to be joined by Trevor Crotts. Trevor is the founder and President of BuddyBrands, it started as a high-end pet mattress company and has expanded to include several other pet-related brands.  We discuss the challenges of entering a crowded market with a premium brand, the importance of brands, and how having multiple, related brands is a great way to strengthen your busin...

Today we are excited to be joined by Mike Begg. Mike is the Co-founder of AMZ Advisors. AMZ Advisors focuses on helping entrepreneurs maximize their e-commerce effectiveness. He also helps entrepreneurs with setting up nearshoring operations in Mexico, and he is actively involved in a variety of consumer goods startups. Mike shared some great tips on establishing your brand while taking advantage...

Today we are excited to be joined by Carl Allen. Carl is the co-founder of Dealmaker Wealth Society and PROX Capital. He helps entrepreneurs acquire an existing business as an alternative to starting a business from the ground up. He is also a coach who helps entrepreneurs acquire other companies as a tool for growth. We had a great conversation and Carl's approach to acquiring a business as an al...

Today we are excited to be joined by Ryan Green. Ryan is the co-founder and CEO of Gridwise, which helps ridesharing drivers optimize their income and monitor and manage their performance using an app. Ryan is a graduate of the US Naval Academy and has had banking industry experience. He has created a unified data platform that brings key information across multiple ride-sharing platforms to drive...

This week's guest is Joe Hagen. After retiring from the corporate world, Joe started Offshore Adventure Sailing. It's a business that takes people out on ocean sailing trips. This is a wonderful example of a lifestyle or hobby business that we all cal learn something from. It's not Joe's primary stream of income. It's a way of doing what you love and building a little bit of income around it. It i...

This week's guest is Andrew Hutton He is the founder and CEO of Day One, which helps new entrepreneurs launch businesses. This business incubates entrepreneurs that are outside the tech world. He combines his experience in the tech world, venture capital, design, and innovation into providing valuable support for entrepreneurs that do not fit into typical VC funding or traditional incubator progra...

This week we have a special episode of our podcast. To start off the 2021 New Year, Mike and I have looked over our 100+ episodes and pick the ones we think are the most interesting or thought-provoking. We also want to thank all of our super guests and you, our listeners. In the 2 plus years, we have been doing this podcast, we have had over 17,000 listens all around the world. From the United St...

This week's guest is Jeroen Corthout. He co-founded Salesflare, a CRM company that competes with the likes of Salesforce, Hubspot, and Pipedrive. We have a great conversation about how a small company that makes mission-critical products can compete against much larger players. Jeroen discussed how they started small, understood the customer's critical needs, tested their concepts, and then got in...

This week's guest is Drew Cappabianca. Drew is the founder of The Hub, in Brant Lake NY, which is a combination bike shop and restaurant. It's located in a small town in the Adirondack Mountains in upstate NY, with lots of access to bike trails, some of which were developed by Drew as part of his vision to create a bike-centered ecosystem in his part of the Adirondacks. Live music is also a big pa...

This week's guest is Maddie Brown. Maddie is a CPA and CEO of Smashing Numbers, which is an Accounting, Payroll, Tax, and Consulting firm in Bronson, Iowa. Maddie focuses on providing strategic financial guidance to small firms all across the United States. We had a great conversation about her early career working at a public sector job and how left the public sector and purchased an existing bus...

This week's guest is Eric Reed. Eric is founder and CEO of Reed5Group. His company works with client organizations to improve performance through a better understanding of organizational dynamics, leadership, and culture. We have a wonderful conversation on corporate culture and Key Performance Indicators. (KPIs) You can check out Reed5Group here: Reed5Group We love to hear from our listeners, sen...

This week's guest is Tyler Ornstein. Tyler founded Tylers Coffee - the first acid-free coffee. Why acid-free coffee, well for certain individuals, it's the only type of coffee they can drink without causing serious gastrointestinal issues. And he did this as a 15-year-old! It's a really fascinating story and as you will hear, Tyler's story is very unique. You can check out Tyler here: https://tyle...

This week's guest is Tony Guarnaccia. Tony has vast experience in working with companies is helping them best utilize their marketing dollars. We all know how complex this has gotten for companies. From search engine optimization to social medial to email campaigns. Tony helps us understand how do you break through all of the clutter. You can check out Tony here: https://tonyguarnaccia.com/ https:...

This week's guest is Lance Graulich. Lance founded and runs Ion Franchising. He helps individuals sort through the vast number of franchising options. We had a great conversation where Lance shared some great tips and ideas on franchising. This is a must-listen for those who have an interest in buying a franchise or franchising their current business. You can check out Ion Franchising here: https:...

This week's guest is Dan Demsky. Dan, along with his two best friends, founded Unbound Merino. The company offers the highest quality merino wool clothing. Pack light, save money & enjoy the comfort of our merino wool t-shirts, socks & underwear. It's a great story on how to start a business, use crowdfunding to get launched and constantly build your brand and the connection with your customers. D...

We did it, we hit 100 podcasts! It took a bit over two years to get here and it's been a blast. Getting to 100 is a significant milestone in the podcasting world. In this episode, we reflect a bit on things we have learned and make a few observations. We then discuss taking the podcast through a pivot and changing things up for the future. As always, we love to hear from our listeners, send us you...

Today we are going to do something different. Mike and I are going to interview each other. We thought it would be a bit of fun for each of us to share some of our background and history with you, our listeners. Hope you enjoy it! We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Tha...

What happens when best friends start a business, with little preparation, scarce resources, but a lot of big ideas and energy? It is not always smooth sailing, but according to our guest this week, that's all part of the fun of entrepreneurship. This week's guest is Doug Weisz. Doug is Owner/General Manager of Evergreen Subaru, in Auburn Maine, and, not coincidentally, Mike's best friend for 40 ye...