There are jobs you simply do, that’s what most of us have, and there are creative passions that turn out to make you a few bucks, which very few are lucky enough to succeed at. One way to gauge the difference is the perception of children. If, as a child you heard of an occupation and immediately felt you would rather eat raw spinach with no ranch dressing while sitting in the adult church service for 10 hours, this is likely a job you do. If, as a child, you fantasized about doing that job. You...
Apr 24, 2018•44 min
There are some businesses that are integral in the fabric and story of a community. Think about the town you live in. If someone asks, "What are some things I HAVE to do when I visit?" you immediately think of them. Maybe the dive bar in that back alley, an ice cream shop that has handmade old-fashioned vanilla but you have to specifically ask for it, a barber shop that only does high fades, a music venue where every good band played before they got famous. "But where should I eat when I go ther...
Apr 10, 2018•43 min
Many of our favorite businesses were built out of someone loving something and then figuring out how to make it better. Yvon Chouinard created Patagonia because he loved rock climbing, hiking, and being outdoors. Everything else stemmed from that. Ben & Jerry loved ice cream, Jake Carpenter of Burton snowboards just wanted to find the perfect ride. There are lots of reasons for someone to start a business but loving something and then working to make it better is one of the most fulfilling. ...
Mar 25, 2018•37 min
Us humans, we have all these labels for people, right.Us humans, we have all these labels for people, right.Some are mean like calling someone a nerd or a moron. Some are self-applied like goth or grunge. Some clearly state a specific spiritual philosophy like Christian or Pagan. Some are about ancestry, others skin color, still others define the generation you were born. We use these words as a way to categorize traits or behaviors and all of it is a way for our brains to create boundaries. War...
Mar 12, 2018•43 min
Our guest today builds houses. Really beautiful houses Hardwood floors with deep velvety purple finishes, huge windows full of afternoon sun. Each home is unique and, like any good builder, his finished pieces have a stunning signature to them. Loren Wood and his team of builders drop their heart and soul into every new build. They pour foundations, frame walls, run electrical, pop about a trillion nails into all of it, and finally when it’s all done, they take some pretty pictures, open the doo...
Feb 27, 2018•45 min
Our guest today has perhaps one of the smartest solutions to a specific problem that's plagued beekeepers for centuries. Her and the Beecorp team are taking on some of the key issues around a dying community of animals that we actually really need. Ellie Symes shares her story, how BeeCorp is solving key issues for beekeepers, and what she's learned from being a CEO. We're glad you joined us. Early Memories of Entrepreneurship While Ellie never really saw herself as growing up to be an entrepren...
Feb 11, 2018•32 min
Have you ever dreamed of going viral, schmoozing with the stars, swimming in piles of virtual likes and shares, retweets and smiley faces? I mean who doesn’t want fan mail, right? Our guest today is fortunate enough to have experienced all of that but here’s the thing, he wasn’t really dreaming of it. In fact, as it turns out, most people who go viral weren’t. Generally they are living life like the rest of us, chasing passions, making ends meet, and then one day this one part of their world blo...
Jan 29, 2018•38 min
Do you love the town you live in or do you long to move somewhere else? Have you ever thought about why you feel whatever way you do? I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately. I’ve lived in Bloomington Indiana for most of the last 25 years and the more people I meet, the more stories build the thread of this town in my mind, the deeper connection I have with this place. I’ve always seen Bloomington as an oasis. The college town in beautiful southern Indiana. People of all colors, shapes, and c...
Jan 23, 2018•23 min
Have you ever had a good idea? One that was so obvious, so helpful, so ingenious that you couldn’t believe it didn’t already exist? You searched the web and couldn’t find anytime about it, you researched the patent list and it just wasn’t there. You sat in a darkroom late at night thinking “what is my next step?”. Well, if you idea has anything to do with technology, your first call might be to today’s guest Mike Kelly at DeveloperTown. Along with taking tech ideas from infancy to lauch, Mike an...
Jan 07, 2018•46 min
So you’ve got a million dollars that your looking to invest right? It’s just sitting around in your side table or stuffed into the cushions on your couch but you know it should be invested somewhere so it can grow into two or three million. You could invest in the stock market or real estate but that sounds so boring. You want to invest in ideas, great ideas, and help them grow into a multi-billion dollar company like Amazon or Google. If that’s your scenario, our guest today is the right guy to...
Dec 17, 2017•50 min
We’ve all seen those sad animal commercials, right? Underserved, scrawny, abused pups that need your help. On this episode, we sit down with someone who decided to address the problem head on. Not by donating a few bucks but by dedicating her life’s work to serving these animals. Who is this superhero to destitute animals? It’s the director of Monroe County Humane Association, Rebecca Warren. Rebecca tells the story of how she took a misguided voucher program and converted it into a vet tech cli...
Dec 05, 2017•44 min
On today’s show we chat with small business icon Jeff Mease who took the work ethic he learned from an early age and built a pizza shop that sprouted a restaurant which naturally needed a brewery. Once all of that was humming, he created a community commissary where other small food businesses could start just like he did. After over 30 years of growth, Jeff now steers a ten million dollar per year organization and the new ideas just keep coming. Here’s an overview: What early stories from Jeff’...
Nov 19, 2017•48 min
Today we chat with RCV Roofing owner Jay Nelson about all things roofing. Learn how he grew from zero to one of the largest midwestern roofing contractors in less than 5 years. We’ll talk bad roofs, the tension between roofers and insurance companies, how to pick a good roofer, and more. We’re glad you joined us.
Oct 22, 2017•28 min
On today's show, Jeremy sits down with the owner of Felt Creative Agency and Marketing Guru AJ O’Reilly. We’ll lay out the 7 specific steps to the perfect marketing approach. Get these steps right and the biggest issue your business will have is how to keep up.
Oct 08, 2017•33 min
On today’s episode of Scratch Entrepreneur we explore a real life example of someone who left his perfect apartment in lower Manhattan, a swanky job as a magazine fixer, a high rise office overlooking Times Square and moved to a small midwestern town with no real plan. What came next was the birth of a New York quality magazine on a college town budget. We’ll dig deep into the story of Bloom Magazine with its founder, publisher and editor Malcolm Abrams
Sep 16, 2017•27 min
On today’s episode of Scratch entrepreneur, how Jessica & Aaron Wehr, owners of Wehrloom Honey, took a Christmas present and turned it into a booming agricultural business. We’re glad you joined us.
Jul 19, 2017•28 min
On today’s show how Doug Dayhoff and the Upland team grew a small town brewery and pub into a multimillion dollar business known internationally for their lineup of traditional craft beers and their innovation around brewing wood aged sour beers. We’re glad you joined us.
Jun 16, 2017•39 min
What does it mean to create content to build your brand? On today’s episode Colin Clark, owner of Tribeswell, and Jeremy dig deep into our of their favorite topics: Authentic Content Marketing Creating great content (videos, blog posts, podcasts, etc) is far from new, people have been doing it for decades. But it becoming a more and more central strategy to every business who's mission is to build community and create a loyal following. It's a super fun super real way to present yourself to idea...
May 13, 2017•38 min
“Where will Ugo Today?” On today’s episode an incredible look into one of Bloomington Indiana’s rising food star’s Rebecca Walters. Rebecca is an entrepreneur who truly took an idea and built it into a healthy profitable business. Her idea solved a problem she had. She was hungry. She needed healthy food that was mobile but had the nutritional value to support her as a college athlete. So she created a product, grew it into a side business, and then dove in head first.
Feb 16, 2017•29 min
Have you ever just felt stuck, like your life or your business isn’t where you want it to be? Meet transformation coach Adam Schaeuble.
Dec 04, 2016•36 min
On this episode we chat with Scott & Abby Noroozi, owners of the Green Nursery. The Green Nursery is a baby boutique with a brick and mortar shop in downtown Bloomington, Indiana and a national renowned online store. What began as a natural herb remedy shop in 2007 has morphed into a baby store with a cult following of cloth diaper aficionados. Theirs is the story that every entrepreneur wants to tell. A good idea, turned into a fledgling business, turned into a great idea, that exploded int...
Oct 30, 2016•31 min
Want a Google-like work environment without working for a huge corporation? Coworking is your answer. In this episode Tyler Henke, founder of Cowork Bloomington, gives us a peek into this membership-based community. We’ll explore why collaborative workspaces exist, how Cowork Bloomington got started, and Tyler’s insights on business success.
Aug 15, 2016•15 min
Have you ever dreamed of starting a business based on something you just love to do? Sure you have. The owners of Cardinal Spirits did to. They loved mixing drinks and their crazy dream was to build a distillery, make hard alcohol, and invent great drinks to mix with their vodkas, rums, and more. So they went for it. In this podcast, Jeff Wuslich shares how their business became legal, what they did next, and whether bourbon can be made outside of Kentucky.
Jul 02, 2016•23 min
Lifelong musician Jason Wilber joins us to share his story, offer a few secrets to his success, and open up about the vision and timeline around his new solo album.
Apr 24, 2016•41 min
Adam and Alicia Sweet are proprietors of King Dough Pizza. Like many partnerships, especially when the team includes spouses, they each have specific roles in the operation of their artisanal wood-fired pizza palace. They’ve created a special pizza experience. King Dough is not your mama’s pizza place. In this episode they share how they started King Dough, what they think of crowd sourcing, how trustworthy "farm to food" really is, and the 3 things every new business owner should consider....
Apr 16, 2016•26 min
True stories of remarkable people who dropped everything to create a healthy profitable business
Apr 16, 2016•2 min
