Our guest, Edwin Alvarez, has 14 years’ experience working within the finance industry in roles ranging from internal operations, external client facing sales, and procurement. Three years ago Edwin became co-founder and CFO of CathWear, a cutting edge medical device accessory and garment producer, providing a comfortable experience for folks who need catheters. He’s been instrumental in working with CathWear’s original inventors to guide CathWear from patented idea, to developing its business m...
Feb 03, 2020•50 min
"I care so much about what I'm putting in my body and all these other factors of wellness, but I never considered what's in the beauty products I'm using every day." Our guest, Krysta Lewis, is the CEO and founder of Aisling Organics, a revolutionary high-performance organic makeup brand. With a focus on both purpose and profit, Krysta was originally inspired to launch Aisling Organics when realizing the unregulated chemicals in our cosmetics were causing chronic illness and there were no effect...
Jan 17, 2020•39 min
"Then it just hit me - did this really happen? Am I able to teach a machine to diagnose individuals? If that's a possibility, what else can I do in this space? And I thought, I'm going to use this technology to enable every individual to receive world-class healthcare no matter where you are in the world. That really became the central point of my mission with Vastmindz." After graduating with a mathematics degree, our guest, Nik Sehgal, joined Wall Street, spending most of his time working with...
Jan 10, 2020•42 min
Our guest David Lowe had a sensational successful outcome with his first startup Uberpong, a company providing custom made ping pong paddles, where he partnered with major clients like the LA Dodgers, Nike and Red Bull before successfully leading the company to an exit. Now David is working on his second startup: Qwerky, a micro co-living brand that attracts like minded people to live together in co-living communities. In his recently-launched book 'Blow It Up: 21 Ways Your Startup Can Shake Up ...
Dec 16, 2019•46 min
Our guest, Walt Brown, believes that, like a waterwheel, a good organizational operating system captures the source of an organization’s energy and direction, and then focuses that energy to power the organization. Walt is very familiar with launching businesses – in fact, he is seven for seven – woo hoo! During the last decade, Walt has helped transform the culture of more than 150 organizations across the country as an Implementer of the Entrepreneurial Operating System®. This process helps yo...
Dec 06, 2019•41 min
"The difference between success and failure is your perspective." Even with great ideas and passion, it's difficult to navigate the murky waters of entrepreneurship. Our guest, Michael Dermer, is an entrepreneur, lawyer, speaker, coach, author, and founder of The Lonely Entrepreneur – a one stop shop that understands the entrepreneur’s struggle and provides solutions to the business and personal issues we all face as entrepreneurs. Michael founded his first company, Incent One, in 1998. It was a...
Dec 01, 2019•44 min
As a startup, you need your target customers to find your business online. One of the top tactics you can use is search engine optimization (SEO), but it’s highly unlikely your customers are going to be searching for your brand name. That’s why having a strong SEO strategy in place the day you launch is so important for early-stage startups. While it’s a long tail game (at least 12 months!), it will more effectively and cost-efficiently promote your products or services to your target audience. ...
Nov 24, 2019•42 min
It was not Bobbie Carlton's plan to launch a business. But it was the Great Recession. There were no jobs, and she was the primary revenue generator for her family. It was an "unexpected" decision to launch her PR and Marketing firm in 2008, followed by Innovation Nights in 2009, and she's never looked back! Bobbie is a Greater Boston startup community favorite! She is the founder of Carlton PR & Marketing, a boutique integrated marketing agency focused on efficiently delivering marketing re...
Nov 17, 2019•37 min
Would you like to leverage proximity marketing and mass personalization strategies for your startup product/service? And learn how to build a startup team where everyone embraces and respects each other’s styles and talent, while bringing a mission and vision to life? Our guest, Dean Hantzis, founder of Tapple, shares his best marketing practices and how he uses Ubuntu to create synergy and cohesion with his startup teams. Dean has over 18 years of web, mobile and cloud development experience. H...
Nov 13, 2019•43 min
How do you transition an online dating site for foodies into a consumable products brand? Our guest, Luvafoodie.com founder Michelle Mazzara, shares her spicy startup story! In 2014, Michelle decided to follow her dream and launched Luvafoodie.com, a brand for single foodie folks to meet. While Michelle had strong marketing and branding skills from her 20+ year career in product marketing, she was definitely challenged to figure out how to build a website and create an online community. As many ...
Nov 10, 2019•31 min
Hold onto your seats folks because this episode of the Startup Life Show is a wild and exhilarating roller coaster ride! Our guest, Adam Robinson, pulls back the curtain and candidly reveals the real startup stories you rarely hear. You'll feel the pain and the glory from his honest insights about the mistakes he made along the way, and the victories he pulled out from the ashes of burned attempts. This is a terrific episode for folks who want to know what really happens when you launch a busine...
Nov 07, 2019•59 min
Are you feeling confident about how you're pitching to investors or at pitch events? If you'd like to give a GREAT pitch that everyone remembers, click the play button... NOW. Our guest, Precious Williams, also known as the #KillerPitchMaster, is a world class master communicator who works with entrepreneurs to help them take their professional speaking skills to the next level. With over 24 years of experience conceptualizing unique branding, speaking, and marketing techniques, Precious trains ...
Nov 04, 2019•41 min
Our guest, Olga Bashkatova, left the stable world of corporate accounting and boarded the startup roller coaster ride by working at startup companies - 5 of them in 7 years. She found the work inspirational and educational and quickly learned she could never return to her former career as a corporate CPA. As the last startup she worked at filed for bankruptcy, Olga decided to launch her own business - NextStage Advisory - where she provides affordable outsourced CFO services to startups. Olga’s ...
Oct 27, 2019•38 min
"You want to reach the point where the average salesperson can sell to the average customer." Our guest, Uri Haramati, is a seasoned product manager with over a decade of business knowledge and experience in diverse capacities. A serial entrepreneur, Uri founded Life on Air, the startup that previously launched the Meerkat and Houseparty video streaming apps, which are used by millions of users worldwide, and where he held the position of Head of Product and managing company operations. Previous...
Oct 23, 2019•34 min
As a new business owner, do you find yourself falling back into an employee mentality? Or perhaps you compare yourself to other founders and end up feeling like an imposter? Or Maybe you are so overwhelmed by the entrepreneurial journey, you’re thinking about throwing in the towel! Our guest, Krista Mollion is on a mission to create a global movement to help people overcome burnout, find balance, eliminate uncertainty, fear, and doubt and step fully into their potential. After almost 20 years wo...
Oct 18, 2019•35 min
What happens when a computer engineer and seasoned entrepreneur with a strong product development and UX background attends a local trivia game night event? He creates an impulsive trivia game app! Our guest, Stephon McCoy, is Founder of QuicWit – a 24/7 365 trivia gaming experience and lead generation digital marketing platform. QuicWit asks users multiple trivia questions randomly … on a daily basis … and the first person to answer wins a valuable prize mailed directly to their house, no strin...
Oct 15, 2019•34 min
Feeling overwhelmed by the clutter of toys and baby gear taking over your home? Would you like to upcycle your stash of hardly used mother's little helpers, but can't find the time or energy to cart them to a consignment store? Our guest, Rhonda Collins, knows exactly how you feel. A documentary film director and a Mom to twin daughters, Rhonda lived in a tiny apartment in Oakland, CA and hadn't seen her floors in years. Every time she went to declutter all the gear, she felt a pang from the gui...
Oct 10, 2019•33 min
Our guest, Dan Willis, is a Millennial Motivator and an international public speaker engaging audiences on how community and relationships are the future of marketing in the millennial marketplace. He brings his best advice from 15 years of international digital marketing experience to the Startup Life Show listeners. Drawing from practical experience from consulting with major brands like FOX TV, Toyota and H&M, Dan offers insights into the power of relationship marketing, video content and...
Oct 03, 2019•39 min
"The reality is you're going to fail more than you're going to succeed. And the goal of a good baseball player and a good entrepreneur, when dealing with things like rejection or failure, is to recognize that it isn't the end point. It's just another data point." ~ Justin Real Our guest, Justin Real, has been obsessed with baseball his entire life. During his own baseball career, he experienced the stress of spending the end of high school competing for the attention of college team scouts. This...
Sep 29, 2019•28 min
Our guest, Hunter Foote, is a serial and an altruistic entrepreneur. With a strong background in private equity and real estate investment, Hunter is the Founder & Executive Director of the Vanderburgh House, a certified B-corporation with a mission to build recovery focused, peer supported, sober living communities. Vanderburgh is passionate about ending the stigma of addiction and giving those in recovery a safe place to continue their journey of sobriety. Hunter is also the Managing Direc...
Sep 21, 2019•50 min
Have you heard the question “what’s your LTV/CAC ratio” and wondered – what the ? I’m just trying to build a business here! You may have thought to yourself “ruh roh – I have no idea what that means! Don't worry! I share with you what these acronyms mean, why they’re necessary for your business, and how to calculate them. As a founder, you have to lift “know your numbers” weights. It’s part of your hands-on training, and the LTV/CAC ratio is a valuable calculation to help you create a successful...
Sep 17, 2019•6 min
Our guest, AK Ikwaukor, a former professional athlete known as Coach AK, is an entrepreneur, consultant and strategic storyteller who has traveled to 30+ countries working with students, professional athletes, coaches, government agencies, celebrities, CEO’s, employees of Fortune 100 companies, scholars, victims affected by terrorism and even community leaders from around the world through his entrepreneurial ventures. His endeavors have included work in sports diplomacy, storytelling, fashion, ...
Sep 10, 2019•43 min
How do you respond when someone thinks you're too young or too old to be launching a business? Our guest, Auriel Wright, is a serial founder and a current Senior at Harvard University studying Computer Science and Mandarin Chinese. That’s right… Auriel is still in college. My advice: don’t ever be caged by your age – you’re never too young or too old to launch a business! In her current venture, StrattyX, she serves as CEO and CTO and works to fulfill the company’s mission of democratizing algor...
Aug 30, 2019•35 min
It's natural to feel anxious when the "lights/camera/action" are focused on you. You're working hard to communicate your business message while managing your facial expressions and body language, all under the microscope of intense scrutiny. Our guest, Eric Cox, is a media and communications veteran with over 20 years experience in TV news, PR, marketing and on-air talent development for news. His passion is helping people tell their stories and he’s spent his professional life following that pa...
Aug 23, 2019•46 min
Our guest, Kim Gamez, is the CEO and founder of Mi Padrino®, an online event planning service to help parents and families organize, plan, and fund events celebrated in the Hispanic tradition. Kim saw a need for a more efficient solution for organizing Quinceañeras, Weddings, Baptisms, and more for the Hispanic community. And, as a mother of 5, she deeply appreciated the complexity of coordinating all aspects of these time-honored traditions with families near and far. Her hope is that, with the...
Aug 14, 2019•38 min
Our guest, Andreina Viera, is an administrative professional and business aficionado committed to creating solutions for businesses and enabling growth in professional settings. As founder of The Vieras, an organization providing outsourced administrative, financial, HR and marketing solutions to growing businesses, Andreina works with startups and seasoned entrepreneurs. She's an experienced leader and active member in her community, serving as a mentor to organizations like Junior Achievement,...
Aug 09, 2019•29 min
When our guest, Michele Mehl, went looking for a fitness product that she could fit into her life, she was already a successful startup tech marketing executive and a Mom with a very busy family. Her family’s history of heart disease got her thinking about a better, more convenient way to exercise. She recruited a co-founder and they begin prototyping a portable stationary exercise bike, one that promoted the same quality of exercises offered at a gym or a spin class, but portable enough to use ...
Aug 01, 2019•39 min
Our guest - Andrew Wall, aka Awall - is a Digital Marketing Executive with over a decade of experience coaching creative professionals to success. He built the largest gaming video network in the world, produced 10,000 gaming videos, generated 1 billion YouTube views, live-streamed video games full-time, and managed 55 social media accounts across 13 languages simultaneously. Awall is currently hosting the #1 podcast for gaming creators, live streamers and YouTubers - The Digital Drop Podcast – ...
Jul 29, 2019•55 min
Marketing/PR expert and speaker, Robin Samora, teaches small business owners how to rev up their brand online and offline to attract new clients, connect with customers, get media exposure, and increase sales. With decades of experience, she helps professionals and entrepreneurs find their ideal target market, create branding, marketing and PR strategies that work – with the ultimate goal to double sales. I’ve known Robin for 8 years and follow her everywhere she glows. I’m thrilled to introduce...
Jul 24, 2019•40 min
A serial entrepreneur and a 35-year tech product management and innovation expert, our guest Jon Werner’s first startup story began in 2002 when he founded Bones in Motion, a mobile lifestyle services company that developed mobile phone applications and web services that monitored and tracked outdoor enthusiasts in real-time. He raised $2.7 million in angel funding to scale the business and he had the best of outcomes in 2009 when he sold the business to Adidas. Woo Hoo! Jon spent over 9 years a...
Jul 22, 2019•52 min
