Episodes

Todd Carmichael and Jean-Philippe Iberti built La Colombe Coffee Roasters from a single Philadelphia location into a nationwide cult favorite by refusing to compromise on quality. Their story reveals how a friendship grounded in craft coffee, direct trade ethics, and deliberate scaling created a brand that loyalists genuinely love—not just another coffee chain.

Patreon co-founder Jack Conte joins Guy Raz on the Advice Line to help three founders navigate growth at inflection points. Zac Parsons wants to scale Honeymoon Coffee Company nationally without losing its local identity. Rowena Scherer needs to broaden Eat to Explore beyond kids without diluting the brand. Melissa Spitz looks to expand Adventures in Handwriting into schools with limited marketing resources. Jack's advice centers on speed of iteration, sub-branding for new audiences, and letting parent demand drive institutional adoption.

Michael Dubin turned a warehouse of unwanted razors into a billion-dollar brand with a single viral video. The Dollar Shave Club founder combined eight years of marketing experience with improv comedy skills to create one of the most successful guerrilla marketing campaigns in modern history. His story reveals how humor, authenticity, and relentless focus on solving a simple customer frustration can disrupt even the most entrenched markets.

Guy Raz hosts a special Advice Line episode where six founders reveal how they weave AI into their businesses. From Modi Toys to Raising Cane's, these entrepreneurs share concrete examples of automation and analysis that freed them to focus on what humans do best. No hype, no buzzwords—just practical insights you can apply.

Breezy and Val Griffith turned a road-trip idea for ultrathin chocolate almonds into SkinnyDipped, a $100M brand in 25,000 stores. Their decade spanned home kitchen experiments, a converted chicken coop factory, and a make-or-break Target launch threatened by 40,000 pounds of rancid nuts. After hitting rock bottom in 2022 with negative margins and no funding, the mother-daughter team cut everything, reformulated, and clawed to profitability. Their story shows how founder-led product obsession, paired with ruthless financial discipline, can rescue a business from collapse.

Todd Graves of Raising Cane's joins fellow founders on David Burmeister's Advice Line to share hard-won lessons on scaling without losing soul. Three callers face growth dilemmas: Evan Sledge wrestles with scaling Whiskey Morning Coffee without sacrificing quality, Shane Lyons looks to expand Vesti while staying true to its mission, and Todd Graves reveals how Cane's built a billion-dollar chain by refusing to compromise on chicken, sauce, and culture. Each walks away with practical strategies for growing without selling out. This masterclass in disciplined expansion comes from a founder who turned one Baton Rouge chicken finger joint into 1,500+ locations.

Elan Lee turned a game of cat-themed Russian roulette into a cultural phenomenon. Exploding Kittens launched as a $10,000 Kickstarter and shattered records with $8.7 million in backing, proving that absurd concepts can scale when they tap into pure fun. The story reveals how a simple deck of cards, where you hope not to draw the exploding kitten, built a lasting brand through community-driven momentum and relentless iteration.

Bobby Trussell returns to Advice Line to help three founders navigate growth. Leif Gildersleeve wrestles with scaling Flying Fish Company beyond his Portland restaurant. Colleen King of Hala Gear debates marketing versus product expansion. And Amanda Horan of Line & Cleat seeks pre-seed capital strategies without a startup network. Trussell's core message: focus, prove your model, and let clarity guide every decision.

Danae Ringelmann and Slava Rubin defied 93 rejections to build Indiegogo, forever changing how ideas find funding. They proved that community belief, not venture capital, can launch movements. This episode unpacks how perseverance, platform design, and trusting creators rewired the economics of innovation. Their story reveals that when you remove gatekeepers, ordinary dreams become extraordinary businesses.

Guy Raz hosts an Advice Line episode featuring two seasoned founders giving real-time counsel to growing businesses. Jamie Siminoff, founder of Ring (sold to Amazon for $1B), advises Melita Cyril of Q for Quinn on scaling without losing brand soul. Scott Tannen of Boll & Branch shares hard-won lessons on supply chain transparency and premium positioning. Two founders. Two distinct challenges. Zero platitudes—just actionable advice from the trenches.

Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy, recounts how tutoring his cousins in math over video calls sparked a global non-profit education platform. He explains why he rejected a for-profit model, leveraged early YouTube to reach learners worldwide, and built support from donors like Bill Gates, all while keeping every lesson free for anyone, anywhere.

Dermalogica co-founder Jane Wurwand joins the Advice Line to share her brand-building philosophy centered on customer education, while answering real questions from three early-stage founders: Camille Hardy of vegan baby food brand Chunky Vegan, Molly Brubaker of parent-focused baby workout community Baby Booty, and Sarah Weihman of performance underwear brand Paradis Sport.