Founder's Story
Founder’s Story” by IBH Media isn’t just a show—it’s a mission. We spotlight extraordinary, iconic, and undiscovered entrepreneurs who’ve built, scaled, and led with purpose. From tech titans to tenacious underdogs, every episode dives deep into the resilience, creativity, and grit that define true leadership.You’ll hear from household names like Gary V, Codie Sanchez, Rob Dyrdek, and Tom Bilyeu—but just as often, you’ll meet the unheard founders doing remarkable things the world needs to know.This is where raw conversations meet real impact. This is Founder’s Story—where the heart of entrepreneurship be...
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From Wall Street to Homelessness: How He Rebuilt Everything & Deployed $250M | Ep 308 with Frank Scarso Founder of Avanza Capital Holdings
<p>Frank Scarso shares the deeply personal story behind his fall from Wall Street, his battle with addiction, and the three years he was estranged from his wife and children. He reveals how a single moment of clarity sparked his recovery, leading him to build Avanza Capital, an alternative lending platform that has deployed over $250 million to small businesses across 48 states. The episode explores resilience, leadership, private credit, and what it truly means to rebuild your life from nothing.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points:<br />Frank explains that his motivation to rebuild wasn’t money or status, it was simply wa...
The Attorney CEO: How I’m Saving A 54-Year-Old Legacy Brand | Ep. 307 with Mina Haque CEO of Tony Roma
<p>Mina Haque shares her unconventional path from running her own law firm to leading one of the most iconic restaurant brands in the world. The conversation explores how entrepreneurial problem-solving prepared her to transform a legacy company, how nostalgia and modernization can coexist, and why resilience matters more than virality in today’s economy.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points</p> <p>Mina explains how being an entrepreneur trained her to operate without a playbook, constantly solving problems and building from scratch, skills she now applies in leading Tony Roma’s global transformation. She discusses the privilege and responsibility of stew...
The Dark Side of Selling Your Company No One Warns You About | Ep 306 with Sunaina Sinha Haldea
<p>Sunaina Sinha Haldea joins Founder’s Story to challenge the dominant startup narrative that the ultimate goal of entrepreneurship is a clean, lucrative exit. Drawing from multiple acquisitions, board experience, and decades advising founders and investors, she explains why businesses must be built to last—not just to sell—and why exits often bring unexpected grief, identity shifts, and psychological challenges founders rarely anticipate.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points</p> <p>Sunaina explains that engineering a successful exit requires holding two opposing truths at once: building a company as if it will last decades, while quietly preparing for the right...
The Sense That Controls Your Emotions—And Why Tech Is Finally Hacking It | Ep 305 with Siddhartha Kunti Founder of Studio SK
<p>Daniel interviews Siddhartha Kunti on Founder’s Story to explore whether scent can become a digital medium, like sound or video. Siddhartha shares the moment that sparked his shift from AI surgical planning into olfactory innovation, why smell is uniquely tied to emotion and memory, and what it could unlock in healthcare, education, wellness, and immersive consumer experiences.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points:<br />Siddhartha explains how a Japan distillery tour triggered his obsession with decoding flavor and aroma using AI pattern recognition, leading him to analyze hundreds of beverages and massive molecular datasets. He breaks down why smell ha...
She Found His Notebook After He Died—What Was Inside Changed Everything | Ep 304 with Jo Ann Brechtel
<p>Jo Ann Brechtel joins Founder’s Story to share the story behind A Messenger of the Light, a book born from profound loss and an unexpected discovery. She explains how, after her son Warren’s sudden death, she found a notebook filled with his artwork, dated and signed pieces, and personal spiritual writings that expressed his belief in “the light within us.” Jo Ann describes turning grief into purpose by compiling his words and art into a book meant to bring hope, faith, and strength to others.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points:<br />Jo Ann recounts receiving the shocking notice o...
Why Selling Your Business Feels Like Grief | Ep 303 with Sunaina Sinha Haldea
<p>In this episode of Founder’s Story, Sunaina Sinha Haldea breaks down what founders need to think about years before an exit is even possible. From building businesses that can survive cycles and disruption to navigating the emotional grief that comes after selling, this conversation explores exits as both a financial and deeply human transition.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points:<br />Sunaina explains why engineering a business purely to sell is dangerous, and why founders must instead build companies designed to last for decades. She walks through how acquirers actually think, including the metrics that matter, the difference between ve...
The Truth About Founder Wealth | Ep 302 with Julian Metcalfe Founder of Pret a Manger and itsu
<p>This Founder’s Story episode features Julian Metcalfe, the founder behind Pret A Manger and itsu, sharing hard earned lessons from decades in food and retail entrepreneurship. He explains why founders should focus less on prestige and more on solving real customer problems, building trust, and obsessing over product quality and detail.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points: Julian pushes back on romantic founder mythology and redirects attention to what actually matters, which is serving customers exceptionally well and building something useful. He explains that most great businesses are not built on new inventions but on making existing products meaningfully be...
Why Applying for Jobs Is a Waste of Time (And What Actually Works Instead) | Ep 301 with Julia Arpag Founder of Aligned Recruitment
<p>Julia Arpag, the founder of Aligned Recruitment, joins Founder’s Story to explain how hiring actually works behind the scenes in today’s AI-driven job market. She shares why most resumes disappear into a black hole, how recruiters and founders really find talent, and why networking, LinkedIn optimization, and human connection still outperform every automated system.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points</p> <p>Julia argues that most people should stop applying for jobs entirely and instead focus on relationships, manual outreach, and visibility. She breaks down exactly how recruiters search LinkedIn, what makes a profile instantly compelling, and why cand...
Why Most Companies Die After Hitting $1M Revenue | Ep 300 with Yarin Gaon Founder of Fractional Partners
<p>Yarin Gaon joins Founder’s Story to explain why the leap from $1M to $10M is where most companies stall or die. He unpacks the “adolescence stage” of business, where founders must decide what they are actually scaling, and why the hustle logic that got you to traction stops working once you have a team, multiple revenue streams, and limited capital.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points:<br />Yarin explains that founders hit $1–2M and assume they have “made it,” but after replacing the founder’s role, most of these businesses are still not attractive to sophisticated buyers. The real danger comes w...
The Testosterone Myth That’s Costing Men Years of Their Lives | Ep 299 with Shalin Shah CEO of Marius Pharmaceuticals
<p>Shalin Shah joins Founder’s Story to explain why declining testosterone levels represent a global health crisis and how outdated myths, regulations, and delivery methods have held back effective treatment. He shares the science behind testosterone as a core metabolic hormone, the FDA approval of KYZATREX, and why oral therapy marks a paradigm shift in how men (and women) can age healthier, longer lives.</p> <p>Key Discussion Points:<br />Shalin explains how testosterone sits at the foundation of metabolic health, influencing the brain, heart, muscle, bone, and even cellular energy. He breaks down the biggest myths around testosterone, in...
