You know you’re onto a great product when frontline healthcare workers contact you out of the blue to say ‘thanks’. That’s what happened to Ramin Schultz and his company Keebos, which makes it easy to carry your phone hands-free, something that is incredibly useful to nurses, doctors, and others in healthcare. During the insurgence of COVID-19, this became even more critical to the work they do.  Meet Ramin Schultz, Founder...

Even if you’ve been asleep, you most likely know that audio is exploding in the tech and social space. From Alexa and Siri to podcasts and Clubhouse, audio is proven because it often provides the least amount of friction to learn, buy, or connect.  But sometimes, even this innovation falls short. Enter Quilt, the audio social network for real-time, supportive conversations. The tagline is ‘just like hopping on the phone...

When you think of innovation and cutting-edge tech, you may not immediately think about outdoor furniture. But that’s going to change when we tell you this story about Outer,  an outdoor furniture company focused on providing a seamless direct-to-consumer (DTC) experience.  Sure, high-quality products are a given, but their success is a result of focusing on what matters most: the little things.  Meet Terry Lin, Co-Founder of Outer, an All...

There is no playbook. That’s the sober observation of Shamin Rostami Walsh in this age of COVID-19. No matter who you are or what your experience is, there’s little that can prepare you for a full-blown global pandemic.  The same might be said for starting a business from scratch. Sure, there is a myriad of resources you can tap into for entrepreneurial advice, but at the end of the day,...

Talk about a Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG for those of you who love biz acronyms): Alison Diamond, CEO of Jybe, wants to help solve the single-use plastic crisis by encouraging consumers to order from restaurants using eco-friendly packaging. Is this even a problem, you ask?  Our single-use plastic addiction is literally burying us in harmful waste - like in the movie Wall*E. Each year, 11 million tons of plastic...

From the Trenches interviewed Ruben Schwartz, cofounder of Swoop, back in June here. Since then, his company has secured a $3.2 million VC Raise led by Signia Ventures. This is pretty awesome stuff for an idea that literally started in a garage with other founders Peter Evenson and Amir Ghorbani.  So we thought we’d check-in and see what the journey was like, and what advice Ruben has for people looking...

Just breathe. In these challenging times, sometimes you just have to hit ‘pause’, take a moment to reflect, and inhale deeply. Something as simple as this could be the difference between success and failure.  In 2012, Suze Yalof Schwartz learned a three-minute breathing exercise that sent her on the journey of a lifetime. It was the ‘A-Ha’ moment that inspired her to start Unplug, a meditation studio for the rest...

We’ve all worked a gig we didn’t like or burned the midnight oil for something we didn’t truly believe in.  We’ve cashed paychecks without passion, keeping our eyes open for a way out. For some of us, if we’re not careful, this becomes a way of life.  Others get up one morning and say ‘enough is enough’.  It’s that moment of giving into inspiration, to think new ideas, and starting...

When Billie Eilish uploaded her song ‘Ocean Eyes’ to SoundCloud at the ripe old age of 13, she had no idea it would ignite her career. Now, she sits atop the charts and is considered music royalty.  But as Jeff Ponchick, VP and Head of Repost at SoundCloud will tell you, the service is more than just another uploading platform. With a mission to help artists quit their day jobs...

Erik Huberman is sick of your bullshit. If you’re one of those guys taking selfies in front of a Bentley, or posing on the beach somewhere, he doesn’t want to hear it. Because, chances are, you’re not going to last.  What lasts is providing value. Day in and day out. Year after year. Through dips in the market, changes in innovation, even through global pandemics. Because if you provide value,...

Don’t be a sucker for dumb money. Dumb money will eat your startup alive.  What is dumb money? Dumb money tends to be solely transactional. You provide equity, and the dumb money provides the cash. The deal is done.  Smart money is relational. Smart money provides value beyond just the dollars and cents. You want to find a venture partner that will provide a cash investment, of course. But you...

All companies face challenges. But when your company is built upon the premise of putting large groups of people together in small spaces, the challenges become even greater in the age of COVID-19.  But Ruben Schultz, co-founder of Swoop, appears more than up for the challenge. Swoop is an online platform for group transportation.  For vehicle operators, which are mainly small mom and pop shops, Swoop makes it easy to...

Slickdeals has the audacious mission of ‘Helping Shoppers Win Everywhere’. The company describes itself as the largest and most trusted deal-sharing community on the planet, and with over 25 million users, who can argue?  Founded in 1999 by VanTrac, Slickdeals has helped members save almost $7 billion dollars to date. That’s an impressive number and the company has seen tremendous growth in the last decade. But challenges remain: how do...