Joe Taylor Jr.

Episode 44: Stretch (featuring Shannon Binns of Sustain Charlotte)

January 29th, 2019  |  36 mins 52 secs

shannon binns, sustain charlotte

Managing change isn’t always easy. For industrial engineer and climate change policy expert Shannon Binns, the need to manage change became apparent when he moved to fast-growing Charlotte, North Carolina and observed a major lack of planning in the city’s sustainable growth plans.

This observation inspired Shannon to start a journey of a thousand one-on-one conversations with locals about how the region was planning to handle a surge in population, business, and development. Sustain Charlotte was formed and the company quickly turned into the promise for a sustainable future in one of America’s fastest-growing metros. It’s the story of Sustain Charlotte on The Build.

Episode 43: Found (featuring Cody and Colton Tapoler of The Lost Bros)

January 15th, 2019  |  34 mins 30 secs

Entrepreneurial inspiration can be found anywhere. Brothers Cody and Colton Tapoler found their inspiration at one of the happiest places on earth — Disney World. Combining Cody’s creative skills and Colton’s operational expertise, the brothers have created park-related merchandise that is more in line with their sensibilities and turned their love of pop culture and theme parks into a thriving fashion and lifestyle brand.

The Lost Bros is a fast-growing company and they aren’t slowing down anytime soon. From music and trip planning to their goal of partnering with Disney itself, there isn’t an end in sight to the success that these entrepreneurs have found. It’s the story of The Lost Bros on The Build.

Episode 42: HEX Coffee

January 7th, 2019  |  46 mins 50 secs

hex coffee

HEX Coffee is a hospitality company that doesn’t just serve coffee. By focusing on unique experiences that exceed customer expectations, Hex Coffee has grown to a brand that is roasting their own beans, managing a physical cafe, and shipping products across the country.

These three partners have positioned themselves in a place of growth and acceptance in the expanding Charlotte, North Carolina community. They admit that they’ve made plenty of mistakes and learned important lessons along their entrepreneurial path and they have tips on how to turn anyone into a lover of high-quality coffee. It’s the story of Hex Coffee on The Build.

Episode 41: Transition (featuring Michele McKeone of Digitability)

December 25th, 2018  |  25 mins 16 secs

digitability, michele mckeone

A Philadelphia high school teacher working with autistic students realized that, with the right approach, she could help her students learn crucial work skills, get good jobs and gain their independence. Michele McKeone has created a business that helps educators prepare neuro-diverse students for a technology-driven, highly social workforce.

Michele joins me today to discuss the proven success and promising future of her forward-thinking, legislative-supported company. She has refined her own skill set of marketing and fundraising and is expanding the reach of her company across the country and around the world. It’s the story of Digitability on The Build.

Episode 40: Hitched (featuring Samie and Ryan Roberts of Bustld)

December 18th, 2018  |  29 mins 14 secs

Samie and Ryan Roberts have created a business designed to solve the challenges couples face when planning their wedding day. Based in North Carolina, their company helps connect engaged couples with the vendors and inspiration that will make their wedding day perfect.

This husband and wife team join me today to talk about the post-wedding brainstorming session that inspired them to create Bustld. They share details about the team and technology behind the company, how they plan to scale to a national level, and why starting any new business is going to be one hundred times harder than you think it will be. It’s the story of Bustld on The Build.

Episode 39: Path (featuring AJ Bruno of QuotaPath)

December 11th, 2018  |  32 mins 37 secs

Every journey in entrepreneurship includes at least one unexpected detour. But the unexpected changes in our paths sometimes lead us toward the greatest successes. AJ Bruno found himself faced with such a situation while scaling a rapidly growing startup company in Austin Texas. The lessons he learned there turned one of the biggest challenges for his first company into the mission for his second company.

Today we’re talking about the business model that makes QuotaPath both unique and sustainable. AJ is confident that he has created a billion-dollar company and they are well on their way. It’s the story of QuotaPath on The Build.

Episode 38: Giving (featuring John Gossart of Goodworld)

November 20th, 2018  |  36 mins 16 secs

Making a charitable donation online is now as simple as posting a hashtag comment on your favorite social media post, thanks to the innovative idea behind John Gossart’s startup company Goodworld. Goodworld has eliminated expensive processing fees and security hurdles and kept charitable donations where they belong — within the moment that inspired the generosity behind them.

Episode 37: Physical (featuring Sara DuMond of Pediatric Housecalls)

November 13th, 2018  |  35 mins 36 secs

Many entrepreneurial ideas for new companies are based on the latest technology, but not Pediatric Housecalls. They are redefining the patient experience and bringing back the old-fashioned way to practice medicine, but with a modern twist. This mobile Urgent Care practice takes their medical staff on the road, allowing patients to diagnose and treat common childhood illnesses without leaving the comfort of home.

Episode 36: Workout (featuring Lauren Foundos of FORTË Fitness)

October 23rd, 2018  |  28 mins 46 secs

After recognizing how hard it is for fitness instructors to scale their business within the walls of a gym, FORTË founder Lauren Foundos built a platform that streams live videos from top trainers directly to students all over the world. FORTË now offers at-home access to boutique gyms all over the country, and the company has only just begun to realize Lauren’s vision for it. Her success proves that validating your business concept when you’re still small will allow you to scale to something big.

Episode 35: Notice (featuring Rakia Reynolds of Skai Blue Media)

October 16th, 2018  |  35 mins 53 secs

Finding the intersection between advertising, speaking engagements, and social and digital media can be a daunting task in today’s overloaded internet landscape. Rakia Reynolds is tackling the non-traditional media space at Skai Blue Media, a public relations company that provides business development, marketing, and message strategy to a wide variety of companies around the country.

Episode 34: Timing (G-Squared Partners featuring Gene Godick)

October 9th, 2018  |  31 mins 11 secs

Gene Godick is the founder of G-Squared Partners, a service designed to help early-stage companies get CFO level support. Gene spent his early career years building experience across a variety of industries and recognized the need for every start-up company to have access to expert financial help. He has created an outsource finance team in a box that is available to any size company.

Episode 33: Insecurity (featuring Megha Kulshreshtha of Food Connect Group)

October 2nd, 2018  |  34 mins 58 secs

Megha Kulshreshtha took what she learned as a corporate data analyst and focused on the growing problem of food insecurity in America’s urban centers. She launched an organization that is using mobile technology to make it easier to collect food donations on demand so they can reach people who need them the most.

Episode 32: Concert (featuring Sam Bodkin of GroupMuse)

April 11th, 2017  |  33 mins 41 secs

classical, groupmuse, house concerts, music, sam bodkin

Sam Bodkin launched GroupMuse, a platform that connects chamber music performers to audiences through intimate house parties. With over 300 events in the past year alone, Sam’s team is building a modern appreciation and a new accessibility for rarely-peformed works.

Episode 31: Train (featuring Katlyn Grasso of GenHERation)

March 14th, 2017  |  30 mins 4 secs

empowerment, genheration, inspiration, katlyn grasso, millennial, women

Katlyn Grasso’s been spending a lot of time with both versions of the word “train.” She’s journeyed on the Millennial Trains Project, an adventure designed to cultivate dozens of new social entrepreneurs. As the founder of GenHERation, she’s been traveling all over the world, empowering young women to grow into community leaders.

Episode 30: Cause (featuring James Brobyn of CauseEngine)

March 7th, 2017  |  51 mins 45 secs

James Brobyn leads a company designed to help nonprofits solve complex technology problems so they can focus on their own causes.

Episode 29: Esquire (featuring Julia Shapiro of Hire an Esquire)

February 14th, 2017  |  29 mins 22 secs

attorneys, julia shapiro, law, legal

Julia Shapiro founded a talent platform that leverages those changes in the legal industry. By matching short-term law gigs with skilled experts, she’s creating a new path forward for law school grads who can’t find — or don’t want — the traditional partner path at big firms.