Advice Line with Bobbi Brown of Jones Road Beauty (September 2025)

Advice Line with Bobbi Brown of Jones Road Beauty (September 2025)

Today's callers: Bob in Chicago looks to promote his cabbage-based muscle and joint rub beyond the walls of his orthopedic practice. Then Abby in Dallas wonders whether her popular social media livestreams are a sustainable way to market her trendy phone cases. And Henry in Charlotte wants to turn his mouth rinse for coffee drinkers into a mainstream oral care brand. Plus, Bobbi shares what drove her to found her new company—Jones Road—at the age of 62. Thank you to the founders of Cabbage Labs, AbbyRose, and Tannin Oral Care for being a part of our show. If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to hibt@id.wondery.com [hibt@id.wondery.com] or call 1-800-433-1298. And be sure to listen to Bobbi Brown Cosmetics’ founding story [https://art19.com/shows/831bd173-0992-41b7-b1eb-112db904d947/episodes/182c2b7f-874e-48ca-906a-0295d1da9dff/embed] as told by Bobbi on the show in 2018. This episode was produced by Sam Paulson with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Andrea Bruce. Our audio engineer was Cena Loffredo. You can follow HIBT on X [https://x.com/HowIBuiltThis] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/howibuiltthis/] and sign up for Guy’s free newsletter at guyraz.com [http://guyraz.com/] or on Substack [https://guyraz.substack.com/]. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

MadeGood: Salma and Nima Fotovat Lost Their First Business. They Grew Their Next One Into a Snack Giant.

What do you do when the family business you've spent decades building... gets bought out from under you?  That’s what happened to Nima and Salma Fotovat. Devastated, the family rebuilt a new company from the ground up. This time they set out with a new idea: build an allergen-free, organic snack brand not just for kids, but their parents.   Their new brand: MadeGood. Today, the Canadian brand’s parent company does hundreds of millions of dollars in sales. But getting there meant rebuilding from scratch, fixing 200,000 mislabeled snack bars by hand, and turning a family of co-packers into branding experts. What you'll learn: * How owning manufacturing can be a competitive edge * How they grew a national brand with almost no marketing.  * Why it can be a winning strategy to say "yes" before you know how  * Introducing new products: the tension between research and emotion   * The mindset that can help you rebuild after a devastating setback Timestamps: 6:05 - Growing up in Iran during wartime, and emigrating to Canada  11:55 - Their dad’s new business: “Why are North Americans not eating nougat?”   19:25 - Building the family’s first snack bar brand—and losing it overnight 34:20 - The next business: going all in on healthier school snacks 42:30 - Fixing a 200,000-bar production error with alcohol wipes  48:30 - Landing MadeGood’s first retail store 51:10 - The 100-mile radius marketing strategy  56:50 - The lure of new products: from human treats to dog treats  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Advice Line: "Strategy Sessions"

Today’s callers: Tony in Michigan is considering bringing on partners to run different parts of his brew pub and theater business. Then Monica in London is exploring the best way to reach style-conscious parents with her line of children’s clothes. And Sandy in Colorado is seeking the ideal pricing strategy to bring his adaptive test prep platform to schools nationwide. Thank you to the founders of Hearsay Brewing and Theater, Tres London and Brain Buffs for being a part of our show. If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to hibt@id.wondery.com [hibt@id.wondery.com] or call 1-800-433-1298.  And be sure to listen to our Advice Line episodes with Jeffrey Hollender of Seventh Generation [https://art19.com/shows/831bd173-0992-41b7-b1eb-112db904d947/episodes/f8ce2410-1176-47d9-be44-03f9fa945714/embed], Sarah LaFleur of M.M LaFleur [https://art19.com/shows/831bd173-0992-41b7-b1eb-112db904d947/episodes/ace5a853-d0cf-4c65-95ad-1ecfc8808c03/embed] and Shazi Visram of Happy Family Organics [https://art19.com/shows/831bd173-0992-41b7-b1eb-112db904d947/episodes/c354a554-e764-44c6-89f9-e2192e3e5a86/embed]. This episode was produced by Kerry Thompson with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by John Isabella. Our audio engineer was Jimmy Keeley. You can follow HIBT on X [https://x.com/HowIBuiltThis] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/howibuiltthis/] and sign up for Guy’s free newsletter at guyraz.com [http://guyraz.com/] or on Substack [https://guyraz.substack.com/]. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Serena & Lily: Serena Dugan and Lily Kanter. They Built a $20M Brand—Then One Investor Almost Destroyed It

Many founders think the hardest thing about business is finding customers. It's not. It's surviving success. When Lily Kanter and Serena Dugan launched a luxury baby linen business, they had no manufacturing experience, no inventory, and barely any capital. But after their first catalog landed just as a major competitor left the market, orders flooded in almost overnight. The problem? They hadn’t made the products yet.  Today, Serena and Lily has grown into one of the best known luxury home goods brands in the country. But getting there was a grind.  This is one of the most revealing conversations we've ever had about unplanned opportunities, and the hidden cost of taking outside investment. From financing their first inventory with customer deposits... to walking away from a disastrous investment deal... to nearly losing control of the company they built, this episode is a masterclass in what happens when rapid growth collides with the realities of cash flow. You Will Learn:  * The clever way Serena & Lily financed its first production run * How one perfectly timed opportunity launched the business * Why "smart money" isn't always smart * How investor and founder incentives can be completely misaligned * The warning signs hidden inside a term sheet Timestamps: 06:11 – Lily's years at Microsoft, and the money that helped launch a business 11:55 – Serena repaints an old table and discovers people will pay for her designs  24:21 – “No bunnies, ducks or choo choo trains.” Lily and Serena meet, and decide to sell high-end baby linen:  36:01 – $100,000 in orders... for products that didn't exist yet 37:38 – The cash-flow hack that kept the company afloat  46:14 – “They patted us on the head.” Patronizing investors, and a predatory term sheet  51:28 – The financial crisis forces a complete reinvention of the business 58:47 – The lawsuit, the boardroom battle, and the investor who nearly brought Serena & Lily down 1:03:26 – Why acquisition offers couldn't save the company—and the lesson every founder should hear This episode was produced by J.C. Howard, with music by Ramtin Arablouei. Edited by Neva Grant, with research help from Katherine Sypher. Follow How I Built This: Instagram → @howibuiltthis [https://www.instagram.com/howibuiltthis/] X → @HowIBuiltThis [https://x.com/howibuiltthis] Facebook → How I Built This [https://www.facebook.com/howibuiltthis] Follow Guy Raz: Instagram → @guy.raz [https://www.instagram.com/guy.raz/] Youtube → guy_raz [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNSfrxNEmCruNtjIzxCBHjg] X → @guyraz [https://x.com/guyraz] Substack → https://urldefense.com/v3/__http:/guyraz.substack.com__;!!Iwwt!RZoD751oWzUzoqqdJiqaoL6HdJfRHDUO1TKvYJ424d3Udn7-Pw9Nj6nEsauh9zcgEvLjUEc$guyraz.substack.com [http://guyraz.substack.com/] Website → https://urldefense.com/v3/__http:/guyraz.substack.com__;!!Iwwt!RZoD751oWzUzoqqdJiqaoL6HdJfRHDUO1TKvYJ424d3Udn7-Pw9Nj6nEsauh9zcgEvLjUEc$guyraz.com [http://guyraz.com/] See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].

Advice Line with Chris Riccobono of UNTUCKit

Today’s callers: Adrian from California wants to grow his apparel company to complete with big-name athletic brands. Then, Preet from the Rockies looks for strategies to reach seniors and their children with his daily check-in app. And Derek from Virginia considers social media and professional partnerships to advertise his hockey equipment brand.  Plus, Chris talks about launching a new athletic apparel brand while continuing to grow UNTUCKit. Thank you to the founders of Eras Shorts, Snug Safety, and Hockey Ninja for being a part of our show. If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to hibt@id.wondery.com [hibt@id.wondery.com] or call 1-800-433-1298.  And be sure to listen to UNTUCKit’s founding story [https://www.art19.com/shows/831bd173-0992-41b7-b1eb-112db904d947/episodes/3f71833c-c81d-450e-8873-43e43fbf29d3/embed] as told by Steve on the show in 2017. This episode was produced by Chris Maccini with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by John Isabella. Our audio engineer was Annlie Huang. You can follow HIBT on X [https://x.com/HowIBuiltThis] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/howibuiltthis/] and sign up for Guy's free newsletter at guyraz.com [http://guyraz.com/] and on Substack [https://guyraz.substack.com/]. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy [https://art19.com/privacy] and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info [https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info].