The Hustle by Hanna

Todd Lieberman: From the Midwest Stage to Hollywood Screens

Before the credits, the awards, and the studio deals, Todd Lieberman was a kid in the Midwest stepping onto a stage for the first time, holding his script in his hand and hoping he wouldn’t forget his lines. That early moment of storytelling lit something that never left him. Todd didn’t set out to build a Hollywood empire. He followed instinct. From community theater to Los Angeles, from acting auditions to producing, he learned that his real strength wasn’t being in front of the camera, but recognizing talent, bringing the right people together, and creating stories that leave a lasting emotional mark. Along the way, Todd became the producer behind some of the most memorable films of the last two decades, including The Fighter, Wonder, The Proposal, Beauty and the Beast, and his latest project, The Housemaid, hitting theaters December 19. Each chapter of his career reflects reinvention, curiosity, and a commitment to making audiences feel something when the lights come back on. In this episode, Todd shares how instinct shaped his path, why producing is more jazz than rulebook, and how evolving with the industry has been just as important as early success. In this episode, we talk about: *  The childhood moment that sparked a lifelong obsession with storytelling *  Why instinct matters more than titles or long term plans *  How reinvention kept him relevant long after Oscars and Emmys *  What it means to build films around people, not ego *  Why the best stories leave a residual feeling long after they end 🎧 Listen to learn how trusting your instincts, staying curious, and putting people first can turn a Midwest stage into Hollywood screens. #TheHustleByHanna

David Royce: How He Turned a Summer Job into a $500 Million Business

Before the exits and the empire, David Royce was a college kid who just wanted to surf and make some extra cash. A door-to-door pest control job changed everything. After helping his boss grow the company from $1 million to $10 million in revenue, David realized he was the one driving the growth. That moment became the spark for everything that followed, building and selling his own nine-figure business, four times. He took the lessons, systems, and mindset from that experience and built his own blueprint, creating and selling four companies in one of the least glamorous industries. His secret wasn’t luck. It was people, process, and the discipline to outwork everyone else. In this episode, David shares how he built leaders, not just businesses, and why the key to scaling isn’t motivation,  it’s structure, belief, and relentless consistency. In this episode, we talk about: * The turning point that changed how he viewed work and success * How he scaled through structure, not shortcuts * Why his leadership model centers on people, not profit * The mindset behind building the same business four times, better each time * What it means to outwork and outthink everyone around you 🎧 Listen to learn how a white-collar mindset transformed a blue-collar world, and what it really takes to build something that lasts. #TheHustleByHanna

Inside Poppi with Stephen Ellsworth: From Kitchen Experiment to $1.95 Billion Exit

When Stephen and Allison Ellsworth started mixing apple cider vinegar and fruit in their Texas kitchen, they weren’t chasing a billion-dollar idea. They were solving a problem. That kitchen experiment became Poppi, the prebiotic soda that redefined modern wellness and made healthy taste cool. From farmers markets to Shark Tank, from rebranding Mother Beverage into Poppi, to an $11 million Super Bowl gamble that changed everything — this is the story behind one of the most iconic beverage brands of the decade. In this episode of The Hustle by Hanna, Stephen Ellsworth shares how Poppi built community, culture, and category leadership, leading to a $1.95 billion acquisition by PepsiCo. You’ll learn:  • How Poppi transformed authenticity into brand equity  • The pivotal TikTok moment that changed their trajectory  • The risks and payoffs behind their Super Bowl ad  • What it takes to scale culture while scaling growth  • The founder mindset that led to a billion-dollar exit Poppi didn’t just build a brand. It built a movement. 🎧 Listen now and subscribe for more founder stories that blend grit, growth, and purpose. #TheHustleByHanna

Building Tower 28: How Amy Liu Redefined the Beauty Industry for Sensitive Skin

Amy Liu is the founder and CEO of Tower 28 Beauty, one of Sephora’s fastest-growing clean-beauty brands and the first ever to meet the National Eczema Association’s ingredient standards. Tower 28 was born from Amy’s lifelong struggle with sensitive skin and her desire to make beauty fun, safe, and accessible for everyone. She launched the company at 40 years old, with three kids and no outside funding, proving it’s never too late to start over or to start something that matters. In under five years, Tower 28 has tripled sales year over year, gone viral on TikTok with millions of views, and expanded into 600 + Sephora stores and international markets. Its hero product, the SOS Spray, became a cult favorite and turned what began as a personal solution into a global movement for clean beauty that actually works. Before founding Tower 28, Amy spent over two decades in the beauty industry at L’Oréal, Josie Maran, and Kate Somerville, where she learned what it takes to build a brand and why the industry needed change. Her vision was to create a space where clean beauty could be high-performance, affordable, and truly inclusive. Unlike traditional beauty startups chasing trends, Tower 28 built its foundation on values. Inside the company, Amy developed what she calls the HOCK values—Hustle, Ownership, Cool, and Kaizen, the Japanese principle of continuous improvement. It’s a culture that prizes curiosity, collaboration, and community, the same qualities that made Tower 28 resonate far beyond beauty shelves. Amy’s journey is as much about leadership as it is about skincare. From immigrant roots in small-town Minnesota to running one of the most influential clean-beauty brands today, her story is one of resilience, reinvention, and heart. In our conversation, Amy shares: * How growing up as the daughter of immigrants shaped her drive and values * The moment at 40 when she decided it was now or never * What she learned from two decades in corporate beauty before launching on her own * How Tower 28’s HAWK values define its culture and growth * Why inclusion, empathy, and continuous improvement are her biggest competitive advantages * The personal story behind Tower 28’s hero SOS Spray and how it became a cult product This is a story about purpose, courage, and the power of starting late, proof that beauty can be both clean and groundbreaking when built on heart and hustle. Follow #TheHustleByHanna for founder insights, behind-the-scenes clips, and weekly takeaways.

RTRVR AI: The Browser Agent Changing How We Work

This episode marks a new kind of conversation on The Hustle by Hanna. Instead of spotlighting founders who have already scaled, Hanna turns the focus to the early hustle, the building phase where ideas are still taking shape and innovation is happening in real time. Hanna sits down with Bhavani Kalisetty and Arjun Chintapalli, co-founders of RTRVR AI, a browser-based agent that is changing the way people and businesses work online. Built to make the internet do more for you, RTRVR AI automates the everyday: researching leads, pulling data, sending emails, posting content, and even analyzing competitors, all while you focus on the bigger picture. For entrepreneurs, RTRVR AI can build prospect lists, send outreach emails, and follow up with leads automatically so they can grow the business without hiring another person. For marketers and creators, it can research trends, draft posts, and even publish content across platforms while they focus on strategy and storytelling. And for anyone buried in tabs, tasks, and spreadsheets, it can pull reports, find suppliers, or fill out forms in the background so their browser finally starts working for them. Bhavani and Arjun share how a late-night hackathon project turned into one of the most talked about tools in AI and what the “agentic web” means for the next generation of productivity. In this episode: • How RTRVR AI automates real tasks for businesses and individuals • Practical examples across marketing, research, and content creation • Why the browser is the next frontier for AI • The mindset behind building at the edge of innovation Watch this one on YouTube. It is a hands-on, demo-style episode where you can see RTRVR AI in action and follow along as Hanna tests live use cases. If you have ever wondered what it looks like when your computer truly starts working for you, this episode is the one to watch. Follow #TheHustleByHanna for more founder insights, behind the scenes clips, and weekly takeaways: • LinkedIn [https://dashboard.transistor.fm/shows/how-robert-laikin-became-the-bill-gates-of-wireless/episodes/henry-elkus-building-helena-a-global-institution-tackling-humanity-s-hardest-problems/edit#] • Instagram [https://dashboard.transistor.fm/shows/how-robert-laikin-became-the-bill-gates-of-wireless/episodes/henry-elkus-building-helena-a-global-institution-tackling-humanity-s-hardest-problems/edit#]