How I Built This with Guy Raz

Advice Line with Steve Ells of Chipotle

Today’s callers: Rebecca from Australia wants to make her small-batch spirits stand out in a crowded market. Then, Sri from England wonders how to balance commercial and humanitarian interests for her heated mats. And John from Pennsylvania hopes to reach younger customers with his Italian wines despite declining alcohol consumption.   Plus, Steve talks about the evolving role of robots in food service—and how he hopes to find his next rocketship in a fresh take on the sandwich shop. Thank you to the founders of Streaky Bay Distillers, Mat Zero, and Cantina Di Rosina 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 Chipotle’s founding story [https://wondery.com/shows/how-i-built-this/episode/10386-chipotle-steve-ells/] 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 Robert Rodriguez. 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].

Wingstop: Antonio Swad. A Brilliant Idea — And a Nail-Biting Exit

A lot of founders spend their lives chasing one big idea. Antonio Swad had two. The first? Migrating chicken wings from the Happy Hour buffet to the center of the plate. The second? Building a pizza business that catered to a very specific demographic: Latinos. That first idea became Wingstop, a deep-fried wing concept that grew to 3,000 stores. The second became Pizza Patron, a franchise that rewarded customers for ordering in Spanish, and let them pay in pesos. This is the story of how Antonio got there. He was a kid from Columbus, Ohio, working at a steakhouse straight out of high school…who eventually saw two big opportunities where no one else did. Wingstop was the breakout idea, but just as it was exploding, Antonio made a surprising decision. He sold the company. A $22 million deal. Only…the money did not materialize. What follows is one of the most surprising—and cautionary—tales we’ve told on this show: a single word buried in a contract that cost millions…and the moment Antonio realized he might never see the money he’d been promised. This episode is about instinct, risk, conviction—and why sometimes…your biggest success can lead to your biggest mistake. What you’ll learn: * Why simplicity can beat variety in building scalable restaurants * The power—and peril—of franchising as a growth engine * How identifying an underserved customer segment can unlock explosive growth * Why your hero product isn’t always what you think it is (hint: it’s not the chicken) * How one word in a contract can cost millions Timestamps: * 00:09:11 – Fired from bartending for being “too intense” * 00:14:26 – Starting a pizza shop in Dallas with $11,000 * 00:18:41 – Discovering an underserved customer base, and the power of word-of-mouth * 00:23:07 – Why franchising can be the ultimate scaling strategy * 00:24:09 – How Antonio realized wings could be a massive business * 00:36:37 – A bend in the road: Why the first Wingstop struggled * 00:50:29 – A bizarre vision at a football game: What if this stadium were full of chickens? * 01:07:09 – The $22M purchase… the missing $12M, and suing to get his money * 01:20:09 – Living in the moment post Pizza Patron and Wingstop This episode was produced by Sam Paulson with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant with research help from Olivia Rockman. Our engineers were Patrick Murray and Jimmy Keeley. 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 → guyraz.substack.com [http://guyraz.substack.com] Website → 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 Angie & Dan Bastian of Angie's BOOMCHICKAPOP

Today’s callers: Michelle from California assesses the trade offs of accepting outside investment to scale her organic granola brand. Then, Gloria from Connecticut wonders how to overcome stigma and get more people talking about her pelvic floor therapy device. And Eric from Australia evaluates new markets for his maple-based sports nutrition products.  Plus, Dan and Angie’s take on why even the busiest entrepreneur should find time to turn off their phone at the dinner table...  Thank you to the founders of Nana Joes Granola, Elidah, and mapleROO 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 BOOMCHICKAPOP’S founding story [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/live-episode-angies-boomchickapop-angie-dan-bastian/id1150510297?i=1000445530797] as told by Angie and Dan on the show in 2019.   This episode was produced by Noor Gill with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by John Isabella. 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/]  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].

diapers.com: Marc Lore. The ecommerce visionary who lost to Amazon but still made billions (2021)

Back in the early days of ecommerce, Marc Lore took a classic retail loss leader–diapers– and turned it into a DTC giant– Diapers.com [http://diapers.com]. It did so well that it attracted the attention of Amazon, which slashed prices on its own diapers until Marc was forced to sell them his business.   It was not a happy moment, but it was a galvanizing one: Marc went on to launch another ecommerce company, jet.com. Within a year, it was bought by Walmart in a deal valued at $3.3 billion.   This is a story about a devastating corporate surrender, a multi-million dollar comeback, and a founder with a relentless ability to re-invent himself.   Timestamps:  10:04 – Marc’s “boost-your-grades” bet with his college coach    14:21 – A job on Wall Street and a Master Plan: 8 figures by age 48 16:28 – How a lunchtime lark turned into a spot on the U.S. Bobsled Team 27:44 – How random Google searches led Marc to diapers 35:29 – Guerilla tactic: Buying all of P&G’s diapers to get their attention 40:07 – The simple packaging hack that boosted sales   45:53 – Building a retail empire (and getting on Amazon’s radar) 47:52 – Amazon’s scorched earth strategy forces Marc to sell  1:00:11 – Raising $750M to take on Jeff Bezos 1:03:02 – A brand new business and a $3.3 billion exit: Walmart’s record-breaking deal This episode was produced by Casey Herman with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant.  Follow How I Built This: Instagram → @howibuiltthis [https://www.instagram.com/howibuiltthis/] X → @HowIBuiltThis [https://x.com/howibuiltthis] Facebook → How I Built This [https://www.facebook.com/howibuiltthis] Follow Guy Raz: Instagram → @guy.raz [https://www.instagram.com/guy.raz/] Youtube → guy_raz [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNSfrxNEmCruNtjIzxCBHjg] X → @guyraz [https://x.com/guyraz] Substack → https://urldefense.com/v3/__http:/guyraz.substack.com__;!!Iwwt!RZoD751oWzUzoqqdJiqaoL6HdJfRHDUO1TKvYJ424d3Udn7-Pw9Nj6nEsauh9zcgEvLjUEc$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]. 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 Marcia Kilgore of Beauty Pie (June 2025)

Serial entrepreneur Marcia Kilgore — founder of brands like Beauty Pie and Soap & Glory — joins Guy on the Advice Line, where they answer questions from three early-stage founders managing uncertainty and risk.  Today, we meet Victor in Fort Worth, the co-founder of a Mexican-style sweets and treats venture who wonders if he should focus on expanding brick-and-mortar operations, retail presence, or both. Then Lydia in Seattle, a former disease researcher who is ready to grow her small batch botanical skincare line, but needs help overcoming her fear of failure to get to the next step. And Jack in San Francisco, the founder of a custom bike bag and accessories brand who’s trying to figure out how to maintain customer excitement throughout the entire purchasing process so as not to lose momentum.  Thank you to the founders of Sol Dias, Clērstory, and Wompy Bikes for being part of our show. And stick around to hear a brief update on all three callers! If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode, 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 or call 1-800-433-1298. And be sure to listen to Marcia Kilgore’s original How I Built This episode [https://podcasts.apple.com/dk/podcast/serial-entrepreneur-marcia-kilgore-2018/id1150510297?i=1000446682033] as told by Marcia on the show in 2018.  This episode was produced by Carla Esteves 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/]. 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].