[S4] #44 Your SaaS Is Shrinking and You're Avoiding the Money with Foti Panagiotakopoulos

[S4] #46 The Influencer Growth Trap: Why Your Best Channel Dies in 12 Months with Adrian Søbyskogen

Adrian runs Akka, a platform opening access to private market investing through influencer-led distribution. The strategy works. So why does Olya tell him it's a trap? In this live Scale Room session, she breaks down why creator marketing isn't a sustainable acquisition channel—it's a launch event with a built-in lifespan. From there, the discussion dives into one of the hardest problems in European expansion: trust. Who actually influences financial decisions in each country? Why do GTM strategies fail when copied across borders? How do you build growth systems that last after the influencer momentum fades? This episode explores international expansion, fintech distribution, trust dynamics and building scalable acquisition channels beyond social media. Key Takeaways * Why influencer-led growth eventually plateaus * The 9–12 month lifecycle of creator acquisition channels * Attention vs trust in customer acquisition * Country-specific GTM strategies across Europe * Identifying local market champions * Sustainable growth beyond influencers * Scaling fintech through trust instead of reach * Founder lessons on category creation Timestamps 00:00 Intro & Akka's Growth Strategy 02:12 Building Through Influencers 05:08 Why It Worked 08:14 Challenging the Model 11:05 The Influencer Expiration Problem 14:18 Attention vs Trust 17:42 Scaling GTM Across Countries 21:03 Local Trust Systems Explained 24:26 France vs Nordic Markets 27:31 Finding Market Champions 30:18 Sustainable Distribution Systems 33:06 Beyond Influencer Marketing 36:01 Long-Term Growth Frameworks 39:12 Future of Retail Investing 41:18 Founder Lessons 42:15 Closing Thoughts If this episode challenged the way you think about growth, share it with another founder, operator or investor who needs to hear it. Follow Scale Room with Olya Grovel for weekly live sessions where founders bring their biggest business challenges to the table and leave with actionable strategies they can implement immediately. ⭐ If you enjoyed this conversation, leave a rating and review on Spotify. It helps more ambitious founders discover the show and allows us to keep bringing on world-class guests. See you in the next episode.

[S4] #45 He Built a €0-Marketing Brand. The Problem Is Getting People to Return with Hector Hughes

Hector Hughes thought he was building his dream career. Instead, he found himself overwhelmed, disconnected, and increasingly dissatisfied with the life he had created. Everything changed after a 10-day silent retreat in the Himalayas where his phone was taken away and he spent ten days alone with his thoughts. One week later, he quit his job. Soon after, he launched Unplugged, a startup helping people disconnect from technology through off-grid cabins designed specifically for digital detox experiences. In this episode, Hector joins Olya Grovel to explore: • Why modern life is making us more distracted, anxious, and burned out • The founder mindset traps that drive overwork and unhappiness • How dopamine addiction impacts performance and decision-making • Why Unplugged grew rapidly during and after COVID • The surprising reason couples became their strongest customer segment • How to build a company around long-term impact rather than short-term exits • What it really takes to create a movement instead of just another product This conversation is part startup strategy, part psychology deep dive, and part wake-up call for anyone feeling trapped in the always-on culture. Timestamps 00:00 Hector Hughes' Origin Story 01:02 The Silent Retreat That Changed His Life 01:50 Quitting His Job to Start Unplugged 02:07 Launching a Startup Right Before COVID 03:10 Why COVID Became a Massive Tailwind 04:05 The Influencer Post That Changed Everything 05:00 Who Uses Unplugged Today? 06:15 Expanding Into Spain Without Losing Focus 08:05 Why Most Startups Think Too Short-Term 09:15 Building a Company for 30 Years, Not 5 10:20 The Dark Side of Founder Ambition 12:00 Why Entrepreneurs Struggle to Feel "Enough" 13:45 Overperformance, Burnout & Hustle Culture 15:10 Creating Demand for Digital Detox 16:35 Why Most People Can't Put Their Phones Down 17:20 The Psychology Behind Unplugged's Experience 18:40 How Guests Actually Disconnect for 3 Days 20:00 Turning Unplugged Into a Habit 21:10 Why Couples Became Their Biggest Customer Segment 22:20 Burnout, Executives & Corporate Retreats 23:20 The Hidden Cost of Constant Connectivity 24:30 Dopamine Addiction Explained 26:00 Why Unplugged Requires a Minimum 3-Day Stay 26:50 Hector's Biggest Growth Challenge Today 27:30 How to Increase Customer Retention 29:00 Nervous System Regulation & Mental Fitness 30:30 Creating a Movement Around Unplugging 32:00 Building the "Nike of Digital Wellbeing" 33:20 The Future Vision for Unplugged 35:00 Simplicity vs Overengineering the Experience 36:00 Hector's Most Important Lesson 36:40 "Nobody Cares As Much As You Think" 37:10 Final Thoughts & Where to Find Hector If this episode resonated with you, follow Scale Room on Spotify and share it with someone who needs a reminder to unplug.

[S4] #44 Your SaaS Is Shrinking and You're Avoiding the Money with Foti Panagiotakopoulos

The Scale Room Ep. 2 — Foti Panagiotakopoulos on AI, Mentorship, Burnout & Building Human-Centered Companies In this deeply personal and unexpectedly emotional episode of The Scale Room, Olya sits down with Foti Panagiotakopoulos, founder of GrowthMentor for a raw conversation about entrepreneurship, AI disruption, mentorship, founder psychology, burnout, and the human need for connection. What starts as a story about postpartum depression, isolation, and one life-changing mentorship call evolves into a wide-ranging exploration of what scaling actually feels like in 2026. Foti opens up about: * Why GrowthMentor is shrinking in the AI era * What AI can never replace * Founder loneliness and “sanity-check” conversations * The emotional side of decision-making * Why most entrepreneurs are solving the wrong problems * His struggle with enterprise sales and self-worth * Building side quests like ParentMentor & Growth Adventures * Burnout, ambition, and redefining success This episode is part founder therapy, part strategy session, and part existential reflection on what it means to build companies in a world where AI can do almost everything except be human. If you’ve ever questioned your direction, your ambition, or yourself… this one will hit hard.

[S4] #43 Your Competitors Own ChatGPT Search. Now What? with Frank Sondors

Frank Sondors scaled Salesforge to €3M ARR in year one and now he's making a bet most founders haven't even considered: generative engine optimization. He comes to The Scale Room with a question that's about to matter for every B2B company — how do you win when your buyers stop Googling and start asking ChatGPT instead? Olya digs into his GEO playbook, his Wikipedia hack, why mentions are the new backlinks, and the channel-kill decisions that got him here. If you're still treating SEO as your only organic strategy, this one's going to sting.

[S3] #42 Micro-Decisions That Shape Your Life: Mindset, Money & Leadership - with Maria Reid

Most decisions that change our lives don’t look dramatic from the outside. They happen quietly in our thoughts, our beliefs, and the stories we tell ourselves. In this episode of Decision Factory, Maria shares the most pivotal decision she ever made and it had nothing to do with her career, business, or external success. It was the moment she chose to change her perspective. We talk about: * Feeling like life is “happening to you” instead of for you * The identity crisis that often follows motherhood and major life transitions * Why money decisions are emotional, not logical * How women unconsciously play it safe with pricing and ambition * The power of micro-decisions and how they quietly shape your future * Why the state you create from determines what you create more of This conversation is for anyone who feels stuck in the messy middle, not who they used to be, not yet who they’re becoming and is ready to stop operating on autopilot. Because the most important decisions aren’t always the loud ones. They’re the ones you make internally, every single day.