This Business Model Turns Rentals Into 7-Figure Resorts | Ep. 223 with Jorge Martinez and Andre Vinay Co-Founders of Black Development Group
Jorge Martinez and Andre Vinay, co-founders of Black Development Group, join Founder’s Story to reveal how they’ve reimagined hospitality by turning apartments into branded hotel-style residences. With a growing partnership with Wyndham, they’re building global investment-friendly resorts in places like Tulum, Los Cabos, and Punta Cana—offering individuals a new way to own a piece of paradise.Key Discussion PointsFrom Hot Dogs to Hotels: How Andre began as a teen entrepreneurThe Condo-Hotel Model: Why selling individual units funds entire resort buildsStrategic Partnerships: How Wyndham helped them go globalOwnership, Not Headaches: Giving investors turnkey properties without the hassleScaling Across Borders: Why Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic are nextLean Hotel Ops: How tech and outsourcing reduce overhead and boost profitDefining Success: Why they believe they're still just getting startedKey TakeawaysPartnership beats competition when scaling fastA profitable hotel doesn’t need a front desk—just a smart systemYou can own a slice of a global resort without building from scratchInnovation often lies in blending business models, not reinventing themOur Sponsors:* Check out Indeed: https://indeed.com/FOUNDERSSTORY* Check out Northwest Registered Agent and use my code FOUNDERS for a great deal: https://northwestregisteredagent.com* Check out Plus500: https://plus500.com* Check out Rosetta Stone and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.rosettastone.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
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She’s Using AI to Reverse Aging—One Day at a Time | Ep 222 with Sally So Founder of Genomii.ai
Sally So, founder and CEO of Genomii.ai, joins Founder’s Story to share how her lifelong battle with eczema sparked a breakthrough: your health isn’t just in your genes—it’s in your data. Sally reveals how she’s building a digital twin for every human, one that can track your biological age in real-time and coach you back to youth.Key Discussion PointsFrom Suffering to Science: How chronic illness led Sally to build GenomiiThe Digital Twin Era: What it means to have an AI version of yourself in your pocketBiological Age Tracking: Why you might age 0.6 or 1.6 days overnightThe Longevity Movement: How Genomii is gamifying health and reversing agingStress, Sleep & Biomarkers: What really causes you to age fasterAI, Human Emotion & the Future of Connection: How Genomii balances tech with humanityGamified Wellness: Why the future of health might look like DuolingoBuilding a $10B Vision: Sally’s plans to scale, IPO, and live 100+ yearsKey TakeawaysEvery action you take could be aging—or reversing—your biological clockAI-powered personalization will soon outperform generalized healthcareEmotional and social connection remain essential to longevityWellness apps of the future will feel more like companions than toolsClosing ThoughtsSally So isn’t just building a health app—she’s engineering a future where your phone knows your body better than your doctor. If you’ve ever wondered how long you’ll live—or how young you can stay—this is your episode.Our Sponsors:* Check out Indeed: https://indeed.com/FOUNDERSSTORY* Check out Northwest Registered Agent and use my code FOUNDERS for a great deal: https://northwestregisteredagent.com* Check out Plus500: https://plus500.com* Check out Rosetta Stone and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.rosettastone.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
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I Bootstrapped OddsJam to $160M—Everything I Learned Along the Way | Ep 221 with Alexander Monahan founder of OddsJam
Alex Monahan, Stanford engineer turned sports betting entrepreneur, joins Founder's Story to reveal how he bootstrapped OddsJam—dubbed the Bloomberg Terminal for Sports Betting—to a $160 million exit. From obsessing over data to outworking every competitor, Alex shares the gritty journey from side hustle to acquisition, the power of YouTube for growth, and why he’s still not done building. If you’ve ever wondered what it really takes to win in a high-stakes, high-growth niche—this is the playbook.Key Discussion PointsThe Obsession That Sparked a Startup: Why Alex's love for data, poker, and probability planted the seed for OddsJam.From Reddit to Revenue: How early Reddit posts and $6 subscriptions helped them land their first customers.The $20K MRR YouTube Days: Why DIY content outperformed influencers—and how one video changed the game.The Math Behind the Millions: How understanding sports betting odds led to a product users couldn’t find anywhere else.Exit Without Burnout: Why selling didn’t change his life—and how growing slowly kept him grounded.Building a Data Moat: How they acquired their data provider and outpaced competitors with speed and accuracy.Founder Lessons in Focus: Why juggling multiple startups never works—and why you need to outwork everyone.Key TakeawaysDon’t build for hype—build what you wish existed.Your edge is what you obsess over when no one’s watching.Distribution is a weapon—master YouTube, Twitter, and content that teaches.Staying focused beats being flashy—especially when billion-dollar markets are on the line.Closing ThoughtsOddsJam wasn’t built on luck. It was built on obsession, precision, and the relentless grind of a founder who knew where his edge was—and ran with it. Whether you’re launching your first business or gunning for your own exit, Alex’s journey is a reminder: master your niche, own your platform, and never stop betting on yourself.Our Sponsors:* Check out Indeed: https://indeed.com/FOUNDERSSTORY* Check out Northwest Registered Agent and use my code FOUNDERS for a great deal: https://northwestregisteredagent.com* Check out Plus500: https://plus500.com* Check out Rosetta Stone and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.rosettastone.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
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Want to Be on Shark Tank? This is How You Win Even Without a Deal | Ep 220 with Dr. Arjen de Jong Founder of AirTulip
Dr. Arjen de Jong, an aerospace engineer and founder of AirTulip, joins Founder’s Story to share how clean-room tech, fluid mechanics, and a little smoke visualization led to a Shark Tank pitch—and a consumer sleep product unlike anything else on the market.From clean air in dentist offices to hydrogen water-style traction for your bedroom, Arjen walks us through how laminar airflow can drastically improve health, reduce allergies, and even reinvent how we think about air.Key Discussion PointsClean Room to Clean Sleep: How a cigarette in a laminar flow booth sparked the product ideaPivoting Post-COVID: Why dentistry was the real product-market fit before sleepShark Tank Secrets: The casting line, the 30-minute pitch, and walking away from an offerVisualizing Air: How lasers and wind tunnels helped explain an invisible productConsumer Trust vs. Engineering Genius: Why educating the market is the hardest partScaling a Physical Product: The difference between B2B machinery and consumer DTCLong-Term Vision: From side hustle to orbiting planet—Arjen’s exponential success roadmapKey TakeawaysThink Laterally: The best innovations come from cross-industry application of existing techEducate First, Sell Second: Customers need to believe the invisible before buyingPersonal Experience Sells: Real stories of health improvement drive conversionCommunity = Credibility: DTC success hinges on trust, repetition, and consistencyDon’t Just Launch—Prepare for the Surge: Shark Tank is a spotlight, not the finish lineClosing ThoughtsAirTulip isn’t just another sleep gadget—it’s a physics-first approach to rethinking how we breathe. Dr. Arjen de Jong’s journey proves that the smartest solutions aren’t always the loudest. Tune in to learn how engineering curiosity, strategic pivots, and real-world validation turned laminar airflow into a movement.Our Sponsors:* Check out Indeed: https://indeed.com/FOUNDERSSTORY* Check out Northwest Registered Agent and use my code FOUNDERS for a great deal: https://northwestregisteredagent.com* Check out Plus500: https://plus500.com* Check out Rosetta Stone and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.rosettastone.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
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25:53
Dehydration is a Massive Problem: How Two Founders Are Turning Water Into a Health Empire | Ep 219 with Yash and Smile Founders of Dr. Water
Yash (the "Water Genie") and Smile (an Ironman athlete) co-founded Dr. Water to solve what they call the world’s most overlooked health crisis: dehydration. With backgrounds in sustainability and performance science, the duo reveals how hydrogen water can transform energy, recovery, and aging—while also cutting plastic waste. They share the journey from building DTC wellness brands to going viral on TikTok and pitching billionaires via cold emails.Key Discussion PointsThe Spark of a Problem: Why 75% of Americans are dehydrated—and what that does to your body.From Ironman to Founder: How Smile’s training journey revealed major hydration myths.Hydrogen 101: The science behind hydrogen water, molecular research, and anti-aging benefits.Design Meets Wellness: Creating the first modern hydrogen tumbler with UV filtration.Go-to-Market Playbook: Why social selling (TikTok, Meta) beat Amazon for this brand—and how they got their first billionaire buyer.Founders Who Fit: Why this co-founder duo works—9 years of history, clarity of roles, and shared obsession.Educating a Market: Using MMA athletes, NFL doctors, and real stories to take hydrogen water mainstream.Key TakeawaysWater is Wellness: You can’t absorb supplements, recover well, or think clearly without proper hydration.Science Backed, Lifestyle Led: Products need to heal and be something people love showing off.Social is the New Shelf: Founder-led brands that educate and entertain will win on TikTok and YouTube.Complementary Founders Scale Faster: Visionary + executor beats any solo genius.Hydration is the First Habit: If you fix water, you unlock the foundation for every other wellness behavior.Closing ThoughtsFrom battling microplastics to unlocking cellular energy, Dr. Water isn’t just a hydration brand—it’s a movement. Tune in to learn how two first-time founders went from global agriculture and Ironman races to building a multi-country wellness company that just might reshape the water industry from the inside out.Our Sponsors:* Check out Indeed: https://indeed.com/FOUNDERSSTORY* Check out Northwest Registered Agent and use my code FOUNDERS for a great deal: https://northwestregisteredagent.com* Check out Plus500: https://plus500.com* Check out Rosetta Stone and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.rosettastone.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
Founder’s Story” by IBH Media isn’t just a show—it’s a mission. We spotlight extraordinary, iconic, and undiscovered entrepreneurs who’ve built, scaled, and led with purpose. From tech titans to tenacious underdogs, every episode dives deep into the resilience, creativity, and grit that define true leadership.You’ll hear from household names like Gary V, Codie Sanchez, Rob Dyrdek, and Tom Bilyeu—but just as often, you’ll meet the unheard founders doing remarkable things the world needs to know.This is where raw conversations meet real impact. This is Founder’s Story—where the heart of entrepreneurship beats.
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