Episodes

If you have students in middle school, it’s not too early to start looking at college and career options. I know — you’re probably thinking your adorable youngsters just finished preschool (in your mind) — but they are actually closer to the day they graduate from high school than they are to that day they started kindergarten. Yikes! How do you start making the choices about schools, majors, or possible careers? Leave it to a former teacher to figure out a way to sort it all out. Gradify is a ...

About 1 in 54 children in our country were diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder last year, with boys 4 times more likely than girls to be diagnosed. But there is still so much we are learning about Autism — and foremost, is that it can take many shapes and characteristics. In other words, it is a spectrum, not any one thing. Rudy Thoms’ has spent his career in medical device sales, but the thing he’s passionate about is helping families who are making their way along with a child who is on t...

It’s no secret healthcare costs are pretty high, and one simple procedure or one bad illness can send you into personal bankruptcy. Even with insurance, your out-of-pocket costs are a significant chunk of money. No wonder health insurance benefits are one of the top expenditures for any company, too. So how does a business know it’s giving employees the coverage they need, without cutting corners or spending a fortune? That’s where our next guests come in. Michael Fox and Josh Hyman have simila...

The beauty industry for women in the US is a staggering $62 billion dollar business, and that goes up to $511 Billion worldwide for 2021. So you might guess, there’s money to be made in the beauty business, right? Well, of course. But in a year when a lot of women just didn’t feel comfortable shopping for make-up because of COVID, or salons were shut down, two Charlotte women brought a beauty box right to your door. Leigh Humphry is an artificial intelligence and data pro who was looking for a ...

There are a thousand internet gurus out there who can tell you how to start a business, and many more who preach the sermon of being your own boss as an entrepreneur. But how many of them can tell you how to grow your business while still enjoying life, and EXIT your business successfully — as in, sell it for a lot of money and enjoy life a little more? Our next guest on the BrandBuilders Podcast is in the business of doing just that, and he’s done it half a dozen times already himself. Mac Lac...

No doubt 2020 was a strange year for musicians — after all, how can you play a gig if you can’t be live on stage and in person, with an audience? Yet at a time when a lot of musicians saw their source of income dry up, George Ramsay and his instructors at Bold Music had already transitioned to an online platform for some lessons. It wasn’t hard to go full virtual from there and they were busier than ever. George started Bold Music with fellow Davidson music alum Dean Williams in 2013, and they ...

Meet the man behind the mixing board. Yash Mistry has been with the BrandBuilders podcast from the beginning. Today we’ll learn a little more about his brand – Mistry Projects – and what he does when he isn’t making us sound good.

If you know anything about golf, you know the name Bobby Jones. The only golfer to ever win the pro/amateur Grand Slam, he left an unmatched legacy of sportsmanship and golf. After retiring at age 28 in 1930, he designed the world-famous Augusta National golf course and created the Masters Tournament. His legacy continued through his children and grandchildren… and now GREAT grandchildren, one of whom joins us on the BrandBuilders Podcast today. Robert Jones Black has helped carry the Bobby Jon...

If you have a business that stocks products, you probably have a warehouse. You also probably like to get the products out of your warehouse quickly through sales. But as you expand your product line, how do you store more products without adding warehouse space? Our next guest on the BrandBuilders Podcast is a pro at making it all fit. Seth Weisberg is the CEO of ABCO Systems — specialists in material handling and warehouse design. He grew up in the company, started by his father Michael as AB...

It’s not breaking news that this year — with all of its stay-at-home, work-from-home, kids-at-home-learning time — has been tough on our mental health. Right now while the days are hot and the sun is shining — and vaccinations are up — we’re starting to go out again and breathe a little easier. But while fresh air and sunshine can do a lot for our mood right now, sometimes we need something more to help us. Juliet Kuehnle is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor and owner at Sun Counselin...

The basic premise about health insurance has been the same since the beginning of time: You pay a premium every month, and if you need healthcare, your insurance kicks in to pay for some of it, right? But the Affordable Care Act and other innovations have turned the health insurance industry on its ear. While the premise stays the same, the options can take you in a thousand directions. We’re lucky Lester Morales has been a leader in the healthcare industry during all of this, and is leading th...

We love cool shades, and we love the environment too. So does former race car driver Johnny Freeman — who decided to put together new product lines of sunglasses and leather bags, in a more sustainable way. So get this — the frames for the shades are made from recycled cotton, and the arms are made of wood. You heard that right — wood. He sells them online and from his flagship store in NoDa that bears his racing nickname, Johnny Fly. And his leather bags — well, we’ll let him tell it. We’re gl...

Are you feeling the Olympic spirit? Or want a unique Hornets Tee? Or just want to show some straight-up Charlotte pride? Then you need to show it with some swag with the QC crown or the 704 logo. And yes, the 704 Shop is where you get it. You’ve seen the shirts and masks and hats with the popular logos around town, even on the mayor. Who are these guys? Well, we have them right here in our BrandBuilders Podcast studio. Let’s give a big, hometown pride welcome to Scott Wooten, Jerri Shepherd, an...

You may have heard him on the news — countless thousands of people woke up to his voice over the last five years in our area, and 10 years before that in his home state of Florida. Blaine Tolison recently left the morning news anchor job in Charlotte and is setting his own course using one of the great gifts of his profession — his voice. Robert Blaine Voiceovers is a new venture that will allow Blaine to bring his golden pipes to a variety of commercial ads and products, from the comfort of hi...

In an era of products that are mass-produced — especially this year, when we’ve been hesitant to go shopping just for fun and have ordered so much online — one company makes it a priority to offer jewelry and home decor that is completely hand-made and artfully inspired. Mary Hamby and her crew of artists are just settling into their new home in West Charlotte, where her store beckons you to browse. Located just across from Enderly Coffee in Enderly Park, Twenty Two West is a dream come true fo...

You can find lunch or a cup of coffee in dozens of places in Uptown or South End Charlotte, but you can’t always get them with a side of helping humanity. We know a place where that’s possible — not just easing your hunger but helping men and women who hunger for better lives after recovering from addiction and homelessness. Community Matter Cafe at Charlotte Rescue Mission is helping these men and women get back on their feet, by serving you lunch and getting you on your way. Ed Price is the D...

It’s been said that good marketing in today’s world is about storytelling — that your brand has a story, and it draws people to your product or service and moves them to buy it. Our next guest on the BrandBuilders Podcast is all about storytelling — he’s a former sports reporter, then digital media strategist, and now he’s an author, a keynote speaker, a podcast creator… and even teaches a class on, you guessed it — storytelling! Jay Acunzo is all about breaking the mold, breaking through conve...

What do you get when you combine a designer and an engineer into one business? You get a well-run business with great-looking stuff, for one. In this case, you get two businesses — a custom design company, and a popular DIY workshop franchise that has grown to 150 locations in three years. The brains behind it all are two women who were looking for something outside the corporate world when their children were small, and found each other and a great idea for a business. Their latest endeavor is...

Just a few years after its creation, Let Me Run was off and running as a program to give boys a physical and mental/emotional outlet for all of their energy. Best known as the “boy version” of the popular Girls on the Run program, Let Me Run has expanded to 56 regions of the country in just 10 years. Now, after a year off because of the pandemic, Let Me Run will return to schools in the Fall with an updated curriculum and coaches’ training that reflects the times we’re living in. In addition to ...

When we think about exciting careers, “accountant” usually isn’t at the top of the list — but BGW CPA firm bills itself as “Anything But Typical.” In fact, they have their own podcast of the same name, and its co-founder and co-host Gary Frey has an anything-but-typical title of “Connector, McGyver, and Confidant.” He’s also had an anything-but-typical career and he joins us today on the BrandBuilders Podcast to share the energy he has for everything he does.

We’ve all seen a bad horror movie where something sinister creeps up from a drain and frightens the life out of us. Our next guest on the BrandBuilders Podcast says that scenario can be very real… even if it’s not visible to us. Jason Bocchino is an entrepreneur many times over who has led companies from international debt collections to diamond brokerages to now, something greener. It’s called a “Green Drain,” and it is a pipe designed to protect us from what starts seeping up the OTHER way wh...

It is rare to find a business these days without a significant web presence. Whether you’re in banking, or health care, or selling pants — you’re online. But most websites now do more than inform customers about products; they’re interactive at multiple levels… which means your company either has to have an IT department to keep up, or hire one. Dualboot Partners has the ability to “start small and scale up fast” for a company’s tech needs. And the founding partners also have a commitment to th...

Everyone loves firefighters — they do only good. They arrive when you call 911, they help with life-threatening emergencies, they even run into burning buildings to put out fires and rescue people. So it seems like a special bit of irony that our next guest on the BrandBuilders Podcast is a firefighter who USES fire in his “other” line of work, to make cool, artistic furniture. Ferney Mercado spends fire department shifts — 24 hours, every 3 days for the most part — responding to emergencies. T...

We loved him on the gridiron, and we loved him off the field too. Greg Olsen not only excelled as a tight end for the Carolina Panthers — with 3, 1000-yard seasons in a row, and more than 8,600 yards for a career (WOW) — but as a community philanthropist, which led to being a 2-time finalist for the Walter Payton Man of the Year award from the NFL. He even took first place in the Charity Challenge for most votes on social media one of those years. Olsen’s HEARTest Yard foundation helps families...