Matt throws out one word at a time. Brian and Brad react in real time. "Banks." Brian grimaces. "Private equity." Brad winces. By the time they hit friends and family, Brian's wife had stopped asking how the business was going. Her family had money in it. This is episode three of Season 2. Every funding source comes with a person attached, and that person is you.

*YOU'LL DISCOVER* • Why banks only give you money when you don't need it (and disappear when you do) • The VC trap: why taking the first check that's offered might be the worst decision you make • What angel investors actually want (and why some will drag you to their parties) • The friends and family line that gets crossed at Thanksgiving • Why Brian and Brad had completely opposite reactions to the same funding truth

*WHAT ACTUALLY WORKS* • Ask what else they bring: Rolodex to bigger money, board experience, law firms, HR firms • Put your own money in first, even the last $5,000 proves you believe it • Set expectations before friends and family write a check or it gets ugly fast

*WHO THESE GUYS ARE* Brian Balduf co-founded and sold VHT Studios. Brad Balduf runs By Your Side Autism Therapy with 550 employees across 11 centers. Matt Croke keeps it honest and pulls out the chaos. They've been there, survived it, and have the scars to prove it.

*THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH* "You only get money from banks when you don't need it. When you really need it? It's like pulling teeth." Are you picking the right investor or just the first one who says yes? 👇 SUBSCRIBE for new episodes every Friday. Real stories, real disasters, no LinkedIn energy. ————————————

*TIMESTAMPS*

0:00 - The PE Reputation: Sell Yourself to the Devil

1:26 - Matt's Word Association Game Begins

6:07 - Banks Only Give It When You Don't Need It

8:03 - Private Equity: Bean Counters or Growth Machines

12:20 - Venture Capital: The $10M Trap

16:03 - Angel Investors: Betting on the Jockey

22:11 - Friends and Family: The Delicate Balance

28:29 - Investing in Yourself: The Last $5,000

*ABOUT CEO BROS AFTER HOURS* CEO BROS: After Hours is raw business talk from CEO brothers Brian Balduf (VHT Studios) and Brad Balduf (By Your Side Autism Therapy) with host Matt Croke. Every Friday they share what actually happens building companies: brutal failures, scaling disasters, and the messy truth about leadership. No corporate polish. No LinkedIn energy. Just honest stories from the trenches.

🍸 *WIND DOWN WITH THE BROS: THIS WEEK'S COCKTAILS* Three drinks for three funding philosophies. Pick the one that matches your investor.

🍸 THE JOCKEY Brian Balduf - The storyteller who's been there and sold the company Recipe: • 2 oz scotch • 0.75 oz lemon juice • 0.5 oz honey syrup • 2 dashes Angostura bitters • Lemon twist • Shake with ice, strain into rocks glass The Vibe: Angel investors aren't betting on the plan. They're betting on the person holding it. This drink is confident and earns its reputation sip by sip. Be the kind of jockey worth betting on.

🍸 THE FAMILY PARTY Brad Balduf - The operator who scaled across 11 locations Recipe: • 2 oz tequila reposado • 0.75 oz lime juice • 0.5 oz agave syrup • 0.25 oz Cointreau • Tajín rim • Shake with ice, strain over ice The Vibe: Warm, festive, everyone wants in. Then someone corners you at the buffet asking when they're getting their money back. Brad's wife stopped asking how the business was going because her family had money in it. Sounds easy until the holidays.

🍸 THE POOL TABLE Matt Croke - The host keeping it honest Recipe: • 2 oz Irish whiskey • 0.75 oz sweet vermouth • 0.25 oz Benedictine • 2 dashes orange bitters • Orange peel • Stir with ice, strain into coupe The Vibe: Brad loaned Brian's company money once. Brian calls it a loan. Brad calls it a loss on the pool table. Sometimes the most expensive money isn't from a VC. It's from the guy sitting across from you at Thanksgiving. Make all three. Which investor are you working with? The jockey bet? The family money? Or writing it off as a pool table loss? Tag us.

*JOIN THE CONVERSATION* https://x.com/CeoBrosAH https://www.instagram.com/ceobrosah/ https://www.facebook.com/CEOBrosAH https://www.linkedin.com/company/ceo-bros

#bestbusinesspodcast #entrepreneurship #startupfunding #investors #angelinvesting #venturecapital #smallbusiness

Brian owned the world's largest collection of bathroom photos. A tech giant stole them for a second business and said "go sue someone else." Brian had $2 million in revenue. The legal bill? Five million. So a stranger in New York agreed to pay everything for 30% of the winnings. Eight years later, Brian won the case now taught in law schools. This is episode two. When winning in court costs more than settling.

*YOU'LL DISCOVER* • Why Brian pioneered bulk copyright registration with the Copyright Office to protect hundreds of thousands of photographs • The litigation financing deal that paid $5 million in legal fees for 30% of winnings • How the tech giant challenged bulk copyright validity (precedent-setting case now taught in law schools) • Why Disney, NBC, Universal, and Comcast filed amicus briefs supporting the lawsuit • Why Brian wishes he'd forced a settlement instead of winning

*WHAT ACTUALLY WORKS* • Protect your IP early: Register copyrights from day one, even when it seems unnecessary • Litigation financing exists: Third parties will pay legal bills for a percentage of the win • Pending protects you: "Patent pending" or "trademark pending" works while processing • Settlements beat victories: Eight years of appeals might not be worth the win *WHO THESE GUYS ARE* Brian Balduf co-founded and sold VHT Studios. Brad Balduf runs By Your Side Autism Therapy with 550 employees across 11 centers. Matt Croke keeps it honest and pulls out the chaos. They've been there, survived it, and have the scars to prove it. *THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH* "Looking back, we probably would have done better settling. We had a law firm that could've forced them to settle for a big amount. But we chose to win this case instead." Ever fought a battle you won but shouldn't have?

👇 SUBSCRIBE for new episodes every Friday. Real stories, real disasters, no LinkedIn energy. ————————————

*TIMESTAMPS* 0:00 - Brian's bathroom photo collection

2:13 - Three types of intellectual property

7:26 - The second business that stole everything

14:02 - Pioneering bulk copyright registration

16:11 - Never tested in courts before

21:44 - Litigation financing explained

25:26 - Brian wins, then 4 years of appeals

28:41 - Why settlement was smarter

*ABOUT CEO BROS AFTER HOURS* CEO BROS: After Hours is raw business talk from CEO brothers Brian Balduf (VHT Studios) and Brad Balduf (By Your Side Autism Therapy) with host Matt Croke. Every Friday they share what actually happens building companies: brutal failures, scaling disasters, and the messy truth about leadership. No corporate polish. No LinkedIn energy. Just honest stories from the trenches.

🍸 *WIND DOWN WITH THE BROS: THIS WEEK'S COCKTAILS* Three drinks for three players in an 8-year legal war. Pick your side.

🍸 *THE DAVID* Brian Balduf - $2M revenue taking on billions Recipe: • 2 oz Scotch • ¾ oz cherry liqueur • ½ oz lemon juice • 2 dashes chocolate bitters • Luxardo cherry garnish • Shake with ice, strain into coupe The Vibe: Small but sophisticated. Scotch hits hard with less volume. Brian had $2 million facing a $5 million legal bill. This drink proves you don't need size to pack a punch.

🍸 *THE LITIGATION FUNDER* Brad Balduf - The stranger who bet $5M Brian would win Recipe: • 2 oz Cognac • 1 oz Grand Marnier • ½ oz fresh lemon juice • Orange twist • Stir with ice, strain into rocks glass The Vibe: Expensive, refined, calculated risk. A company in New York said "we'll pay everything for 30% of the win." Cognac doesn't come cheap. Neither does betting $5 million on a precedent-setting lawsuit.

🍸 *THE AMICUS BRIEF* Matt Croke - Disney, NBC, Universal watching from the sidelines Recipe: • 3 oz Champagne • 1 oz St-Germain • ½ oz lemon juice • Lemon twist • Build in flute, add champagne last The Vibe: High society watching the fight. Disney, NBC, Universal, and Comcast filed friend-of-the-court briefs because this case mattered to everyone with intellectual property. Elegant, invested in the outcome, but not getting hands dirty. Make all three. Figure out your role. Are you the underdog fighting? The funder betting big? Or the industry watching to see who wins? Tag us.

*JOIN THE CONVERSATION* https://x.com/CeoBrosAH https://www.instagram.com/ceobrosah/ https://www.facebook.com/CEOBrosAH https://www.linkedin.com/company/ceo-bros

#IntellectualProperty #CopyrightLaw #StartupLessons #Entrepreneurship #LegalBattle #bestbusinesspodcast #leadership

*Season 2 Premiere: You made it through year one. That was the easy part.*

Matt tried to replace the brothers with the Manning brothers for Season 2. Peyton and Eli never responded. Neither did the Baldwins, the Bushes, or the Harbaughs. So Brian and Brad are back, new studio and all, ready to talk about what happens when your business hits year two. Here's the thing nobody tells you: year one is survival mode. You're running so hard that you don't notice expenses creeping up or competitors watching what you're doing. Then you hit year two and suddenly you're spending $100,000 a month instead of $10,000. Competition either wakes up or shows up. The easy run is over. This is Season 2 Episode 1. What happens when you can't coast anymore.

*YOU'LL DISCOVER* • Why year two is when competition wakes up or storms in • The "throttle down plus plus" mentality Brad uses to stay aggressive • How to use year one baselines to build year two budgets • The difference between zero-based and baseline budgeting

*WHAT ACTUALLY WORKS* • Don't assume year two repeats year one • Review every expense that snuck in • Ask customers three simple questions • Focus on your core

*WHO THESE GUYS ARE* Brian Balduf co-founded and sold VHT Studios. Brad Balduf runs By Your Side Autism Therapy with 550 employees across 11 centers. Matt Croke keeps it honest and pulls out the chaos. They've been there, survived it, and have the scars to prove it.

*THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH* "Year two, you got to relook at your expenses because a lot of things will have snuck in during that first year. You were spending $10,000 a month when you started and you're spending $100,000 now." What mistakes are sneaking into your year two? 👇 SUBSCRIBE for Season 2. New studio. New founder interviews. Same brutal honesty.

*TIMESTAMPS* 0:00 - Season 2 premiere

4:20 - Year one vs year two

6:10 - Bean Bags vs Bean Bag King

9:30 - When competition wakes up

11:45 - Throttle down plus plus

14:30 - Baseline budgeting

17:05 - Advice for both sides

19:10 - Customer surveys

21:30 - Zero-based vs baseline

24:45 - Year two validation

*ABOUT CEO BROS AFTER HOURS* CEO BROS: After Hours is raw business talk from CEO brothers Brian Balduf (VHT Studios) and Brad Balduf (By Your Side Autism Therapy) with host Matt Croke. Every Friday they share what actually happens building companies: brutal failures, scaling disasters, and the messy truth about leadership. No corporate polish. No LinkedIn energy. Just honest stories from the trenches.

🍸 *WIND DOWN WITH THE BROS: THIS WEEK'S COCKTAILS* Three drinks for three year-two realities. Pick the one that matches your situation.

🍸 THE BEAN BAG KING Brad Balduf - The operator who won't get complacent Recipe: • 2 oz aged rum • 1 oz coffee liqueur • 0.5 oz demerara syrup • 2 dashes chocolate bitters • Orange peel • Stir with ice, strain into rocks glass The Vibe: You owned 100% of the market until some kid opened a drive-thru and stole your customers. Now you either sell or wake up and fight back. This drink's rich, established, knows its worth. Question is: will you get lazy or protect what you built?

🍸 BEAN BAGS R US Brian Balduf - The storyteller who's seen competitors strike Recipe: • 2 oz vodka • 1 oz lime juice • 0.75 oz ginger syrup • 0.5 oz Cointreau • Fresh ginger slice • Shake hard with ice, strain into coupe The Vibe: You stormed the market with a drive-thru and crushed the old guard year one. Year two? They're awake now. They copied your hours, matched your prices, installed their own drive-thru. What's your next move? This drink's sharp, aggressive, ready to pivot.

🍸 THE THROTTLE DOWN Matt Croke - The host watching both sides battle Recipe: • 2 oz Irish whiskey • 0.75 oz lemon juice • 0.5 oz honey syrup • 3 dashes Angostura bitters • Lemon wheel • Shake with ice, strain over large cube The Vibe: Brad's philosophy for year two: throttle down plus plus. No breaks. No coasting. Competition's coming whether you're the incumbent or the upstart. This drink's smooth but commits fully. Just like year two demands. Make all three. Figure out which position you're in. Defending your turf? Attacking the market? Just trying to stay aggressive? Tag us.

*JOIN THE CONVERSATION* https://x.com/CeoBrosAH https://www.instagram.com/ceobrosah/ https://www.facebook.com/CEOBrosAH https://www.linkedin.com/company/ceo-bros

#entrepreneurship #startupstrategy #yeartwo #businessgrowth