The moment you make your first sale, you have a choice: pay yourself, or build something bigger. Shannon Kinney, founder of Dream Local Digital, chose to build. She took her learnings from founding Cars.com and applied them to her own company to create success for herself and her clients.

In this episode, she shares what it takes to grow a business that doesn’t depend on you, and the entrepreneur must-haves she wishes she’d had in place sooner. You'll also learn the costly mistakes to avoid, how much you should really be spending on marketing, and why AI works best as a “happy intern.”

Topics discussed:

(00:00) Introduction

(1:17) From skipping high school to a career in advertising

(4:24) How she ended up on the founding team of Cars.com

(8:25) Hustle, growth mindset, and being the only woman in the room

(10:56) The oversight that lost her Cars.com ownership stake

(14:27) Starting Dream Local Digital as an experiment

(18:11) Creating a job for yourself vs. building for scale

(21:37) The costly mistakes of scaling without the right support

(28:25) Empowering your team and maintaining a network

(32:02) How much businesses should spend on marketing

(38:27) How AI is reshaping jobs, teams and education

(44:58) Must-haves for entrepreneurs

Connect with Shannon Kinney:

https://dreamlocal.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonkinney/

https://www.facebook.com/shannon.kinney

https://www.instagram.com/shannonkin/

Candus Hinderer and Carrie Ferroukhi are the co-founders of Arcus Advisors, a business consulting firm dedicated to helping Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies improve results by optimizing the accounting and finance functions through strategic guidance and practical solutions. For more information and resources, visit Arcus Advisors: https://arcusadvisors.com/home

This episode was produced by Podcast Boutique https://www.podcastboutique.com

The fastest way to separate your business from everyone else? Fix what they can't.

In this episode, Mark Colaw walks through how he cracked a problem his industry had failed to solve, and turned it into a patented machine now protected in 21 countries. You'll also hear how modern vehicles have changed the repair business, who really controls the cars we drive, and what nearly 50 years in one shop taught him about values and culture.

Topics discussed:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:25) Growing up around entrepreneurs

(05:00) His first business at age 13

(06:39) The decisions to become a mechanic

(11:48) Taking the job at Seymour's Garage

(14:22) Earning equity and buying the company

(15:12) What’s changed in 50 years

(16:35) Why modern cars are so hard to diagnose

(21:14) Inside Seymour’s Garage and DPFs

(23:29) The truck nobody could fix

(25:21) Hiring an engineer and getting the patents

(26:52) The business, the margins, and next year's plan

(31:45) The one thing he would do differently

Connect with Seymour’s Garage & DPF Resolutions:

https://www.seymoursgarage.net/

• Seymour's Garage
• DPF Resolutions

Candus Hinderer and Carrie Ferroukhi are the co-founders of Arcus Advisors, a business consulting firm dedicated to helping Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies improve results by optimizing the accounting and finance functions through strategic guidance and practical solutions. For more information and resources, visit Arcus Advisors: https://arcusadvisors.com/home

This episode was produced by Podcast Boutique https://www.podcastboutique.com

What if your biggest challenge became your biggest opportunity?

Darren Randle launched Houston Tents and Events in January 2020. Two months later, the world shut down and with it, the entire events industry. Since then, Darren has grown the company from the worst possible starting place to now, one of the biggest event companies in Texas.

In this episode, Darren shares how they went from building a drive-through tent for a Chick-fil-A to expanding into new services and new markets. You'll hear how they adapted, the one thing they never changed through their growth, and why he still doesn't call himself an entrepreneur.

Topics discussed:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:55) Houston Tents and Events

(06:48) From Tennessee to Houston

(11:52) UH to the Texans to Comcast

(14:46) Leaving corporate to "go be the tent guy"

(18:33) Why he doesn't call himself an entrepreneur

(21:13) What he looks for in new hires

(25:45) Early failures and what it taught him

(28:53) Surviving COVID and working with Chick-fil-A

(37:45) What he’s learned as CEO

(40:12) Acquisitions "the poor man's way"

Connect with Houston Tents & Events:

https://houstontentsevents.com/

Candus Hinderer and Carrie Ferroukhi are the co-founders of Arcus Advisors, a business consulting firm dedicated to helping Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies improve results by optimizing the accounting and finance functions through strategic guidance and practical solutions. For more information and resources, visit Arcus Advisors: https://arcusadvisors.com/home

This episode was produced by Podcast Boutique https://www.podcastboutique.com