Articles about Founder Mode
Tuesday, June 3, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 11 – The Future of Commerce: Product Design & Logistics with Samantha Rose
Episode 11: From hand-carving a single silicone spatula in her kitchen to running a portfolio of revived consumer brands, Sam Rose walks Kevin and Jason through the through-line of her career: obsess over the customer, build a brand (not just a product), and make logistics as lovable as design. She explains how a “collision with...
Tuesday, May 27, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 10 – How to Bootstrap Your Tech Team Using AI with JJ Zhuang
Episode 10: Serial CTO and Acompli co-founder JJ Zhuang joins Kevin and Jason to explain why the next generation of great products will be built by tiny, AI-super-powered teams. He unpacks lessons from taking Acompli’s first line of code to a $200 million Microsoft exit, steering Instacart through pandemic hyper-growth, and relearning to code with...
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 9 – De-Risking Brick-and-Mortar for DTC Brands with Megan Berry
Episode 9: Megan Berry—architect, pop-up pioneer, and Mentors Fund partner—shows DTC founders how to move from clicks to bricks without torching cash. She explains her 8-foot-by-50-square-foot kiosk “permit hack,” the KPIs (unaided brand awareness, repeat engagement, dwell-time hot spots) that justify a multimillion-dollar flagship, and why post-COVID stores should feel like friction-free showrooms, not inventory...
Tuesday, May 13, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 8 – AI-First Product Design with Ritwik Pavan
Episode 8: In this episode, serial entrepreneur Ritwik Pavan joins Kevin Henrikson and Jason Shafton to explore the rise of AI-first product design and its profound implications on consumer hardware, smart cities, and modular construction. They discuss the essential strategies founders need to adopt, including the importance of hyper-personalization, overcoming challenges in training data, untapped...
Tuesday, May 6, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 7 – Zero-to-One Marketing with Peter Farago
Episode 7: In this episode, seasoned marketing leader Peter Farago shares zero-to-one marketing insights for early-stage startups, emphasizing empathy, iterative messaging, and organic inbound strategies. Drawing on experiences from Flurry, Accompli, and RunLLM, Peter highlights the importance of a clear value proposition, building brand credibility, and leveraging customer feedback loops. He also addresses AI’s evolving...
Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 6 – Remote Boundaries – Saying No Without Burning Bridges with Viktor Petersson
Episode 6: In this episode, Viktor Petersson shares how saying “no” can be a superpower for founders managing remote teams. He discusses practical strategies for email triage, boundary-setting to avoid burnout, and why in-person retreats are key to trust and alignment. Learn how Viktor’s approach to documentation, intrinsic motivation, and selective communication helps him preserve...
