What it takes to run a business

Podcast

It was around Memorial Day in 2022 when Coca Cola stunned the beverage world by announcing it was shutting down production of Honest Tea. No one was more surprised than Seth Goldman, who had co-founded the brand and sold it to Coke. But within two weeks, he’d decided to do it all again, and by that Labor Day, bottles of his new venture, Just Ice Tea, were already landing on store shelves. And now, three years later, Just Ice Tea has exploded from $1 million in annual revenue to nearly $24 million to rank 88th on the latest Inc. 5000—more than two decades after Honest Tea first appeared on the list. Which makes this the perfect moment to revisit the conversation I recorded with Seth right before Just Ice Tea launched. In it, he shares how he processed Coke’s decision, why he sold to Coke in the first place, what compelled him to get back into the business, and what he learned working inside the world’s largest beverage company. And yes, I asked whether he could imagine selling this brand to Coke, too.

In a few weeks, I’ll be in Portland, Oregon, for Shawn Busse’s always terrific Catalyst event. That trip has had me thinking about the city’s keep-it-weird ethos, the spirit that’s made Portland a hotbed for creative business building. My upcoming trip has also inspired me to revisit a podcast conversation Shawn and I recorded in early 2024 with Jenelle Etzel, who is founder of Living Room Realty. The boutique real estate agency has more than a hundred brokers and a reputation for doing things differently, but Jenelle didn’t set out to be a business owner. In fact, she majored in weaving (Shawn, for the record, majored in ceramics). She fronted a punk rock band. She lived out of a van. And yet, those experiences—especially learning how to manage people who didn’t technically have to listen to her and how to serve customers who’d been ignored by the mainstream—turned out to be perfect preparation for building a thriving business in a quirky city. It’s a story that says something about Portland, but even more about the unconventional paths that can lead to successful entrepreneurship.

This week, Liz Picarazzi tells Jay Goltz and William Vanderbloemen that she’s had a couple of big breakthroughs. For Liz, it’s been a challenging few years dealing with the tariffs while also trying to break into a promising new market. Despite the advice of some very smart people who encouraged her to conquer her first market—urban areas plagued by rats—before expanding into additional markets, Liz has invested a lot of time and energy trying to position Citibin to serve towns, parks, and resorts that need trash bins strong enough to withstand bears. For that investment to pay off, however, Liz would have to outsmart her nemesis, an especially ferocious competitor that goes by the name of Seeley. Plus: Jay talks about the plight of small retailers trying to survive while their industry collapses around them. And William tells us how he’s trying to keep up in the AI arms race between employers and employees.

This week, Jaci Russo tells David C. Barnett and Kate Morgan how the hiring of her agency’s first top-level sales person went wrong. About four months ago, when Jaci first told us about this big step, she sounded thrilled. She said her new sales chief was a delight to be around, had hit the ground running, and had already lined up at least one impressive client. Unfortunately, none of that panned out. But Jaci, who is hardly the first business owner to have an important placement go off the rails, offered to walk us through her process to see what lessons we can all learn: Were the interviews flawed? Was the onboarding effort insufficient? Was it the executive recruiting firm she used? Was it the compensation structure? Or was it the remote-work arrangement? Plus: We also discuss the mounting evidence that companies have stopped filling entry-level positions. And should that trend continue, where will owners find the next generation of leaders?

This week, Laura Zander tells Mel Gravely and Jennifer Kerhin how she and her husband, Doug, managed to sell their business for precisely the price they wanted. As you may recall, Laura and Doug started Jimmy Beans Wool more than two decades ago as a tiny corner store and turned it into one of the biggest brands in the yarn industry. Years ago, the couple decided they’d be open to selling—but only if the offer was right. With that goal in mind, they made a deliberate effort to get the business sale-ready and to keep it that way. And as Laura ran the company, she started cultivating relationships with anyone she thought might one day be a buyer. In fact, she tells us, she was never shy about saying, “Oh, hey, Bob, it's really nice to meet you. Do you want to buy my business?” Eventually, someone said yes—although getting to a signed contract, Laura says, nearly broke her. Plus: Jennifer thought she had her hands full running her business—and then her own home went up in flames.