Next Gen Leaders

Evan Hara - On how he broke into the film industry, why he decided to take a break from college, and how COVID-19 has affected his filming

In this episode I interview Fernando Rojo, the founder of PATOS Shoes. While visiting his family in Argentina, Fernando came across a stand at a local artisan fair, which sold women's flats with vibrant textiles. Fernando was quickly inspired to partner with the artisan to sell his shoes in the US. After two years of prototyping Fernando created a shoe that combines a modern sneaker with traditional textiles from Peru. PATOS is more than just a shoe company. With the mission of providing opportunity and fair working conditions for artisans in Latin America the company employs 15 artisans from Peru to make their shoes and backpacks. Fernando explains some of the obstacles he has faced working with artisans in another country, how he overcame that, and advice for others doing the same. Fernando also speaks to how he dealt with something many Entrepreneurs face, rejection, and how he managed and moved past it to become even more successful. Make sure to check out Fernando's vibrant and colorful shoes and their new backpacks at wearpatos.com and follow their instagram @wearpatos to see more of their amazing designs. 

Fernando Rojo - On how he created a business that supports local Peruvian artisans, dealt with rejection, and his success with crowdfunding.

For the first episode of season 2, I interviewed the co-founders of Next Gen Summit, Justin Lafazan and Dylan Gambardella. Justin and Dylan started Next Gen Summit in 2014 with the goal to empower entrepreneurs to design their own lives and create their own path to success. Since 2014, they have held six summits with speakers including Seth Goldman, founder of Honest Tea, Michael Loeb, Founder of Loeb Enterprises, Nigel Eccles, CEO of FanDuel, and many more! Justin and Dylan have built an incredible online community, where young entrepreneurs can connect with and empower one another. Justin and Dylan speak to their love for entrepreneurship, how they formed their company around their core values, and how they built their incredible team. Go check out this episode and many more on Next Gen Leaders podcast available on iTunes, Spotify, and iheart radio. Make sure to also sign up for Next Gen Summit 2020 at nextgenhq.com/summit

Justin Lafazan and Dylan Gambardella - On how they help people do what they love, building a company around your core values, and motivating your team.

In this week's episode, I’m speaking with Alyssa Carson. At the age of 3, Alyssa discovered her dream of wanting to become the first person to set foot on Mars. At only 16, Alyssa was the only person to have completed all 7 of NASA’s space camps, was the youngest person to graduate from the Advanced Space Academy and received the certification in applied astronautics. In addition to all of this, she wrote a book titled, “So you want to be an astronaut“, which provides young people with a realistic guide to become an astronaut. She has also ventured into design and worked with Horizon to develop the first-ever space luggage. Alyssa has worked and trained tirelessly to achieve and pursue her goal of being the first person to set foot on Mars. 

Alyssa Carson - On her journey to becoming the first person on Mars, what it was like writing her book, and pursuing her dream.

On this weeks episode, I interview the founder of Toscah Bakery, Therese Ton. Bored and in need of a passion project, Therese recalled a promise she made to her aunt and uncle. While baking biscotti, she told them that she would open up a bakery with their family recipes before she graduates college. To keep herself sane  during the long hours of research in a lab Therese decided to go out and sell her biscotti to a local coffee shop. Soon after friends, family, and school faculty heard and asked her to bake and cater for their events her business started to grow. At a cross roads trying to decide whether she wanted to continue to pursue medicine and apply to med school or launch Toscah Bakery she had a sudden realization. She combined her love of baking, teaching, and science by offering workshops on the biochemistry of baking by teaching high school students how to make her legendary biscotti. 

Therese Ton - On how to create a business around your passions, the importance of listening to your gut, and how she went from pre-med to baker.

From what started as a fun DIY project in her dorm room, Julia soon found herself running the college tailgate apparel industry. Her company, LoJo Bands combines trendy styles with classic college apparel to wear to tailgates, festivals, and more. Juggling school and a social life alone can be a lot to handle, but adding the challenge of running a business can seem impossible. In this episode Julia talks about how she balanced running LoJo Bands in its early stages, while going to school at Georgetown University. She also talks about how she persevered despite all the "no's" she got, and why she thinks launching fast is crucial to every startup. 

Julia Greenzaid - On how to balance running a business while in college, dealing with "no", and the importance of launching early

From dorm room to Whole Foods, the Decicco brothers are now changing the way individuals consume coffee. In need of a drink that would keep him awake during class without the sugar crash, Jordan developed Super Coffee. SuperCoffee is all natural, non-GMO, keto-certified coffee. It contains pesticide-free organic Colombian coffee beans, MCT oil, and whey protein concentrate. They also released a Super Creamer and Super Espresso with more amazing products on the horizon.On this episode I interviewed, Jim Decicco, the oldest brother and CEO of Super Coffee. Jim talks about how they quickly became the bestselling coffee in all their stores, how they compete with industry giants, and what they look for in a team.

Jim Decicco - On how Super Coffee quickly became the bestselling coffee in all their stores, how they compete with industry giants, and what they look for in a team.

On this episode I interview the founder of NOHBO, Benjamin Stern. On Shark Tank Ben secured funding from none other than Mark Cuban. Since then NOHBO has raised over $600,000 in capital. Ben talks about what he learned from being on Shark Tank, what it's really like working with investors, and his advice when it comes to raising capital. 

Benjamin Stern - On what he learned from being on Shark Tank, working with investors, and raising capital.

In our first episode Brennan talks about what drove him to start Hoopswagg, how he finds inspiration for his fresh new ideas, and how he overcame his biggest hurdle which nearly drove him to stop the company before it even began. 

Brennan Agranoff - On how he nearly gave up before the company started, balancing school with running a startup, and how he finds fresh new designs.

Real conversations with young people taking action and making change. I’m interviewing the next generation of leaders. I’m finding out how they got where they are and what inspired them to get there. I want to impassion young people to take that first step in order to do what they’re really passionate about and know that you’re never too young to pursue your dreams.

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Next Gen Leaders

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