High Stakes Growth
High Stakes Growth takes you inside the boldest decisions behind today’s most exciting brands. We bring you candid conversations with the founders and CMOs who built them—unpacking the high-stakes moments, tough calls, and game-changing strategies that made these brands what they are today. No fluff. No surface-level insights. Just real stories from the leaders who made it happen. Hosted by Forest Bronzan and Leah Lloyd, they bring a combined four decades of consumer brand expertise to these conversations.
Ian Blair: A Founder’s Life in High Gear – From SaaS to DTC and Big Waves to Biohacks
Ian Blair is the former co-founder and CEO of the mobile app builder BuildFire, and today is the co-founder and CEO of Laundry Sauce, a laundry detergent brand.
Expect to hear about:
– BuildFire: How Ian started a mobile app builder that built 15,000 apps and sold it during a SaaS downturn.
– CEO x2: How Ian managed 80+ hour work weeks to run both BuildFire and Laundry Sauce at the same time.
– Betting Big on Detergents: How Ian reverse-engineered his financial goals by choosing a high-LTV, non-discretionary DTC category.
– Leveraging AI: Why Ian b...
Rob Fraser: Navigating a Full Rebrand & Burnout to Build an 8-Figure Sock Brand
Rob Fraser is a former Canadian national team cyclist and current founder and CEO of Outway, a fast-growing DTC sock brand doing 8 figures in annual revenue.
Expect to hear about:
– Pro Cycling to Start-Up Life: How Rob’s athlete mindset helped him build a business from scratch.
– Co-Founder Buyout: Why Rob took on $150K in debt to buy out his cofounder and regain control of his company.
– Name Change Crisis: Being forced to change his company's name under legal pressure, and sprinting on a full rebrand in 6 months.
– Burnout: Ro...
Taylor Offer: Building a $50M Brand, Burning Out, and Coming Back Stronger
Taylor Offer is the co-founder and former CEO of apparel brand Feat, doing over $50M in lifetime sales, and is now building his new startup in stealth, backed by a16z.
Expect to hear about:
– College Hustle: Launching Feat from campus with $300 and a pop-up table.
– Betting on Influencers Early: Moving to LA and striking deals with Logan Paul, Aly Raisman, and The Chainsmokers.
– Hitting Burnout: Making the difficult choice to sell a majority stake and step down as CEO after 10 years at Feat.
– Finding Himself Again: A healing...
Adam Schwartz: How Selling His First Company to a Competitor Led to His New Startup, Parable
Adam Schwartz co-founded TeePublic (acquired by Redbubble) and is now co-founder and CEO of Parable, helping enterprise orgs uncover and fix operational inefficiencies through AI-powered analysis.
Expect to hear about:
– Bootstrapping to $20M+: Why Adam focused entirely on supply-side growth at the start of TeePublic—and how it quietly paid off.
– The Exit Decision: How he knew it was time to sell, and why growing “too big” can kill your shot at getting acquired.
– Enterprise Inefficiency at Scale: What Adam saw on public company boards that shocked him—and sparked his idea for P...
Michael Perry: From Food Stamps to a Shopify Exit—And Starting Over Again
Michael Perry (known as "MP") is the founder of Kit (sold to Shopify in 2016) and founder and CEO of Maple – a platform that enables parents to share and manage family responsibilities.
Expect to hear about:
– From Debt to Acquisition: MP’s journey from food stamps and $70K debt to selling his 3rd company, Kit, for millions.
– Hard Truths About Founder Life: MP's candid take on the real costs of entrepreneurship and how it's reshaped his views on time, money, and ambition.
– The Mission Behind Maple: His vision to transform parenting culture in...
Ryan Beltran: How He Scaled his Watch Brand to $100M in Lifetime Sales
Ryan Beltran is the co-founder and CEO of Original Grain, a watch brand that creates unique watches with reclaimed wood, metal, and other materials.
Expect to hear about:
– Breakout Success: How Ryan turned a $10k Kickstarter goal into $390k in 30 days to launch his business.
– Scaling to $100M: The highs, lows, and lessons learned on the road to 9-figure lifetime revenue.
– Growth Tactics: Ryan's advice on building a brand identity, driving LTV, and more.
– Partnership Signals: How to spot brand collaborations that actually boost your revenue.
– Big Bets...
Jacob Peters: From Hospital Bed to Health Tech CEO – Building the Brand to Fix Healthcare
Jacob Peters is the co-founder and CEO of Superpower, a health "super-app" for tracking and improving your health that just raised a $30M Series A.
Expect to hear about:
– The Story Behind Superpower: How his mom’s chronic illness and Jacob's own near-death hospitalization inspired him to start Superpower.
– $30M Series A: Jacob's plan to deploy this capital to put an AI doctor in everyone's pockets within 5 years.
– Building a 150K Waitlist: How creative drops, referral loops, and a viral hoodie campaign helped Superpower explode pre-launch.
– Creating a Movement...
Lily Walla: Why “Delusional Conviction” Is the Entrepreneur’s Superpower
Lily Walla is the founder of SPOTS (sold in 2023) and today is the founder and CEO of Auggie, a community and marketplace platform for parents.
Expect to hear about:
– The Founder's Mindset: Lily’s belief in “delusional conviction” as essential for startup success.
– Funding & Growth: How she raised nearly $4M for Auggie and her insights on bootstrapping vs. VC.
– Scaling in Hyper-Growth: Tactics for building systems fast and succeeding in saturated markets.
– Balancing Life & Leadership: Lily's reflections on navigating motherhood while leading a company.
Matt Meeker: From Founder to Rescuer – Saving Bark from a $200M Loss
Matt Meeker is the co-founder of Bark and Meetup.com, and currently serves as Executive Chairman and CEO of Bark.
Expect to hear about:
– Turning Around a $200M Loss: How Matt led a major turnaround as CEO, including tough but necessary changes.
– IPO and Fundraising Advice: Why he urges caution on going public and warns against raising capital too early.
– Hiring the Right Leaders: Matt's 495-day search for a CFO and the one quality he values most.
– Customer Experience Lessons: The costly mistake of compromising on quality and what it...
High Stakes Growth Trailer
The co-founders of Jetset – Forest Bronzan and Leah Lloyd – launch the High Stakes Growth podcast!
