Footnotes: Recent Episodes
Pendleton Street Business Advisors
Highlighting stories that need to be told to encourage entrepreneurs, business owners and leaders who are making a difference. It's not about the glam and glitz in these processes, but more about the "footnote"...
When Herbert Drayton III was looking for investors to fund promising black-owned businesses, he made a shocking discovery. There was not a single majority-black venture capital firm in the entire state of South Carolina. In Episode 55 of Footnotes, we learn how Drayton built the state's first black-owned VC firm, dedicated entirely to supporting BIPOC and women-owned businesses with not only the funds they need to succeed, but also the relationships, resources, and advice that makes a promising idea become a profitable reality. This episode is full of actionable advice that's perfect for any entrepreneur, whether you've been in business for years, or you're still considering the risk of a brand new idea.
In Episode 54 of Footnotes, we check in with the Mayor of Columbia, SC, Daniel Rickenmann, after one year on the job. He explains how he promotes the sharing of ideas and resources for the good of the community, reducing barriers to conversations and giving everyone who wants to engage a voice. He shows us how we can make Columbia's assets visible and accessible by connecting our amazing neighborhoods and improving the quality of life for our residents. Listen in to learn about everything exciting going on in Columbia today, and get excited for what’s coming tomorrow.
Episode 45 of Footnotes turned into a masterclass on building and marketing an experience that provides people with what they’ve always loved: community, fresh air, and, of course, shopping. Emile DeFelice is the visionary behind Soda City Market, a weekly event that’s become synonymous with the City of Columbia in South Carolina. He brings some unconventional wisdom to the table, encouraging us to rethink marketing, partnerships, and tackling problems in business. From “you attitude” to the “Cracker Barrel effect,” he gives us practical advice that's ready to implement. If you love Soda City, we guarantee you’ll enjoy this inside look at an event that’s helped revitalize the downtown we’ve come to know and love.
We're thrilled to sit down with Jenn Randall-Collins, co-founder and CEO of Proof Alcohol Ice Cream, a visionary company that combines two things everyone loves - ice cream and alcohol. Episode 44 takes us on a journey from a single ice cream machine on Shop Road to filling international shipments and stocking hundreds of grocery stores with a product so unique that it created a whole new market. Jenn teaches us to take off the blinders that keep us from believing in game-changing products, showing us the perseverance and wise leadership it takes to create something brand new, for the first time.
Join us for Episode 34, where we share a pilsner with Scott and Darryl, co-founders of Steel Hands Brewing, to discuss a 120-billion-dollar industry – selling beer. They teach us how to grow new local markets to meet the rising demand of a fast-paced industry with a constantly changing pallet. They’re not only masters of brewing—they’re masters of strategic expansion, predicting customer demand and national trends while balancing all the moving parts of running a production brewery across multiple states. It’s been a challenging journey, made successful by foresight and wise business practices, but most of all, passion. They’ve got great advice to share about creating a unique product that can break into tough, insular retail spaces. If you’ve got a dream product you want to bring to life (or if you just love beer) make sure to listen in.
In Episode 42, we hear from Bryan Murdaugh, co-founder and CEO of Fivable, a custom software development firm that makes businesses' software dreams a reality. He introduces us to a brand new garage-band business model that goes against the grain, building software from the ground up to bring big ideas to life for businesses in diverse industries, connected by the desire to make things a little easier. We discuss how to create meaning at an organizational and individual level, so businesses can spend “less time computing, and more time being human."
In Episode 41, we meet with our first business run by two brothers, Austin and Thomas Rhodes, founders of Rhodes Branding. Their work is inspired and guided by their shared childhood in rural South Carolina, an upbringing that gave them the values that inform their unique approach to business: work hard, stay humble, and appreciate what you have. They teach us to take time for ourselves, live every moment with kindness, and most of all, build a business that creates a better world, one that helps others realize their dreams.
Some of the best ideas start in the most unconventional places. For Dr. Jack Neil, the technology business that would change his life (and healthcare) began in a notebook on a flight home from London. In Episode 40, we discuss how Dr. Neil combined a career in the medical field with a love for everything tech to co-found Hank A.I., a software company that helps reduce administrative inefficiency in the health care industry. He gives us no-nonsense advice about self-branding, finding an honest coach you can trust, and believing in your ideas, even when facing rejection.
In Episode 39 we sit down with Lance Brown, co-founder of Rhino Medical Supply, who inspires us to find opportunity in crisis. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lance and his partners recognized a crucial blind spot in the medical supply chain. Drawing from a unique set of skills built in their previous positions, from medical sales to merchant services, they developed a transparent sales model that experienced rapid, stable growth in only two years. Using his expertise in team-building and fostering relationships, Lance demonstrates how clarity and purpose can help you achieve your vision, even in times of upheaval.
CEO Ben Rex has taken the community building and tech expertise of Cyberwoven and applied it to Create Opportunity, an initiative dedicated to providing underserved populations with clear pathways to jobs in the knowledge economy. In Episode 38, we discuss how skills training and apprenticeships developed through partnerships between companies and schools can fill the chronic undersupply of tech workers in the region, improving the economic and social health of the Midlands in the process. If you’re a business owner, make sure to watch until the end to learn how you can get involved!
In Episode 37 of Footnotes, Dr. Kassy Alia Ray, the Executive Director of Serve & Connect, challenges us to find the courage to listen and rewrite the divisive narratives that keep our communities from thriving. We discuss how she took personal trauma and grief and transformed it into a nationally recognized non-profit that builds relationships between law enforcement and their communities. In one of our most thought-provoking and urgent episodes to date, Kassy shows us that if we focus on the common ground between us, we can prevent future violence and build safe, united communities together.
Lelia King, the Executive Director of Build Carolina, joins us in Episode 36 of Footnotes. We explore South Carolina's landscape for cultivating new technology talent in the state, but we also uncover Lelia's own personal experience with boldly moving into the unknown – a new organization, new skillsets, new service models, new operations. All the while, a personal mission to solve unmet needs in the marketplace remains her guiding business underpinning.
We are thrilled to be joined by the founding team of VentureSouth in Footnotes Episode 35. We explore the world of angel investing, high-growth startups, rapid scaling, and the nitty gritty of building a multi-faceted operation. Listen in on some of the highs and lows of real ownership – perhaps best distilled by our guests signoff, "Make money. Have fun. Do good."
Our guest in this Episode 34 is Lauren Taylor – CEO and Founder of multiple real estate ventures in both the for-profit and non-profit spaces, including Realty Haven and Haven Home. John and Lauren discuss the nuances of entering new industries with laser focus, market-driving financial variables, and the interplay between business and positive social outcomes. We also learn about Lauren's dog... named "REIT".
Nell Fuller the Owner and Founder of femme x joins us on today’s episode of Footnotes. We discuss her vision and dreams for the co-working, social club, and why building this community with female entrepreneurs in mind is so important. We talk about some hard topics, the difference between having an idea and being ready to start a business, and how the drive to help others has made all this possible. Check it out!
Today we're joined by Stephanie Vokral, the Founder of Critical Transitions Wealth Advisors and the Financial Knot. We discuss with Stephanie how she came to found a financial advisory practice that specializes in helping her clients, especially women, navigate one of the most difficult processes some people may encounter in their lives. Check it out!
Dr. Brandon Vaughn, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Vertex, Physical Therapy joins us on today's Footnotes. In this episode we get to hear his thoughts on running a business, doing business in a caring profession, and learning how things should be done from your experiences.
On today's episode of Footnotes we're talking to Anna Edmonds, the Publisher and Managing Editor of The F-Suite Magazine, a print and digital magazine focused on women in business and telling their stories. We discuss the work she's doing and some serious topics, including equity in the world and the workplace, Imposter Syndrome, and so much more! Check it out!
Today we’re pleased to have Robert Gilbert, Principal and COO of DxTEL, joining us on Footnotes. At DxTel one their missions is to help increase access to rural broadband internet service. While access has always been important, these needs have been highlighted by the pandemic. Watch to find out why this access is vital, and how DxTEL is stepping in to help resolve the barriers.
This time on Footnotes we're pleased to welcome Bert Sorin of Sorinex Exercise Equipment: We discuss how his life and his business intersect, how he's been taking care of their multi-generational business, and where they're going next.
Join us for our new Footnotes as we talk about learning, trucking, problem solving, and everything in between! You don't want to miss this one!
Please join us in welcoming the team from Validide. Learn how a project brought them together, and follow along as we discuss what they're doing, who they're doing it for, and how blockchain is going to become part of our lives.
Footnotes is back with Carl Blackstone the CEO of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce!
How can your area capitalize on growth and making use of the resources it already has?
How does work from home play into the future of talent capital and talent retention?
What conclusions can we take from census data and how should we use that information?
Listen to find out!
Primal Gourmet's Founder and Owner Greg Martin joins us to discuss why keeping local is key, how being part of a community helps everyone, and so much more!
Join us as we welcome Tyler Robertson, the CEO of Diesel Laptops. Our conversation with Tyler covers scrimping and saving in the garage, to growing to over $50 million in revenue, we discuss it all!
Join us in welcoming Erinn Rowe, the CEO of Harvest Hope Food Bank. We discuss viewing an organization from different roles, defining food insecurity (it encompasses more than you think!), leading and working by values, and so much more. Listen and see!
Today we are joined by Dr. Hitesh Tolani, the Founder of Virtudent. We have loved discussing being the recipient of generosity, transformative ideas, understanding what is happening outside your sphere, and being a catalyst for change.
Join us as we sit down with the owners of Hotel Trundle, Rita Patel and Marcus Munse, partners in business and in life. We discuss weathering the storms of relationships and business, treating guests to your business like guests to your home and how plans shift as your business grows and changes.
Peter Shand, President and CEO of BDC helps demystify the process of SBA lending, and what those funds can help small business owners accomplish. Whether you're buying a business or growing one, learning about these programs is worthwhile!
Colin Griffin is the CEO and Chief Engineer of Krumware. Listen as we discuss that growing your business involves growing the people inside it, how progress is a process and a problem is only a problem until you solve it.
Today we're talking to John Carrington, the Founder and CEO of ZVerse. Listen, as we discuss how his company went from helping other people make their ideas into reality, to being in the national spotlight with unique, necessary, equipment for the pandemic, and beyond.
Join partners John Barnes and Matt Morley as they discuss what this year has brought and taken, how it changes how we look at our jobs, run our businesses, and use our data to keep moving forward.
Join us as we sit down with Ellen Weaver, the President and CEO of Palmetto Promise. We discuss redefining a win, setting up a parade for someone else to lead, and respecting people even if you disagree.
Listen as Brad Allen and Mary Lane Sloan discuss how knowing your market and treating your employees and clients like people who matter, pays dividends.
If you knew you'd have to give up 400 Saturdays to realize a dream, would you do it? Nick Hauser did, and we all love him for it. Find out how 400 Saturdays made Indah an “overnight” success…
Recorded LIVE during the 2020 Growth Summit: Dom Mjartan, CEO of Optus Bank, has a mission to create equal access to financial services and asset building opportunities for all…
Caroline Crowder to joins us to let you know that you belong in the room, that you should borrow experience from mentors while making your own choices, and that giving up is not an option.
What positions a business owner to see their company through a crisis? Laura Boccanfuso has done it and come out the other side better than before. Join us, as she shares these insights.
Back by popular demand, Greg Hilton continues his conversation about creating community and the people, that make it whole.
Greg Hilton knows about creating community, not just the place, but the people, that make it whole.
Jack Pringle joins us to discuss how habit forming is in many ways more important than goal setting. Good habits achieve planned goals.
Ben Green knows that with all the unrest in our country, the last thing we need is tunnel vision. Understanding is the key to better decisions and more impactful conversations.
Our interview with Frank Cason about building a business all the way from an idea on a sheet of paper to projects that you can see and visit--and all feedback is NOT created equal.
Business owners and partners John Barnes and Matt Morley discuss how the crisis has made founders look into new corners of their business for tools and insights they haven't necessarily needed to use before.