Shows / Founder Portraits
Founder Portraits
Ambition, pressure, taste, instinct. FP decodes how the best builders actually think and decide; the gut-feel behind the companies that work. Long-form founder conversations, hosted by Christianne, a former comms & media banker who traded the deal desk for the mic. Formerly GUT with Christianne (CC).
Episodes
- Founder Portraits
Venus Rose: What Walking Away From Medicine Cost Her
Venus Rose, Founder: Haus of Creators Every weekend she boarded a 12-hour night bus from Greensboro to Chinatown. Her grandfather had no idea. Venus Rose grew…
Founder PortraitsAlana Picov: Every Problem Is Mine Now
The night before Good Greed's launch party, Alana Picov tasted the first production run. It was too sour, and the cherry flavour came out wet and sticky. Her…
Founder PortraitsCam Stajer: The $20 Logo That Became an Olympic Sponsor
He cold emailed the Olympic committee with no connections and no reply for weeks. Three months later, his company had exclusive rights as Team Canada's…
Founder PortraitsIlias Anwar: His Company Died in One Night
Ilias Anwar is the founder New York's startup world can't stop talking about; the one who throws 16 events in a week, treats every room like a king, and once…
Founder PortraitsBrian Schardt: He Killed 250K Users to Bet on Nancy Pelosi
He was 24, eating at Michelin-star restaurants in New York. He'd never been more miserable. Brian Schardt was Director of Engineering at Warner Music Group…
Founder PortraitsWhy a 'Safe' Job Is the Most Dangerous Bet | Ex-Big Law Founder, Sabih Siddiqi
Sabih Siddiqi had the golden handcuffs: big law, the prestige, the paycheck, and walked away to build Irys (formerly Iqidis), a legal-AI company he calls…
Founder PortraitsHe Quit a Top Ad Agency to Bet on a Category That Didn't Exist | Rei Lalo, TRIHARD
If you've been telling yourself you'll start the thing "when you're ready," this episode is for you. Rei Lalo had a stable job at McCann — one of the biggest…
Founder PortraitsHedge Fund to Founder: Building Lasso in 11 Months, Clarke Pennington
Clarke Pennington spent a decade in finance: investment banking, Columbia MBA, a consumer hedge fund. Then he left to build Lasso, a better-for-you gelatin cup…
Founder PortraitsVP at BlackRock to Quitting With No Plan | Kirsten Breidenbruch, Wellth by Kirsten
Kirsten Breidenbruch spent a decade at BlackRock. She made VP. She was making great money. From the outside, she had everything figured out. From the inside…
Founder PortraitsGeorge Foreman: Reinvention, Identity, and Letting the Old You Die
George Foreman built an identity the way founders build companies. Brutal focus, no room for weakness. The problem was that the man underneath was deeply…
Founder PortraitsMarcus Aurelius: How to Lead Through Collapse
Content warning: this episode contains mentions of death and mature themes. In the winter of 169 AD, the most powerful man on earth was sitting in a freezing…
Founder PortraitsArsh Toor: Her Dad Would Have Killed for the Job She Quit
Arsh Toor's dad moved from India to Canada as an engineer and ended up taking whatever work he could find to support a family on a single income. The message…
Founder PortraitsBeethoven: The Man Who Couldn't Hear His Own Masterpiece
Content warning: this episode discusses suicide, childhood abuse, and mental health. Vienna, May 7th, 1824. A 53 year old man in an ill-fitting green coat is…
Founder PortraitsMaya Angelou: How to Find Your Voice
Content warning: this episode includes descriptions of childhood sexual abuse, trauma and violence, racism, abandonment, and mental health struggles. In 1993…