Shows / The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How do companies reinvent themselves without tearing apart what made them successful? In The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna examine real-world cases of businesses that changed direction under pressure—and survived. Each episode dissects a single pivot: the strategic trigger, the financial calculus, the organizational cost. Lucas brings the journalist's instinct for numbers and timelines; Luna pushes back with operational skepticism, demanding to know who lost their job, which product line got…
Episodes
The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive DisruptionHow a Family Farm Pivoted to Vertical Farming
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the pivot of a family-owned farm in California's Central Valley that transitioned from traditional row crops to…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Tiny Train Operator Pivoted to Freight and Won
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore the unlikely turnaround of a small regional railroad that nearly went bankrupt in the 1970s. By…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Nintendo Pivoted From Playing Cards to Gaming
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore one of the most enduring pivots in business history: Nintendo's evolution from a 19th-century…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Grameen Bank Pivoted to Microfinance
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Muhammad Yunus turned a bold idea—lending tiny amounts to the poorest women in Bangladesh—into…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Shopify Pivoted From Online Store Builder to Full Commerce OS
When Shopify started in 2004, it was a snowboard shop's attempt to sell boards online. Two decades later, it powers millions of merchants, from tiny Etsy…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Swiss Watchmaker Pivoted from Quartz to Smart
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna dissect the remarkable turnaround of a Swiss watchmaker that faced extinction during the quartz crisis and…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Tiny Denim Maker Beat Fast Fashion Giants
In Episode 166 of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how a small, family-owned denim manufacturer — Tender Co. — survived two decades of fast-fashion…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Coffee Chain Pivoted From Cafes to a B2B Platform
When the pandemic dried up foot traffic at Blue Bottle's cafes, the specialty coffee chain didn't just pivot to selling beans online — it quietly…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Small Town Bank Beat the Megabanks
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore a remarkable business pivot that most people have never heard of: a small, community-focused bank…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Norsk Hydro Rebuilt Itself as a Battery Metals Power
In 2007, Norsk Hydro was a Norwegian aluminium giant with a legacy dating back to 1905 and a portfolio that included oil and gas. It was hardly a natural…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Family-Owned Brewery Pivoted to Non-Alcoholic Beer
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how a century-old family brewery, once known for its traditional lagers, pivoted to non-alcoholic…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Zoom Pivoted From Video Calls to AI Workspace
In episode 161 of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Zoom, the company that became synonymous with video conferencing during the pandemic, is now…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Airbnb Pivoted From Airbeds to a Global Travel Platform
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Airbnb transformed from a last-ditch airbed rental idea during a design conference in 2007…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Burberry Pivoted From Check to Luxury Digital
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Burberry, a 160-year-old British luxury house, reinvented itself for the digital age. When…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Patagonia Pivoted to Save the Planet
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how outdoor apparel company Patagonia underwent a radical pivot in 2022 when founder Yvon…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Garmin Pivoted From GPS Gadgets to Wearables
Garmin started in 1989 making GPS units for pilots and hikers. Thirty years later, it's a major player in smartwatches and fitness wearables, quietly…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Netflix Pivoted From DVDs to Streaming Dominance
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna examine how Netflix transformed from a DVD-by-mail service into the world's leading streaming…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Duolingo Turns Language Learning Into a Game
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Duolingo transformed from a small Pittsburgh startup into a global language-learning…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How IKEA Pivoted From Catalog Giant to Circular Retailer
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how IKEA, the world's largest furniture retailer, is pivoting from a linear…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Domino's Pivoted From Pizza to a Tech Company
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Domino's Pizza transformed itself from a struggling pizza chain into a data-driven tech…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How LEGO Built a Comeback from the Brink of Bankruptcy
In episode 152 of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna dissect one of the most dramatic turnarounds in modern business history: LEGO's near-collapse in 2003…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Bombas Pivoted From Socks to Social Mission
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Bombas, a sock company founded in 2013, pivoted from a simple e-commerce idea to a…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Aetna Rebuilt Itself Around Preventive Care
In this milestone 150th episode of The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna explore how Aetna, a 170-year-old insurance giant, pivoted from a…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Family Office Pivoted From Wealth to Climate Investing
When the heirs of a nineteenth-century mining fortune realized their portfolio was tied to the very industries heating the planet, they didn't just…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Spotify Pivoted From Music Streaming to Podcasting Powerhouse
In Episode 148 of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna examine Spotify's strategic pivot from a music streaming service to a podcasting powerhouse. They…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Nvidia Pivoted From Gaming to AI
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Nvidia, once known primarily for gaming graphics cards, pivoted to become the backbone of the…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Nintendo Pivoted From Playing Cards to Video Game Empire
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore Nintendo's remarkable journey from a 19th-century playing card company to a global video game…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Microsoft Pivoted from Windows to Cloud
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore one of the most consequential corporate turnarounds of the digital age: how Microsoft shed its…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Fujifilm Pivoted from Photographic Film to Medical Imaging and Cosmetics
When digital cameras eviscerated the film industry, Fujifilm didn't just survive — it reinvented itself. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how the…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Shopify Pivoted From Snowboards to E-Commerce Empire
In 2004, Tobias Lütke wanted to sell snowboards online. Dissatisfied with existing e-commerce platforms, he built his own — and soon realized the software was…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Twitter Pivoted from a Failed Podcasting App
In 2005, a startup called Odeo was betting big on podcasting. Then Apple built podcasting into iTunes, crushing Odeo's market in a single day. The company…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Herman Miller Pivoted to the Home Office Revolution
In 2020, Herman Miller saw commercial office furniture sales plunge 40 percent. Instead of waiting for companies to re-open cubicles, the century-old…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Marvel Pivoted From Bankruptcy to Movie Empire
In 1996, Marvel Entertainment filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. A decade later, it was the most powerful force in Hollywood. This episode traces the pivot: how…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Encyclopaedia Britannica Survived the Death of Print
In 2012, Encyclopaedia Britannica printed its last 32-volume set. The 250-year-old reference giant had to reinvent itself or disappear. This episode dives into…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Leica Defied Digital Disruption by Going Premium
In 2012, Leica Camera was teetering on the edge. The digital revolution had made film obsolete, and the German camera maker was losing money. But instead of…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How John Deere Pivoted From Tractors to Data-Driven Farming
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how 180-year-old John Deere transformed from a traditional farm equipment manufacturer into a data analytics and…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How The New York Times Pivoted to Digital Dominance
In this episode, we examine how a 170-year-old newspaper reinvented itself for the digital age. The New York Times faced existential crisis in the early 2010s…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Adobe Pivoted from Desktop Software to Cloud Subscription
In 2013, Adobe made a radical decision: stop selling its flagship Creative Suite as a perpetual license and shift entirely to a cloud subscription model. At…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 50-Year-Old Flooring Company Pivoted to Carpet Recycling
Interface, the global flooring manufacturer, faced a crisis in the 1990s when founder Ray Anderson had an epiphany about sustainability. This episode examines…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Hyundai Pivoted From Cheap Cars to Tech Titan
Hyundai used to be the punchline of the auto industry — cheap cars that rusted in the driveway. Today it's the world's third-largest automaker by…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 50-Year-Old Car Rental Company Pivoted to Subscription
Episode 132 of The Pivot Podcast explores how a traditional car rental company with 50 years of history reinvented itself as a subscription service. Lucas and…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a Nuclear Submarine Changed Its Mission Mid-Deployment
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore the remarkable story of USS San Francisco, a Los Angeles-class submarine that suffered a…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 50-Year-Old Coffee Chain Survived the Collapse of Breakfast
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into one of the most dramatic corporate turnarounds of the 2020s: how a major coffee chain—facing a…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Domino's Pivoted From Pizza Chain to Tech Company
Domino's Pizza was on the brink of collapse in 2008. Its stock had fallen to $3 per share, customers hated the product, and the business model was broken…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How LEGO Built a Turnaround from the Brick Up
In 2003, LEGO was bleeding $1.8 million a day. By 2015, it became the world's largest toy company. This episode unpacks the specific, counterintuitive…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Harley-Davidson Survived the Motorcycle Decline
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how Harley-Davidson pivoted from relying on aging baby boomers to attracting a younger, more diverse ridership. They…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 50-Year-Old Appliance Maker Survived a Trade War
In 2018, Whirlpool faced a perfect storm: Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminum raised raw material costs by $350 million, while rival Samsung and LG…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Netflix Pivoted From DVDs to Streaming to Global Studio
Netflix started as a DVD-by-mail service that nearly went bankrupt before pivoting to streaming — and then again to producing its own content. In this episode…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 70-Year-Old Guitar Maker Survived the Digital Age
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna examine how Fender, the iconic guitar manufacturer founded in 1946, navigated the collapse of instrument…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Fujifilm Survived the Collapse of Film Photography
When digital cameras killed the film industry, Fujifilm faced extinction. This episode dives deep into how the Japanese company reinvented itself by leveraging…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Crocs Pivoted From Ugly Clog to Comeback Icon
In Episode 122 of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Crocs — once a punchline mocked as an ugly plastic clog — engineered one of the most unlikely…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How De Beers Pivoted From Diamonds to Synthetic Gems
In Episode 121 of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how De Beers, once the undisputed king of natural diamonds, pivoted in response to the rise of…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Lego Built a Turnaround from the Brick Up
In 2003, Lego was hours from bankruptcy. By 2005, new CEO Jørgen Vig Knudstorp had cut the product line by 70%, sold off theme parks, and refocused on the core…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 150-Year-Old Seed Company Pivoted to Data Analytics
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how a 150-year-old seed company, Pioneer (a Corteva brand), pivoted from selling corn and soybean…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 50-Year-Old Retailer Pivoted to Private Label Dominance
In this episode, Lucas and Luna dive into the story of how a mid-tier grocery chain with 400 stores transformed itself by betting big on private-label brands…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Chewy Pivoted From Pet Supplies to a Relationship Business
When Ryan Cohen founded Chewy in 2011, he wasn't trying to build a better pet store. He was trying to build a company that made pet owners feel understood…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 150-Year-Old Brewery Pivoted to Non-Alcoholic Beer
When Heineken launched Heineken 0.0 in 2017, many in the industry scoffed. Non-alcoholic beer was a niche, bland product associated with recovering alcoholics…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How Nintendo Pivoted From Playing Cards to Gaming Giant
In this episode of The Pivot Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Nintendo, founded in 1889 as a playing card company, survived multiple near-death experiences…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 115-Year-Old Watch Brand Survived the Digital Revolution
In Episode 114, Lucas and Luna examine how a 115-year-old Swiss watch brand — founded in 1911 — not only survived the quartz crisis of the 1970s but thrived in…
- The Pivot Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Change Direction and Survive Disruption
How a 100-Year-Old Tire Company Pivoted to Rubber Plantations
This episode of The Pivot Podcast tells the story of Michelin—the French tire giant founded in 1889—and its unexpected pivot in the early 2000s into managing…