Founderology

39 Episodes

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The Big Dilla: How Maggie Gordon, co-founder of Dilla’s Quesadillas, built a new brand category

2026-10-2134:56

Turning an appetizer into the star of the show Most people see a quesadilla as an appetizer. Maggie and Kyle saw a national brand. Rather than compete in crowded categories, they committed to creating a segment of their own. Maggie explains the power of a concept that focuses intensely on one menu item. How their focus drives speed, consistency and the guest experienceWhy one menu item is not a limitation and actually creates a multiplier effectThe discipline behind one tortilla and one chees...

Bloomin’ leadership lessons with Tim Gannon, co-Founder of Outback Steakhouse

2026-10-0648:49

In the restaurant industry, it’s easy to see brands you’ve known your whole life and never know how they actually started. That’s why I love working with Founders. The Founder story is the catalyst, the fuel that takes an idea and makes it a reality. Twenty, 30, 40 years later, everyone takes the brand for granted in the landscape of the industry. What sometimes gets lost are the early Founder days where we learn what sets great brands apart. That’s what makes this episode of “Built to Breakt...

What is driving Kona Ice’s success?

2026-09-2240:40

It started with the worst ice cream truck experience a parent could imagine: broken down, smoke billowing, and Tony's three-year-old daughter still running toward it. Where everyone else saw a truck to avoid, Tony saw an American icon waiting to be rebuilt. How does a Founder turn a moment most parents would rather forget into the largest food truck business in America? Inside this episode, hear Tony speak about his most critical decisions: The $3,000 franchise royalty he has NEVER raised, ev...

How Steele Smiley sold a fitness empire to bet on healthy fast food

2026-09-0238:31

Steele shared with me more than once that his answer would be controversial, and he was true to his word. He is direct, generous with what he has learned, and unwilling to pretend any of it was easy. His own start proves it. A noncompete locked him out of fitness after incredible success. The first expert he called said restaurants take a different kind of person. He ignored the expert and opened CRISP & GREEN anyway. Inside this episode, Steele takes you inside three decisions he had to ...

Real talk, damn good biscuits and growing a national chain

2026-08-1850:07

Lauren Coulter is co-Founder and chief biscuit eater of Biscuit Belly, the Louisville, Kentucky, brunch brand she built with her husband and co-Founder, Chad Coulter. They are two pharmacists who, by her own description, had no business opening restaurants. Today the brand runs 16 restaurants across seven states, generating more than $23 million in systemwide revenue, and has been franchising since 2020. Lauren is direct, funny and completely unguarded about what it has taken to build Biscuit...

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