The Advantage with Mike Wystrach

Epizódok

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  I made $200K talking to strangers | Josh Suggs, StreetTalk 23.09.2026 1ó

  Josh Suggs made $200,000 in profit his first summer walking up to strangers in New York parks with a microphone. No website, no personal brand, no connections, no investors. He was sleeping on a friend's couch in an apartment with no Wi-Fi, so every night he carried an SD card to an Apple Store and emailed a public Google Drive link to his one editor in Croatia. He had a 2.1 GPA and spent high school in special ed, in the same house as a twin sister who went to the University of Chicago on a full ride. StreetTalk is now more than 100 people and eight figures of revenue.This episode is presented by Proppel. Hire A-player marketing and ops talent from the US and LATAM, and get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageFollow Mike on Instagram: @mikewystrach — https://instagram.com/mikewystrachJosh breaks down the offer he cold-pitched to brand founders on Twitter, the phone call that got his mother's blessing to leave Syracuse, and the merger that made it an agency.What you'll learn in this episode:◼ The Westport Front Porch play: free lessons traded for posts in a town's mom Facebook group, then the same play on founders◼ The B2B influencer read: Ridge's Sean Frank is not a wallet CEO, he is followed by 100,000 other consumer CEOs◼ The $5,000 offer: ten strangers reacting to your product, edited, ready to run, sold with no audience of his own◼ The reps moat: 20,000 of these ads, 30,000 steps a day, and why a client cannot send a replacement◼ His team, my offer: the Missouri merger that took two people to a $3 million run rate in three months◼ The Media Mafia earnings call: eight founders under 23 reporting numbers monthly, $3.75 million last monthIf you are young, broke and convinced you need a credential before you can start, this one is about the reps nobody else will do.CHAPTERS0:00 $200K Talking to Strangers3:33 $45,000 Teaching Kids Tennis6:21 $5,000 for Ten Interviews8:54 Uploading at the Apple Store12:34 My Moat Is 20,000 Ads15:42 Mom's Friend Said Drop Out19:50 His Team, My Offer21:14 "I'm Why You Dropped Out"27:19 He Owned the Magic Castle35:32 A $3,000 Retainer at Fifteen41:15 Collect Nos, Not Yeses43:57 One-Way and Two-Way Doors54:12 The Media Mafia Earnings Call56:49 You Are a Time Billionaire59:57 Final Thoughts and Wrap UpCONNECT WITH JOSH SUGGSStreetTalk → https://streettalk.comX → https://x.com/joshsuggssAll episodes → https://mikewystrach.com/podcastPRESENTED BY PROPPELYour business is only as good as the people in it, and finding real A players is one of the hardest things you'll do. Proppel specializes in marketing and operations talent, placing top people from the US, LATAM and beyond.Whether you need video editors, graphic designers, or media buyers from LATAM, or managers, directors, heads of department and VPs in the US, they'll help you build the team you actually need to grow.It's all performance-based. You pay a one-off fee only once you actually hire someone, so no retainers and no ongoing costs. Every hire comes with a three-month guarantee.Get 10% off your first hire → https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantage
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  She Got 1,000 No's Now Her Company Does $250M A Year | Katerina Schneider 16.09.2026 1ó

  Kat Schneider counted a 1,000 no's before Ritual worked. She was a venture partner running 70 companies for Troy Carter when she got pregnant, went looking for a prenatal vitamin, and could not find one that would tell her where the ingredients came from. She quit 4 months pregnant. One of the best known investors in LA told her to her face she could start a business or a family but there was no way in hell she was doing both. She has three daughters and a company that did more than $250 million in revenue in 2024.This episode is presented by Proppel. https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageFollow Mike on Instagram: https://instagram.com/mikewystrachWhat you'll learn in this episode:• Why she held back a finished product customers were actively asking for• The proof stack under a single SKU: traceable supply chain, USP verification that under 1% of vitamins carry, a university clinical study, a patent• Why this business had to raise venture money when most supplement brands should not• The advice she forgot for two years and had to relearn: make yourself replaceable, then do not step back in• Why waiting for a co-founder is the excuse she hears from women founders and almost never from men• What she does with a no now• The rule of three she uses to kill the guilt about what is not getting done this week• Why every generational company was built by somebody with no experience in the categoryIf you are building something in a category that does not trust you yet, or sitting on a second product you are not sure you have earned the right to launch, this one is about the sequencing almost nobody gets right.CHAPTERS0:00 1,000 No's, Then $250M1:44 $50 and a Suitcase4:54 Running 70 Companies at 309:05 The Label Told Her Nothing10:13 Quitting Four Months Pregnant11:39 "Business or Family, Not Both"14:44 Phil Knight Was an Accountant18:38 His Business, Her "Project"19:29 Pumping on a Broken Escalator22:07 When You Need Venture Money23:16 $5M on Clinical Studies24:47 One Product for Two Years26:19 She Sat on the Prenatal27:56 The Product Is the Moat28:36 Build for the Skeptic29:20 One Brand Changed the Law34:46 $250M Feels Like Nothing39:17 A Decade In, a Coach40:55 Make Yourself Replaceable47:22 The Co-Founder Cop-Out49:09 Why a No Excites Her51:42 Three No's, Then the Check54:49 The Rule of Three58:47 Final Thoughts and Wrap UpCONNECT WITH KAT SCHNEIDERRitual → https://ritual.comLinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/katerinamarkovFOLLOW THE ADVANTAGEAll episodes → https://mikewystrach.com/podcastPRESENTED BY PROPPELProppel places A-player marketing and operations talent from the US, LATAM and beyond: video editors, graphic designers and media buyers through to managers, directors and VPs. Performance-based, a one-off fee only once you actually hire, no retainers, no ongoing costs, and every hire carries a three-month guarantee.Get 10% off your first hire → https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantage
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  How to take the leap from corporate to entrepreneurship | Addison LaBonte 09.09.2026 56p

  Addison LaBonte is the founder of Sweet Addison's, a gluten-free dessert brand she started in her apartment kitchen in January 2024 and still owns outright. She built the customers first and the company second.This episode is presented by Proppel. Hire A-player marketing and ops talent from the US and LATAM, and get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageFollow Mike on Instagram: https://instagram.com/mikewystrachA doctor told her she could have surgery for compartment syndrome or stop running for good. She took a third option, cut gluten, and ran again. Almost nothing had been written about any of it, so she started posting her own recipes. In 2022 she posted a different cookie recipe every day for 25 days. A few hit five million views, and the replies asked where to buy. Sweet Addison's launched thirteen months later on about $5,000. Month one did seven to eight thousand dollars with no paid marketing at all.No outside money, no board, and she still self-manufactures everything the company sells. By her own estimate ninety-nine percent of America has never heard of Sweet Addison's, which she offers as the reason to be excited rather than the thing to fix.⏱️ CHAPTERS00:00:00 Intro00:02:29 Why A Walk-On Athlete Makes A Better Founder00:05:26 The Diagnosis That Ended Her Running Career00:09:36 Getting Fired Was The Best Thing That Happened To Her00:14:22 The 25-Day Posting Streak That Built Her Customer List00:15:10 The TSA Moment That Started A Cookie Company00:19:53 How She Made $7,000 In Month One With No Ads00:35:23 When To Turn On Paid Ads, And Why She Waited00:45:32 The Fear That Stops Most People From Starting00:49:42 How To Start A Brand For $5,000 And Keep 100%🔗 ADDISON LABONTESweet Addison's: https://sweetaddisons.comOrganically Addison: https://organicallyaddison.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/organicallyaddisonSweet Addison's on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweet.addisons🎙️ THE ADVANTAGEApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-advantage-with-mike-wystrach/id6783458081Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033DuFkyBRu3qvgp8ozPz1All episodes: https://mikewystrach.com/podcast⚡ PRESENTED BY PROPPELProppel places A-player marketing and operations talent from the US, LATAM and beyond: video editors, graphic designers and media buyers through to managers, directors and VPs. Performance-based, a one-off fee only once you actually hire, no retainers, no ongoing costs, and every hire carries a three-month guarantee.Get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantage#AddisonLaBonte #SweetAddisons #TheAdvantage #MikeWystrach
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  How to hire fast in a startup | Leandro Cabrini 02.09.2026 56p

  We turned the six moves from this episode into one free PDF, The Cabrini Playbook → https://mikewystrach.com/get/leandro-playbookPresented by Proppel. Get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageFollow Mike on Instagram: https://instagram.com/mikewystrachIn this episode Mike and Leandro cover the task list that has to exist before the job description, the purpose every interview stage needs, the test project, the onboarding almost nobody builds, and the time zone trick for founders with no process yet. The rule underneath all of it is the one Mike has hired by for a decade: go get the person you technically cannot afford.Full disclosure, and Mike says it in the first minute: Proppel is the presenting sponsor of this show. He found them through Google and ChatGPT, hired through them, and went to them about sponsoring afterwards.⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00:00 Intro00:01:38 He Started A Recruitment Agency Without Ever Running One00:06:41 Freshly Had 2,500 Employees And 700 Were International00:09:01 Cheaper Talent Lets You Hire Three Months Earlier00:14:40 Everyone Can Hire. Onboarding Is Where It Breaks00:17:35 Write The Task List Before You Write The Job Description00:21:50 Time Zone Is The Cheat Code When You Have No Process00:23:29 Hire The Person You Technically Can't Afford00:34:55 A US Creative Strategist Costs $150K. In LATAM, $6 To $8K A Month00:45:44 The Real Cost Of Hiring Is Not Having To Hire🔗 LEANDRO CABRINIProppel: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leacabriniThe Talent Standard: https://www.youtube.com/@Proppel🎙️ THE ADVANTAGEApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-advantage-with-mike-wystrach/id6783458081Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033DuFkyBRu3qvgp8ozPz1All episodes: https://mikewystrach.com/podcastFree playbook: https://mikewystrach.com/get/leandro-playbook⚡ PRESENTED BY PROPPELGet 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantage#howtohire #Proppel #TheAdvantage #MikeWystrach #Hiring
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  Your time is worth more than your wealth | Kenny Santucci 26.08.2026 46p

  Kenny Santucci did nine seasons of MTV's The Challenge. Today he trains Bon Jovi, guys from the Knicks, and whichever WWE wrestlers are in town, out of two New York gyms he owns.Presented by Proppel — hire A-player marketing and ops talent from the US and LATAM. Get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageFollow Mike on Instagram: https://instagram.com/mikewystrachCHAPTERS00:00:00 The Month He Lost Under Armour And HYROX00:01:45 Nine Seasons On MTV's The Challenge00:04:02 Start Before You Know What You're Doing00:08:09 What A Two-Year Lawsuit Teaches You About Partners00:16:38 Why Community Is The Only Moat A Gym Has00:19:17 Rebuilding From A Push Cart In A Public Park00:26:55 Bon Jovi, The Knicks, And Who Else Walks In00:27:44 $500K Used To Be Rich. Now $5M Makes You A Loser00:29:28 Admit You Don't Know Business, Then Ask For Help00:37:02 Own Your Distribution Or Rent Someone Else's AudienceEverything between those two sentences is the part nobody puts on a highlight reel. He came off television and took the New Jersey civil service test his father wanted him to take, and got hired onto a fire department — he describes standing in the line-up thinking this was going to be the rest of his life. He partnered into a gym in Jersey with no idea how business worked and nobody to ask, and it ended in a two-year lawsuit. He built a 5:30am class at Solace that packed out for years while the equity he was promised never arrived.Then in January 2020 he signed Under Armour and HYROX in the same month, and weeks later both deals were gone and New York was shut. He pushed a cart of kettlebells to the park at 28th and 10th because it was the only way left to work, and the wheel came off on the way. People walking past asked to join. That is The Strength Club, now in Flatiron and Caldwell NJ, and Strong New York — the festival Forbes named one of the best in the country, taking over the Glasshouse on September 26.He is sharp on what the money noise does to people. Growing up he didn't know anyone earning $500,000 a year, and now the going line is that $5 million a year makes you a loser. Ask him the ten-year plan and there is no exit in it. His merch says bury me in the gym.KENNY SANTUCCIInstagram: https://instagram.com/kennysantucciWebsite: https://kenny-santucci.comStrong New York: https://www.strongnewyork.comThe Strength Club: https://thestrengthclub.comPRESENTED BY PROPPELProppel places A-player marketing and operations talent from the US, LATAM and beyond — video editors, designers and media buyers through to managers, directors and VPs. It's performance-based: a one-off fee only once you actually hire someone, no retainers, no ongoing costs, and every hire comes with a three-month guarantee.Get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageTHE ADVANTAGEAll episodes: https://mikewystrach.com/podcast
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  $600M Operator: Start in a Niche. Just Don't Plan to Stay There. | Sam McBride 19.08.2026 1ó 3p

  Sam McBride is the CEO of Kettle & Fire and the founder of Colter Ventures, where he writes $40 to $150 million checks into a handful of businesses at a time.This episode is presented by Proppel. Hire A-player marketing and ops talent from the US and LATAM, and get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageFull show notes and everything mentioned: https://mikewystrach.com/podcast/sam-mcbrideA year out of school and working in healthcare M&A, McBride sold a $10 million piece of business to a division he did not work in. He asked his MD what that was worth to him and got a story about how long the man had waited for his yacht club membership. He quit. Then he called amentor who was buying home security companies and offered to work for $30,000 a year for six months, on one condition: he wanted to be an executive immediately. He was 21.Every decision since has the same shape. He joined RXBAR as roughly its fourth employee and was there when Kellogg bought it for $600 million. He put $44 million into a bone broth company he had sat on the board of for years, and took the CEO seat when its chief executive proposed theyswap and run it together. The most portable thing he says is about niches. McBride is blunt that the niche was the training ground rather than the destination. The time in it is what made every later decision obvious, which is why he tells founders to start narrow and plan the wayout at the same time.He is unsentimental about the job itself. One problem after another, almost no credit, and getting kicked in the head often enough that you stop expecting otherwise. Once in a while there is an outcome. The other 99% is the part you have to like.Chapters00:00:00 Operating Is Solving Problems For Almost No Credit00:02:45 The Yacht Club Story That Ended His Finance Career00:04:00 He Offered To Work For $30,000 A Year At 2100:13:12 RXBAR Was Three Grade School Friends And A Warehouse00:19:51 The CrossFit Business Topped Out At $6 Million00:32:31 There Were Four Other RXBARs00:35:30 The Values Interview That Ran The Final Round00:41:31 Selling To Kellogg For $600 Million00:50:28 Fewer Bets, Bigger Bets, And Kettle & Fire00:59:27 Start In A Niche. Just Do Not Plan To Stay There.Sam McBrideColter Ventures: https://www.colterventures.comKettle & Fire: https://www.kettleandfire.comPRESENTED BY PROPPELYour business is only as good as the people in it, and finding real A players is one of the hardest things you'll do. Proppel specializes in marketing and operations talent, placing top people from the US, LATAM and beyond.It's all performance-based. You pay a one-off fee only once you actually hire someone, so no retainers and no ongoing costs. Every hire comes with a three-month guarantee.Get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageAll episodes: https://mikewystrach.com/podcastInstagram: https://instagram.com/mikewystrach
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  Navigating the Creator Economy | Vitalii Dodonov, Stan 12.08.2026 49p

  Vitalii Dodonov is the co-founder and CTO of Stan, a creator commerce platform that's generated over $600M for it's creators. Every other platform in the category takes 10 to 20 percent of what a creator sells. Stan takes nothing.Presented by Proppel. Hire A-player marketing and ops talent from the US and LATAM, and get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantageMike's IG: https://www.instagram.com/mikewystrach/In late 2022 Stan was doing roughly $1 million a year, and a slice of that was commission. They had added the cut for the reason everyone adds it: the rest of the category had one. Then Vitalii and his co-founder John Hu built the spreadsheet that killed it. They deleted transaction fees entirely and put the business on a flat $30 a month. Revenue went from $1 million to $15 million to $27 million.Giving up a take rate at $1 million ARR means giving up the fastest-compounding line in the business. Mike walks him back into the room where that call was made, who pushed back, and what settled it. Vitalii is also clear that removing the fee is not what caused the 8.5x. The growth came from building a product people talked about, on no marketing budget.A team of 30 changes the operative question: it stops being what to build and becomes what to refuse to build. And the thesis underneath is strange for a monetization company. Monetization was never the hard part. Attention is easy to accumulate and almost nobody knows what to do with it. Distribution is the bottleneck, and creator churn is structural rather than a product failure. That produced Stanley, the AI head of content Stan built in 14 days.Chapters00:00:00 Introduction00:07:46 He Turned Down A Mid-Six-Figure Amazon Offer00:14:01 Time In The Arena Beats Founder Dating00:17:56 What Do You Do With The Attention?00:21:50 They Added A Commission Because Everyone Else Had One00:22:29 The Spreadsheet That Killed The Commission00:24:26 Removing The Fee Was Not What Drove The Growth00:27:38 $1M To $15M To $27M00:29:54 Crossing $30M ARR With Fewer Than 30 People00:30:14 No Marketing Budget, And Gas In A Tank00:32:49 What A Personal Head Of Content Actually Does00:39:31 Every Founder Is About To Need A Digital Identity00:43:48 At 30, Optimize For The Rooms You Sit InVitalii DodonovStan: https://stan.storeLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vitddnv/IG: https://www.instagram.com/vitddnv/PRESENTED BY PROPPELYour business is only as good as the people in it, and finding real A players is one of the hardest things you'll do. Proppel specializes in marketing and operations talent, placing top people from the US, LATAM and beyond.Whether you need video editors, graphic designers, or media buyers from LATAM, or managers, directors, heads of department and VPs in the US, they'll help you build the team you actually need to grow.It's all performance-based. You pay a one-off fee only once you actually hire someone, so no retainers and no ongoing costs. Every hire comes with a three-month guarantee.Get 10% off your first hire: https://www.weareproppel.com/theadvantage
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  The Best Hire beehiiv Almost Never Made | Daniel Berk 05.08.2026 52p

  Daniel Berk is giving you the Owned Audience Playbook · beehiiv's first sales hire on betting on yourself Presented by Proppel · A-player marketing and ops talent, 10% off your first hire → https://www.weareproppel.com/the-advantage-proppelDaniel Berk built a $78,000-a-year podcast working one hour a week. He learned the system as beehiiv's first sales hire, joining at 12 employees and under $1M in revenue. The company now reports $30M ARR. This conversation covers the entire playbook: the offshore clipping engine, packaging your personal audience for sponsors, why guests outperform banter, the first-dollar principle, and the AI agents that clip his videos, draft his posts, and watch his bank accounts.⏱️ CHAPTERS00:00:00 Trailer00:00:38 Meet Daniel Berk, beehiiv's First Sales Hire00:02:06 From Mowing Lawns at 12 to $2.5M of Sneeze Guards00:05:46 Rejected for Employee #1, Hired 7 Months Later00:07:32 Building beehiiv's Sales Motion From Zero00:10:20 A Reported $30M ARR and a Self-Given C-Suite Title00:13:27 The Podcast That Started With One DM00:14:15 The Clipping Engine: $78K on One Hour a Week00:17:53 90% of Podcasts Die Before Episode 2000:18:51 Turning Down $300K to Bet on Himself00:21:24 MoneyWise, Local Newsletters and a Micro SaaS Bet00:23:06 Every Single Person Starts at Zero00:24:48 Commit to 10 Years or Don't Start00:26:55 The Threshold Number: When More Money Stops Mattering00:30:06 Your First Dollar Online Changes Everything00:31:43 Build the Marketing Machine Before the Product00:35:26 The Lawn-Mowing YouTuber Making $100K a Video00:40:00 A Claude Agent That Clips, Writes and Posts for Him00:43:50 Be an AI Super User or Compete With One00:47:52 Practical Edges: Claude, Wispr Flow and Building Apps🔗 DANIEL BERKWebsite: https://danielberk.comX: https://x.com/danielcberkLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielberkMoneyWise: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfszC9-H9y38eA-h77OzJhw⚡ PRESENTED BY PROPPELFinding real A players is one of the hardest things you'll do. Proppel places marketing and operations talent from the US, LATAM and beyond: video editors, graphic designers and media buyers from LATAM, or managers, directors, heads of department and VPs in the US.Performance-based, one-off fee only when you hire, no retainers. Every hire comes with a three-month guarantee.Get 10% off your first hire → https://www.weareproppel.com/the-advantage-proppel🎙️ More of THE ADVANTAGEAll episodes: https://mikewystrach.com/podcastInstagram: @mikewystrach — https://instagram.com/mikewystrachNewsletter:https://mikewystrach.com/newsletter