#9 Bootstrapping 101

A big part of building a business is hiring and then creating a workplace culture where your team members want to stay and grow with you. Maybe you're a business of one, and you're thinking about making your first few hires. Or maybe you’re a team of 20 trying to double your staff to meet new demand. Whatever your situation, how you hire can impact who you hire and who you hire can impact your company culture in a big way. In this episode of Open for Business recorded before a live audience in Austin:  How to create a company where people want to work and then scale that culture as your company grows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every company knows what they sell. What’s harder to define sometimes is why? What motivates you beyond...money?  A great mission captures that reason behind why your business exists today. But it also leaves room for your company to aspire for more in the future. It can guide every single decision you make - whether you’re a business of one or one-thousand. In this episode we hear two very different businesses who have figured out how to present their company to the world and one that’s just starting out. This episode features: Andrew Linderman - founder of The Story Source David Malott  - co-founder of Space Factory David Riedel - co-founder of Space Factory Michael Bently - co-founder of Space Factory Tanya Moss - owner and founder of Tanya Moss jewelry Stephanie Shore - Chief Marketing Officer of Moo For tools and information about how to start or grow a business on eBay, visit ebay.com/openforbusiness. Thanks so much to Natalya Sverjensky, partner at Within People. Learn more about the SHINE Awards for Small Business and share your story for a chance to win at eBay.com/shineawards. Check out ofblistener.com to take our survey and enter for the chance to win a Gimlet membership. Our Sponsors This episode is brought to you by BigCommerce — get a free, three-month premium store subscription by visiting bigcommerce.com/openforbusiness This episode is also brought to you by ShipStation. Try it free for 30 days and get an additional month free by visiting visit ShipStation.com, clicking on the microphone at the top of the homepage and typing in “ebay”. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Recent research indicates that U.S. entrepreneurship is increasingly clustered in just a few metro areas. What can we learn from entrepreneurs outside those hubs? We hear from entrepreneurs in three very different places about how to make the most of wherever your business is located. This episode features: Chris Henry, Owner of Ear Candy Music Marty Babayov, Founder and Owner of The Suit Depot Channing Moreland, Co-Founder and CEO of EVAMore Makenzie Stokel, Co-Founder and COO of EVAMore Marcus Whitney, Founding Partner of JumpStart Foundry This episode also cites facts and information from the studies and research:Economic Innovation Group: “The New Map of Economic Recovery”The Brookings Institution: “Metro Monitor: An index of inclusive economic growth in the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas” eBay Public Policy Lab: “Platform-Enabled Small Businesses and the Geography of Recovery” For tools and information about how to start or grow a business on eBay, visit ebay.com/openforbusiness. This episode is brought to you by BigCommerce — get a free, three-month premium store subscription by visiting bigcommerce.com/openforbusiness This episode is also brought to you by ShipStation. Try it free for 30 days and get an additional month free by visiting visit ShipStation.com, clicking on the microphone at the top of the homepage and typing in “ebay”.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happens if it all falls apart? Learn how to weather the storms of failure from two entrepreneurs who refused to give up, and have survived to tell their stories. Episode Notes: This episode features: Andrea Gönner - Co-founder of Garnwelt Bo Fishback - Founder and CEO of Zaarly Jamin Jantz - Director of Marketing at Zaarly Jeff Morris - Early Zaarly employee, currently the Director of Project Management - Revenue at Tinder For tools and information about how to start or grow a business on eBay, visit ebay.com/openforbusiness. Thanks so much to Mashable, watch the clip that we featured in the episode here. This episode is brought to you by BigCommerce-- get a free, three-month premium store subscription by visiting bigcommerce.com/openforbusiness This episode is also brought to you by ShipStation. Try it free for 30 days and get an additional month free by visiting visit ShipStation.com, clicking on the microphone at the top of the homepage and typing in “ebay”.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Less than 1% of companies get seed money from either venture capital or angel investors. So, how do regular people find the money they need to get their businesses off the ground? We bring you stories of how three entrepreneurs did it, complete with all the nitty gritty financial details.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s easy to satisfy your customers when everything’s going well, but how do you handle it when things go wrong? We’ve got stories from small business owners who’ve learned the hard way about how to get customer service right. Episode Notes: This episode features: Laura Raposa, baker/owner of The Foodsmith in Duxbury, Massachusetts. Jim "Griff" Griffith, seller engagement, community, and education at eBayKarida Collins, founder of Neighborhood Fiber Co. in BaltimoreTony Brocato, co-owner of Frederickson’s Tire & Appliance in Sheffield, Alabama. For tools and information about how to start or grow a business on eBay, visit ebay.com/openforbusiness. This episode is brought to you by BigCommerce-- get a free, three-month premium store subscription by visiting bigcommerce.com/openforbusiness This episode is also brought to you by ShipStation. Try it free for 30 days and get an additional month free by visiting visit ShipStation.com, clicking on the microphone at the top of the homepage and typing in “ebay”.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, we hear stories and lessons from two entrepreneurs who had to reinvent their companies in order to survive. This episode features: Debbie Marriott Harrison, Global Officer, Marriott Culture and Business Council Betsy Helmuth, Founder, Affordable Interior Design Ray Wayman, Founder, JR Boutique. For tools and information about how to start or grow a business on eBay, visit ebay.com/openforbusiness. Thanks so much to CEO and Cofounder of Homepolish, Noa Santos. Thanks also to Kim Shanahan, founder of Book Bouquet and to Paulina Grzechnik, designer at Affordable Interior Design. Read more about the ‘hidden competition curve’ here and the concept of the ‘USP’ here. Sponsors: This episode is brought to you by BigCommerce— get a free, three-month premium store subscription by visiting bigcommerce.com/openforbusiness This episode is also brought to you by ShipStation. Try it free for 30 days and get an additional month free by visiting visit ShipStation.com, clicking on the microphone at the top of the homepage and typing in “ebay”.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From eBay and Gimlet Creative, we return with season two of Open for Business, a show about building your business from the ground up.  This season, we’re diving even deeper and exploring essential topics from financing to how to kill it at customer service to how to pivot when things don’t go as planned. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We'll be returning in March with Season Two of Open for Business, and we'd love to hear what you want us to cover. Visit ofblistener.com to share your thoughts.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The gig economy is growing so fast, it might just be the future of entrepreneurship as we know it — but it is also still a work in progress. We explore its past, present, and future with two entrepreneurs who ditched the traditional idea of work to launch their own companies on gig economy platforms. This episode features: Redd Horrocks, voice over artist on Fiverr Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach, Director of the Hamilton Project at the Brookings Institution Cori O'Steen, Founder and CFO of UPakNShip Laura Chambers, Vice President of Consumer Selling at eBay Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices