Guy Raz interviews the world’s best-known entrepreneurs to learn how they built their iconic brands. In each episode, founders reveal deep, intimate moments of doubt and failure, and share insights on their eventual success. How I Built This is a master-class on innovation, creativity, leadership and how to navigate challenges of all kinds.
New episodes release on Mondays and Thursdays.

Today’s callers: Anthony from Miami considers the best method to grow his pop-up outdoor movie theater business. Then Andrew in San Francisco asks how to set his cat wrestling toy apart from competitors. Finally, Melissa in Massachusetts seeks strategies for getting busy parents excited about her healthy frozen muffins. 
Plus, Jonah shares what’s next for Buzzfeed as the company marks 20 years of business.
Thank you to the founders of Motion Flix, CATSUMO, and Unrefined Foods for joining us on the show.
If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to hibt@id.wondery.com or call 1-800-433-1298. 
And be sure to listen to Buzzfeed’s founding story as told by Jonah on the show in 2017.  
This episode was produced by Katherine Sypher with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Casey Herman. Our audio engineer was Kwesi Lee.
You can follow HIBT on X & Instagram and sign up for Guy's free newsletter at guyraz.com and on Substack.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How I Built This with Guy Raz

Advice Line with Jonah Peretti of Buzzfeed

Gregg Renfrew started a movement by making better-for-you cosmetics, then enlisted an army of women to build the business through direct sales. But after selling Beautycounter, she was pushed out of the company she created.
Then she got to do something almost no founder gets to do: 
She bought her company back. Then lost it again. Then took the risky step of rebuilding it into a new brand, now called Counter.  
This is a story about ambition, humility, and second chances.  
Gregg learned her first lessons by launching an early online wedding registry and selling it to Martha Stewart. She briefly led a clothing company and was summarily fired—by messenger.
In this candid conversation, Gregg talks about the bold innovation she brought to the beauty industry, and the lessons she learned from working with difficult people—including, at times, herself. 

What You’ll Learn:
How to build a movement—not just a product
The hidden risks of “growth at all costs”
Why direct sales (done right) can outperform traditional DTC
The emotional toll of being fired from your own company
How to rebuild your identity after losing your business
What it takes to come back—and do it differently the second time

Timestamps:
(00:06:15) – Selling Xerox machines and getting doors slammed in her face
(00:08:09) – The early inspiration for an online wedding registry.
(00:16:44) – The brutal lesson of the dot-com crash: “growth at all costs”
(00:21:58) – Standing up to Martha Stewart: “I was cocky.” 
(00:23:51) – Getting fired as CEO… by messenger… in front of her team
(00:32:47) – The moment she realized the beauty industry had a massive gap
(00:35:25) – “Clean beauty didn’t exist”—and why that made it so hard
(00:47:04) – Building a 60,000-person sales force, scaling to hundreds of millions in sales
(00:46:40) – Selling Beautycounter for $1B… and losing control months later
(01:00:13) – The emotional aftermath of being pushed out—and what came next

This episode was produced by John Isabella with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant with research help from Noor Gill. Our engineers were Patrick Murray and Jimmy Keeley.

Follow How I Built This:
Instagram → @howibuiltthis
X → @HowIBuiltThis
Facebook → How I Built This
Follow Guy Raz:
Instagram → @guy.raz
Youtube → guy_raz
X → @guyraz
Substack → guyraz.substack.com
Website → guyraz.com
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Beautycounter: Gregg Renfrew. She Built Beautycounter to $1B… Then Got Fired From Her Own Company

Today’s callers: Barbara in Massachusetts wonders how her nutrition education theater company might live on past her own involvement. Then Jeff in Illinois looks to carry the momentum from his Ninja Warrior-inspired gyms to form a professional league around the sport. And Vince in Virginia weighs the risks from introducing new SKUs for his men’s organic underwear brand.
Plus, David breaks down the resource management necessary to keep an airline aloft as rising fuel prices grip the industry.
Thank you to the founders of FoodPlay Productions, Ultimate Ninjas, and Gotchies for being a part of our show.

If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode, leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to hibt@id.wondery.com or call 1-800-433-1298.
And be sure to listen to JetBlue’s founding story as told by David in 2019.

This episode was produced by Sam Paulson with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Casey Herman. Our audio engineer was Kwesi Lee.
You can follow HIBT on X & Instagram and sign up for Guy’s free newsletter at guyraz.com or on Substack.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Advice Line with David Neeleman of JetBlue

In the late 1990s, Shep and Ian Murray looked at a shrinking category–men’s ties–and saw an opportunity: a necktie isn’t just functional. It’s expressive. It can signal identity, taste, aspiration.   
With no fashion experience and no outside investors, the Murray brothers started making colorful ties inspired by their childhoods in Martha’s Vineyard — tiny whales, sailboats, island street signs. What began as a small, improbable tie business grew into Vineyard Vines: a half-billion-dollar lifestyle brand with more than 100 stores and major department store distribution. 
In this episode, Shep and Ian talk about why they quit their stable jobs to turn a sleepy product into a national brand, which began as a family business and remains so to this day. 

What you’ll learn: 
Why a great business can start in a category that everyone thinks is dying
How to build distribution when you have no roadmap and few connections 
What bootstrapping teaches founders that outside capital often doesn’t
How improvised marketing can create outsized attention
Knowing the difference between a fashion brand and a “brand” brand

Timestamps: 
00:10:22 - The brothers both hate their desk jobs: “How was your day?” “It sucked.”
 00:11:20 - Vineyard Vines starts on a family trip, with a nudge from a hotel manager
00:13:46 - Early designs: whales, fish, jeeps, street signs 
00:25:39 - Finally quitting their jobs– they’re thrilled, their parents–not so much
00:30:42 - Landing their first order for $1800. “We’re never gonna have to work anymore!”
00:34:40 - The brand gets a boost from a PR stunt during the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal
00:47:00 - The “Get to $5 million” mentor advice that kept them focused 
00:49:23 - The brothers open their first store - and realize they have a lot to learn  
01:01:18 - The 2008 financial crisis, and the brutal inventory decisions that help save the business
01:09:06 - Why stepping back from the CEO role didn’t work — and what it taught them about brand culture

This episode was produced by Kerry Thompson with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant with research help from Casey Herman. 

Follow How I Built This:
Instagram → @howibuiltthis
X → @HowIBuiltThis
Facebook → How I Built This
Follow Guy Raz:
Instagram → @guy.raz
Youtube → guy_raz

X → @guyraz
Substack → guyraz.substack.com
Website → guyraz.com

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Shep and Ian Murray: Vineyard Vines. A Stale Product Transforms into a Lifestyle Brand.

Today’s callers: Christina from California wonders how to build trust with her fragrance brand formulated without allergens. Then, James, also from California, assesses how he can create more brand awareness for his kids' flip flop company. And Ben from Florida evaluates whether he should raise outside capital for his light-up jewelry products. 
Plus, Eric’s philosophy on identifying strong founders and the brands now that he’s moved from being an entrepreneur to being an investor. 
Thank you to the founders of Havyn, Pidgin Toes, and Reserved for Humans for being a part of our show.
If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to hibt@id.wondery.com or call 1-800-433-1298.
And be sure to listen to Method’s founding story as told by Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry on the show in 2018.  
This episode was produced by Noor Gill with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Casey Herman. Our audio engineer was Cena Loffredo.
You can follow HIBT on X & Instagram and sign up for Guy's free newsletter at guyraz.com and on Substack.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Advice Line with Eric Ryan of Method returns 

What if the thing you care about most ... might be what’s holding your business back?
Daniel Lubetzky didn’t leave his law job to build a straightforward business. He left it to build a company he believed would support peace in the Middle East. Daniel named it, aptly, PeaceWorks. It partnered with Israeli and Arab businesses across the region to make and sell gourmet foods—together.
But Daniel ran into a big problem: he discovered that lots of people don’t shop for a “cause”. Most people buy things they like—especially when it comes to food.
Soon, Daniel was scrambling to find new revenue streams to support PeaceWorks. When he got the chance to sell an Australian snack bar in the U.S., he jumped on it—and did really well! But when Daniel's ONE big retailer dropped it, profits tanked.
Daniel faced a brutal choice: Walk away… or start over.
What came next was a leap of faith. He decided to create his OWN bar. It was almost completely unlike the competition at the time: It was made of whole nuts, fruits, sea salt, and a little chocolate—all easy to see in a novel, transparent wrapping. 
Daniel named his company KIND, and when he sold it to Mars in 2020, it was valued at $5 billion!
This is a story about why mission alone doesn't sell, how failure forces clarity, and the moment every founder faces when they must decide: Do I keep going ... or do I quit?

What you’ll learn:
Why customers don’t buy your mission—they buy your product
The hidden danger of being “too purpose-driven”
How to pivot without abandoning what matters to you
Why control over manufacturing can make or break your business
The surprising power of retail placement (and why checkout counters changed everything)
How scarcity thinking can limit growth—even when you’re winning
Why saying “yes” to the wrong opportunity (like Walmart too early) can hurt you

Timestamps:
00:06:18 – “It really did shape almost all of my decisions”: How Daniel's father survived the Holocaust and built a new life in Mexico
00:17:40 – A landmark meeting of world leaders—and a dramatic career change
00:19:30 – From a bankrupt sun-dried tomato spread to PeaceWorks
00:24:29 – “They think you're adorable”: Why a mission isn’t enough to grow a business
00:30:59 – Overnight collapse: Finding a big, new revenue stream—then losing it
00:36:47 – The creation of the KIND bar
00:47:36 – “You couldn't say no to Walmart”: Entering big box too early
00:49:28 – The investment that pulled Daniel away from PeaceWorks
00:55:43 – Starbucks and sampling: How KIND became a household name
01:03:05 – An acquisition worth billions
01:06:25 – Daniel's new mission: Builders vs. destroyers

This episode was produced by Alex Cheng with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Andrea Bruce with research help from Noor Gill. Our engineers were Maggie Luthar and Robert Rodriguez.

Follow How I Built This:
Instagram → @howibuiltthis
X → @HowIBuiltThis
Facebook → How I Built This

Follow Guy Raz:
Instagram → @guy.raz
Youtube → guy_raz
X → @guyraz
Substack → guyraz.substack.com
Website → guyraz.com
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Home

Search

Sign up for free to listen for longer

Home

Search

Sign up for free to listen for longer

How I Built This with Guy Raz

There’s no content available right now.