Libsyn Directory

[SaaS & eCommerce Series] Reality of Buying a Founder-Led Business With Brian Nolan

Release Date: 08/06/2026

[Top Author Series] From Incremental Growth to 10X Scale With Blake Erickson

INspired INsider Podcast

Blake Erickson is the Co-founder of Scaling.com, a research and advisory firm that helps established businesses pursue tenfold growth through strategic guidance and its Scaling Framework. He leads the company's strategist team and guides its strategic direction, having personally trained more than 1,200 people. Blake also co-authored The Science of Scaling, a New York Times bestselling book written with organizational psychologist Dr. Benjamin Hardy. An experienced entrepreneur and keynote speaker, he helps business owners strengthen leadership, identify growth opportunities, and develop...

[Top Author & Private Equity Series] Three Keys to Better Negotiation With Corey Kupfer

INspired INsider Podcast

Corey Kupfer is the Founder and Managing Partner of Kupfer., PLLC, a corporate and deal law firm specializing in mergers and acquisitions, entity and platform design, and entrepreneurship. With decades of experience, he has represented, trained, and mentored thousands of companies and entrepreneurs and has handled hundreds of complex deals and business transitions. Corey is the author of the Amazon bestselling book Authentic Negotiating and host of the DealQuest Podcast. He is also a former Chapter President of the New York Entrepreneurs’ Organization and is known for his expertise in...

[Venture Capital Series] The Dual-Use Investing Edge With Alexander Harstrick and Jonathan Bronson

INspired INsider Podcast

Alexander Harstrick is the Co-founder and Managing Partner of J2 Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm investing in advanced computing, biomedical engineering, cybersecurity, and infrastructure. He previously served as a US Army intelligence officer and worked with the Defense Innovation Unit and AFWERX, helping deploy nearly $2 billion in defense funding to US startups. Alexander holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University. Jonathan Bronson is the Co-founder and Managing Partner of J2 Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm...

[Top Finance Leader & Author Series] 100X Growth Without 100X the Work With John Bowen

INspired INsider Podcast

John Bowen is the Founder and CEO of CEG Worldwide and CEG Insights, firms that provide coaching and strategic insights to financial advisors serving affluent clients. A 26-year financial advisor, he managed up to $2 billion in assets before becoming CEO of Assante Capital Management, where he more than tripled assets under management to over $25 billion. John has authored or co-authored numerous books, including The Greater Game, and combines empirical research, AI, and decades of industry experience to help entrepreneurs and advisors build more scalable, successful businesses. In this...

Licensing IP Into New Revenue Streams With Bob Serling & Johann Nogueira

INspired INsider Podcast

Bob Serling is the Founder of Licensing Lab, where he helps businesses improve their products, positioning, offers, and marketing through deep customer intelligence. He created the Customer Created Framework, which uses insights from actual customers to uncover why they buy and what experience they want. His work includes developing a skateboard toy featuring Tony Hawk’s branding and co-creating licensed assessment software used by Fortune 500 companies. Bob also helps businesses identify valuable intellectual property and turn it into new revenue streams through licensing. Johann Nogueira...

[Swim & eCommerce Series] The Strategy Behind Consumer Tech Growth With Bruce Borenstein

INspired INsider Podcast

Bruce Borenstein is the Founder and CEO of OPN Sound, a company specializing in innovative open-ear audio technology. A veteran technology executive with over 40 years of leadership experience, he co-founded AfterShokz, now Shokz, helping pioneer the open-ear audio category and scale the company to tens of millions in sales. Bruce is a recipient of the Consumer Technology Association’s Innovation Entrepreneur Award and the author of Beyond the Startup: What Every Founder Needs to Know After Launch. He also advises emerging technology companies through PH Advisors, helping founders...

[Private Equity Series] Playbook for a More Scalable Business With Adi Klevit & Adam Gelhausen

INspired INsider Podcast

Adi Klevit is the CEO of Business Success Consulting Group, where she helps businesses scale and grow by implementing efficient business infrastructure, processes, and systems. Their company is made up of experts who create, document, and implement processes and procedures for small- and medium-sized companies that want to scale or expand, or for those gearing up for transition. She is also the host of the Systems Simplified podcast and an international speaker. Adam Gelhausen is the Managing Partner of Palindrome LLP, a private investment firm that acquires established businesses...

[Top Agency Series] Trust, Positioning, and Smarter Agency Acquisitions With Karl Hughes

INspired INsider Podcast

Karl Hughes is the CEO of The Podcast Consultant, a podcast production company that helps business and financial industry experts build authority and generate long-term value through audio and video content. He also serves as CEO of Rise25, where he helps B2B companies generate clients, referrals, and strategic partnerships through podcasts, and is the Founder of Draft.dev, a developer content agency he launched in 2020. Karl also hosts Retained Trust, a podcast featuring conversations with digital service entrepreneurs about building, scaling, and selling successful service agencies. In...

[AI Series] Prevent Silent AI Breaches With Manoj Saxena

INspired INsider Podcast

Manoj Saxena is the Founder and CEO of Trustwise, an AI safety company focused on helping enterprises securely deploy and control agentic AI systems. A pioneer in responsible AI, he was the first General Manager of IBM Watson and is also the Founder and Executive Chairman of the Responsible AI Institute, a global nonprofit focused on advancing trustworthy and responsible AI. A serial entrepreneur and University of Texas at Austin lecturer, Manoj has founded two venture-backed software companies acquired by Commerce One and IBM and holds 34 software patents. In this episode… As AI evolves...

[SaaS Series] AI, Global Talent, and the Future of Software Teams With Matt Watson

INspired INsider Podcast

Matt Watson is the Founder and CEO of Full Scale, an offshore software development company that helps U.S. companies build dedicated software engineering teams in the Philippines. A four-time tech founder and longtime CTO, he previously co-founded VinSolutions, an automotive software company that AutoTrader.com acquired in 2011, and later founded the developer-tools company Stackify. Matt brings more than 20 years of engineering and startup leadership experience to helping companies build and scale high-performing software teams. He is also the author of Product Driven and host of...

More Episodes

Brian Nolan is the Co-owner of Darren & Phillip, a purpose-driven lifestyle brand creating premium matching apparel and accessories for dog lovers and their dogs. He leads the brand’s American growth, strategy, and e-commerce expansion while advancing its mission to support dog rescue organizations worldwide. Before acquiring the company, Brian co-founded and led Sellbrite and BookOutdoors, which were acquired by GoDaddy and Hipcamp, respectively. A USC Marshall School of Business alumnus, he draws on extensive experience in entrepreneurship, product development, marketing, and e-commerce to build customer-focused brands that combine commercial growth with meaningful social impact.

In this episode…

Building a successful software company and buying an established consumer brand require very different operating skills. When a founder moves from SaaS exits into e-commerce ownership, how can past experience create an advantage without obscuring the realities of inventory, brand identity, and customer behavior?

According to Brian Nolan, the transition from startup exits to brand ownership requires proven growth instincts and a willingness to relearn the fundamentals. He emphasizes evaluating repeat purchases, unit economics, and audience engagement before an acquisition. After taking over Darren & Phillip, he improved systems, expanded sales channels, refined the product line, and repositioned the brand as a premium, human-first lifestyle company. The experience also showed him the impact of founder visibility and the value of longer transitions, performance-based incentives, disciplined inventory planning, authentic storytelling, and a clear brand identity.

In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, Dr. Jeremy Weisz sits down with Brian Nolan, Co-owner of Darren & Phillip, to discuss moving from SaaS exits to building a stronger e-commerce brand. Brian explains how he evaluated and acquired Darren & Phillip, repositioned its products and identity, and managed complex inventory challenges. He also shares lessons on seller transitions, acquisition incentives, and using Shopify and AI to guide decisions.

In this episode…

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