It's None of Your Business - The Family Business Podcast

We work for family businesses. We grew up in family businesses. We understand family businesses. Who better to interview other family businesses?

The Idiot Son - Bonus Episode 05/27/2022

Business & Life Lessons from an Anti-Hero ft. Jeffrey Wolf 05/19/2022

Hard Work Infused with Foresight ft. Cindi from Bigelow Tea 05/12/2022

Hard Work Infused with Foresight ft. Cindi from Bigelow Tea Creating a family business and a legacy is at the heart of this story which is why Bigelow Tea, a 3rd generational company gets better every year. It all started in a kitchen in a New York City brownstone where Ruth Campbell Bigelow was inspired from an early Colonial recipe. Ruth saw a need and was able to capitalise on it. Needless to say, Ruth and her husband David experienced many hardships early on that would have stopped most people. Cindi Bigelow, President and CEO, joins Karen and Ted for a conversation that helps listeners understand the inner workings of a family business over 3 generations. Karen realises and touches on the foresight needed early on while Ted finds out about other family members' involvement from the beginning. Cindi shares how her father (the 2nd generation) helped bring BIgelow Tea to what it is today and shares 3 important tips she learned. Karen is able to get fantastic insight on Cindi’s involvement in the family business at the start and why she was interested in continuing with it. When Cindi first joined after schooling, she quickly learned a lot of important lessons including how different the environment was, what she needed to do in order to succeed and realised that people are going to judge you simply because of your name. A huge part of Cindi’s success, as she shares, is the fact that she took her time with each position, learning it from the inside out and understanding the fundamentals of the business which is still very important for anyone joining the company. Ted enlightens the listeners about the difficulty to give younger generations more control while Cindi provides fantastic insight on how her father passed the baton down to herself. At the end of the day, a company needs to be run with hundreds of employees depending on leadership so Cindi shares 4 super helpful tips on how to lead. Karen inquires about other Bigelow's working in the business and Ted wants to know if family members can join. Cindi is very clear on the next steps of the business and shares what this will look like for the next generation, her children. Connect with Karen & Ted: Connect with Cindi: /episode/index/show/thefamilybusinesspodcast/id/23083688

5 Generations of Passion & Legacy Built into an Icon ft. Todd from Omaha Steaks 05/05/2022

Fueled by Purpose & Optimism with a Laidback Sensibility ft. Alex & Kerry from the Faherty Brand 04/28/2022

Fueled by Purpose & Optimism with a Laidback Sensibility ft. Alex & Kerry from the Faherty Brand This episode is all about a family business that’s looking on the brighter side. A family that has been creating high-quality, sustainably-minded, feel-good clothing, accessories and much more with the commitment to change the status quo through the lessening of environmental harm. Faherty Brand, CEO Alex and CIO Kerry (who are also married with two kids) join Ted & Karen for a very insightful episode that dives deep into running a 1st generation family business. It is quite clear from the beginning that the time and effort Alex and Kerry have put in, ensures that both their business and family thrives. The business was first created by Alex and his twin brother Mike which they knew from a young age would happen. From 17 years of age all the way to their 30’s, they were busy preparing and getting ready for the clothing business. The origin story that Alex shares is quite beautiful and helps you realise why their business has been so successful. Ted inquires about mixing business with family and Kerry touches on how it all tends to exist as one. Alex shares insight on the clothing business and what it takes to be successful in this industry especially as a brand that puts their family name on it. As a business, it’s important to walk the walk and talk the talk and Karen inquires about the business’ Instagram feed that firmly shares the company's core values that revolve around speaking up, being environmentally conscious, sustainability and much more. Kerry shares how the world is shifting with Conscious Capitalism and how important it is to speak up with kindness and love. Typical with family businesses, it can be difficult to compartmentalise so Ted dives deep in to understand how Alex & Kerry manage this. Through trial and error, the duo share when it’s okay to talk about family business and how they sustain from being fully enveloped. Kerry and Alex touch on working together as husband and wife and share important tips to make it work. Alex also sheds light on the impact it’s had on his relationship with his mother who is a big part of the family business. Ted and Karen dive deeper into family business and relationships. Alex provides 3 important reasons why he and his twin are able to succeed together and Karen wonders if it’s difficult to hire outside of the family. Kerry shares her perspective on having her in-laws as business partners and Karen is able to empathise with Kerry’s feelings. Fantastic insight is shared by Kerry & Alex when Ted asks what needs to happen to ensure 2nd & 3rd generational fighting doesn’t take place within the family when the legacy is passed on. All in all, fantastic guidance is provided in this episode including the importance of being honest, being open and taking pride in all aspects of the business. Connect with Karen & Ted: Connect with Alex & Kerry: /episode/index/show/thefamilybusinesspodcast/id/22935098

Culture Over Everything ft. Mizti Perdue 04/21/2022

Culture Over Everything ft. Mizti Perdue Double dynasty Mitzi Perdue joins Karen & Ted for a very insightful, value driven conversation around her experience growing up with a family business then later marrying Frank Perdue who was also a part of a family business. Looking at the origin of her own family business, Mitzi goes in-depth on how the business came to life and the mindset of her father who did a fantastic job at believing in people while supporting them to be their best selves. Ted shows fascination with the dynamics of Mitzi’s family business and how it was very forward thinking. Karen dives deeper into the logistics of Mitzi potentially taking over the company and receives great insight on what it was like to be a part of a family business in the mid 1900’s. Key details are shared by Mitzi about how to keep family businesses running successfully, and the rewards of doing so. Mitzi shares how important it is for a culture to be created for employees to be a part of the bigger picture, to be a huge part of the success of the company. The conversation goes into Mitzi & Frank’s relationship, their marriage and important aspects are shared around helping family businesses thrive. The origin story of Perdue Farms brings the dynamics between a father and son and a few tips are shared by Mitzi as to how a son or child can take over a family business with more ease. Ted inquires about rules around family members working outside of the family business and Mitzi shares 3 reasons why it’s important to do so. Karen also provides great insight as to why it’s important for family members to work outside of the family business first. Karen gets Mitzi’s perspective of the best part of family business and Ted shares that it is quite possible for a business to tear a family apart as family business can be very emotional. Mitzi shares 4 super important tips on communication amongst family business members and provides life guidance that everyone can take to live a better life. Culture is explored deeply near the end of the episode with values that can greatly help a family business succeed. Connect with Karen & Ted: Website: Connect with Mitzi: Website: /episode/index/show/thefamilybusinesspodcast/id/22858535

Go Big or Go Home; There is No Blueprint ft. Grace & Lee from Fivefork Farms 04/14/2022

Go Big or Go Home; There is No Blueprint ft. Grace & Lee from Fivefork Farms From passionate roots to torn up backyards, the is a family business that started out with 2 siblings, Grace and Lee, who join Karen & Ted in order to share their inspirational story. Grace starts out by sharing how their growing genes came from their mom, Helen, who had a mammoth garden that had dazzling Dahlias which Grace found out quickly about as her soccer balls kept breaking them. It was her mom’s garden that helped Grace realise from a young age that she loved gardening while Lee found out quickly that weeding wasn’t actually a game and most certainly wasn’t fun. With the inception of the business, Grace shares that a lot of firsts took place during the first 3 years involving tears, drama, disaster, some comedy from time to time and oh yeah did we mention tears? Karen alludes to the good reputation and incredible flowers that come out of Fivefork and Ted is able to ask some thought provoking questions to learn more about the ins and outs of family businesses. With the farm & business starting in 2012 in their parents backyard, Helen may have been a bit upset about her home backyard torn up for the sake of her children’s brand new endeavour but deep down she was probably ecstatic that her children took a liking to her own hobby. Living together and working together, Fivefork siblings were able to grow the business enough to buy a new property in 2013. Fivefork Farms represents the 5 siblings, with each member bringing a unique talent and work ethic to the table. Grace and Lee share genius ideas brought along the way and how their current farm fell perfectly into their lap which then included lots of DIY and convincing of friends and family to help along the way. Ted brings forth insight on how family business includes money and ego, and money so he inquires how the family members stay in their lane and Grace shares the dirty secrets (pun intended). Being the realist she is, Karen asks if there was ever a moment the family thought they were going to lose their shirt and take a vow of poverty. Grace and Lee share what it took for them to not lose their shirt which had to do with their past jobs and roles while also putting blinders on from time to time. It’s also made abundantly clear by Grace and Lee that when disaster strikes, you need to lean on those around you and call on family and friends to support you. Important tips around community are shared by Lee and how specific movements can help increase the success of building a new business. Throughout the episode, a theme of passion, trust and banding together shines through, while going big or going home can be a reality. There is no blueprint and at the end of the day, in this family business, each sibling always wants what’s best for each other and that has to be a reason why Fivefork Farms has been so successful. /episode/index/show/thefamilybusinesspodcast/id/22777154