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As a poor kid, Geraud Staton became an entrepreneur out of necessity, initially selling Blow Pops to the rich kids at school. He's hustled and he's seen how to grow a business, and he wanted to give back. So he started Helius (now Echo) because he wanted to level the playing field when it came to minority and women owned businesses. According to Geraud, "There are too many knowledgeable business people in our community for anyone to not have the skills they need to survive as hard working entrepreneurs." ---Geraud Staton is the CEO of Echo, Coach, Actor and Painter. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

In the startup world, you're moving 100 miles an hour at all times, and data privacy rules aren't exactly high on the daily to-do list. But what happens if you're not compliant? And more importantly, what happens if that non-compliance leads to negative consequences to your clients, partners, and the company as a whole?   Lucas Beal is an attorney at Hutchison PLLC who specializes in privacy and security, employment law, contract negotiation, and corporate law.  Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

At NC State's Entrepreneurship Clinic through the Poole College of Management, Haley Huie helps train the next generation of founders by both teaching entrepreneurship and having students gain real life experience. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Melissa Katrincic is the President and CEO of Durham Distillery, home of Conniption Gin and Corpse Reviver Cocktail Bar and Lounge. She’s the first female distiller inducted into the Gin Guild (founded in 1638), and today she shares her story of how she and her husband Lee decided to become gin distillers, the challenges of getting liquor onto shelves, the trademark headaches they went through, and what's next in spirits. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Hannah Weisberg is the founder and CEO of The Women’s Social Club,  a women supporting women platform and community that has expanded from 1 location in Raleigh to 10 locations in 2 years. It’s a movement that’s spreading throughout the southeast and throughout the country. But The Women’s Social Club is not Hannah’s first venture - it all started with a dream that turned into a pandemic nightmare. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

As a structural engineer and PhD student at NC State University, Nehemiah Mabry was asked to put together a video for the Stay With It Campaign, which would encourage students to stick with their engineering passion. The video was a smash hit and was even played on MTV, and all of a sudden people started asking Nee to produce videos. So he did, and he had a business.  But how could he take that business from side hustle to scalable? Dr. Nehemiah Mabry is the Founder and CEO of STEMedia and host of the STEMedia Podcast. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Keith Daniel and Tom Droege saw a problem in the startup and investment community - Black founders are not on equal ground when trying to build a business. They saw it in their interactions with founders and investors, but they also looked at it from a historical context. The oppression of the Black community in America starting with slavery, then barriers to owning land, and barriers to vote. That takes decades to overcome - but Keith and Tom are trying to accelerate that process. Keith Daniel and Tom Droege are the Co-Founders of Resilient Ventures, a committed capital fund dedicated to disrupting systemic economic injustice by expanding access to capital, networks, and opportunity to African American founders. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

At Hutchison PLLC, we specialize in working with startups, so we completely understand that when you’re trying to build a business from nothing, legal isn’t always your top priority. You need to quickly figure out product market fit, cash flow, finding investors, and about a hundred other tasks. But there are some things, like how you work with employees and contractors, that if you don’t get it right initially,  it can have huge tax and equity implications down the road. We are always happy to clean up any mess you may find yourself in, but it’s a whole lot easier to set everything up the right way from the start.  So today we're joined by Employment Law Attorney Ashley K Pittman to help guide us through employment law for startups. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Today's guest Joe Colopy is the co-founder at Jurassic Capital and the Godfather of Grepbeat, which covers all things tech in North Carolina. But before all of that, he bootstrapped Durham-based email marketing software firm Bronto and led it to a $200M exit.  Tune in to hear how it all happened. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Josh Owen never looked at himself as an entrepreneur. He formed his first company Tryon Solutions to do some consulting work, and before he knew it, the company had grown to the point where it had about 100 employees. For Josh, it was time to try another idea, which required funding.  Even after a $2.5M raise to start his new company Cycle Labs, he still doesn't think of himself as an entrepreneur - he's simply someone who likes to solve problems. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

As the managing director of VentureSouth, Charlie Banks has invested over $60 million in over 90 companies. Some of them have been amazing success stories - but he’s seen  his share of failures as well.  Today, he talks about what the founder should be looking for in an investment partner, and he shares the one major reason that startups fail. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

For entrepreneurs, seeking funding from a venture capital firm can seem intimidating. But, it's important to remember that those investors are entrepreneurs, too. In this episode, learn about what it took to start Leeds Illuminate, a venture fund founded by Susan Cates in 2020. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Today we’re diving deep into what most startups dream about and are striving for - the exit. Hutchison PLLC partner and mergers & acquisitions expert attorney Dan Fuchs shares what both founders and buyers should be looking out for throughout the acquisition process. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Jessica Mitsch Homes has always been focused on teaching and helping others, but she had no clue that that passion would lead her into a career in tech.  Today, Jessica talks about her company's start in American Underground, why she’s passionate about cultivating talent from underrepresented groups, and what’s ahead for her growing startup. Jessica Mitsch Homes is the co-founder and CEO of Momentum, a tech training company that provides talent transformation courses for those looking to start their careers or transition from an existing career into tech. Full video from the Earfluence Podcast Studio at American Underground Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

How can leaders foster a diverse, equitable, and inclusive culture - even when their business is first starting out?  When every dollar and every minute matters, culture can be secondary to everything else that needs to be done to keep the business afloat. So today, Donald Thompson shares how he created an affordable solution to DEI with his startup. Donald Thompson is the CEO of The Diversity Movement and regular contributor to WRAL Techwire. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

After decades of writing business ideas down, Philip Freeman decided to start Murphy's Naturals so he could solve a simple problem: his wife kept getting bitten by mosquitos. And then when that business grew too big for his garage, he founded The Loading Dock to solve his new problem - and help other entrepreneurs along the way. Philip mentioned several charitable organizations, and here are those links - Earth Share North Carolina, Activate Good, Triangle Land Conservancy, and 1% for the Planet.  Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Trevor Schmidt is guesting today to talk all about intellectual property - the different kinds of IP, mistakes he sees startups making, and the IP steps you should take when founding a company. If you have questions on patents, trademarks, trade secrets, or copyrights, Trevor has answers. (Usually) hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Back in 1991, Tom Finegan was working for a consulting firm that was doing very well - except he felt like the firm cared more about the bottom line than the success of their clients. So Tom made the scary leap to entrepreneurship, and he now has 30 years of startup and leadership lessons to share. Tom Finegan is the founder and CEO of Clarkston Consulting, and author of the Wall Street Journal best-selling book, Amplifiers: How Great Leaders Magnify the Power of Teams, Increase the Impact of Organizations, and Turn Up the Volume on Positive Change. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Moise Khayrallah grew up in Lebanon, and saw firsthand what real danger looks like as bombs exploded nearby during the Lebanese Civil War. Upon coming to America, Moise had already seen the worst that could happen, so difficult decisions or tense conversations - things that might stress out some entrepreneurs - that all came easy to him. Dr. Moise Khayrallah is the CEO of Emergo Therapeutics, and Founder of The Moise A. Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies at NC State University. GIVEAWAY: Inspired by the Robbie Hardy episode where she shared the unbelievable story about how she used a magic 8-ball to help her decide whether or not to sell her company, we are giving away a Hutch 8-ball to anyone who writes a Founder Shares podcast review. All you need to do is write a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen - and let us know by sending an email to podcast@hutchlaw.com. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.

Elevation Oncology has raised nearly $200M since its launch just two years ago. $200 million! That sounds like an enormous amount of investment capital, but when the company is potentially changing cancer treatment as we know it - you can see why investors are excited about Elevation's potential. Today, founder and CEO Shawn Leland tells us all about the raises, challenges, and excitement of growing his company. GIVEAWAY: Inspired by the Robbie Hardy episode where she shared the unbelievable story about how she used a magic 8-ball to help her decide whether or not to sell her company, we are giving away a Hutch 8-ball to anyone who writes a Founder Shares podcast review. All you need to do is write a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen - and let us know by sending an email to podcast@hutchlaw.com. Hosted by Trevor Schmidt, Founder Shares is brought to you by Hutchison PLLC, and is edited and produced by Earfluence.