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36 - Licensing or Operating: The CEO’s Inflection Point
Most founders prefer to license.
It’s a lower risk. Lower capital exposure. Fewer operational headaches.
But what happens when the incumbents won’t move, and your product only works if someone actually operates it?
In this episode, Jeff Doss shares the pivotal decision to stop trying to license his patented anchoring system and instead operate the business himself inside a small, skeptical, highly regulated market. The stakes were real: capital at risk, reputation on the line, and a local ecosystem convinced it wouldn’t work.
“It wasn’t a foregone conclusion this thing was going to be a winner.”
This conversation is about that moment when a CEO must choose between protecting the downside and taking control.
Jeff Doss, Founder of Beach Bags, built a patented anchoring system designed to replace illegal and unsafe “pinning” practices on Lake Powell. His original plan was straightforward: develop the technology and license it to the existing marina operators.
That plan collapsed.
The incumbents were skeptical. Influential players dismissed the concept. The market was small and tightly regulated. And in a reputation-driven ecosystem, one technical failure could end the business overnight.
“We knew that if there was any failure of our system, we were going to be dead.”
Instead of walking away, Jeff made a different decision: to operate the business directly. That meant capital investment, staffing challenges, marina negotiations, National Park Service approvals, and leading from the front during the first chaotic season.
The result wasn’t guaranteed. It required conviction under pressure and a willingness to own the risk instead of outsourcing it.
Check out Jeff's work at https://beachbagsanchors.com/.
Say hello to Jeff!
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-doss-937125/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beachbagsanchors/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beachbagsanchorsystem/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beachbagsanchors9178
Think you'd be a great guest on the show?
Apply https://go.intellectualstrategies.com/
View all episodes
By Jeff HolmanMost founders prefer to license.
It’s a lower risk. Lower capital exposure. Fewer operational headaches.
But what happens when the incumbents won’t move, and your product only works if someone actually operates it?
In this episode, Jeff Doss shares the pivotal decision to stop trying to license his patented anchoring system and instead operate the business himself inside a small, skeptical, highly regulated market. The stakes were real: capital at risk, reputation on the line, and a local ecosystem convinced it wouldn’t work.
“It wasn’t a foregone conclusion this thing was going to be a winner.”
This conversation is about that moment when a CEO must choose between protecting the downside and taking control.
Jeff Doss, Founder of Beach Bags, built a patented anchoring system designed to replace illegal and unsafe “pinning” practices on Lake Powell. His original plan was straightforward: develop the technology and license it to the existing marina operators.
That plan collapsed.
The incumbents were skeptical. Influential players dismissed the concept. The market was small and tightly regulated. And in a reputation-driven ecosystem, one technical failure could end the business overnight.
“We knew that if there was any failure of our system, we were going to be dead.”
Instead of walking away, Jeff made a different decision: to operate the business directly. That meant capital investment, staffing challenges, marina negotiations, National Park Service approvals, and leading from the front during the first chaotic season.
The result wasn’t guaranteed. It required conviction under pressure and a willingness to own the risk instead of outsourcing it.
Check out Jeff's work at https://beachbagsanchors.com/.
Say hello to Jeff!
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-doss-937125/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beachbagsanchors/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beachbagsanchorsystem/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beachbagsanchors9178
Think you'd be a great guest on the show?
Apply https://go.intellectualstrategies.com/