Hustleshare

Kevin Brockland, Founder of Indelible Ventures, reveals the hard-earned lessons from the 2008 financial crisis that now fuel his venture capital success backing B2B tech startups across Southeast Asia. From small-town Missouri to Malaysia's dynamic startup scene, he unpacks the reality of impact investing, what makes companies truly investor-ready, and the keys to building resilient, scalable tech businesses in emerging markets.

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: The Philippines' leading fractional CFO services provider. https://www.onecfoph.co/

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In this episode, we sit down with Dennis Velasco, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Prosperna, an online marketing and e-commerce platform designed to empower small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and real estate professionals in the Philippines.

Dennis shares his journey from growing up as an Asian-American in Texas to discovering entrepreneurship through his family’s businesses. He recalls his rise in Silicon Valley with companies like Salesforce, Cornerstone OnDemand, and Xero, and how launching a small business during the 2008 financial crisis shaped his entrepreneurial mindset. Ultimately, Dennis reveals what inspired him to return to the Philippines to found Prosperna, empowering SMEs to embrace e-commerce and digital growth.

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Phil Renner, co-founder and CEO of Dr. Shiba, to share how a German-born McKinsey consultant turned his love for pets into one of Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing pet care brands. Phil breaks down how his multicultural upbringing shaped his hustle, why he bet on the Philippines’ booming e-commerce scene, and how Dr. Shiba became a go-to brand for pet parents across the region. He also talks about scaling from startup to multi-market player, the tough calls behind culture and hiring, and what it takes to build a proudly Filipino-led global brand from the ground up.

Resources:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipprenner 

Website: https://dr-shiba.com 

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Mansueto "Joel" Callao, Chairman and CEO of NYXSYS, to travel through his journey from a PUP graduate breaking into multinational sales to leading one of the Philippines’ biggest players in digital out-of-home advertising. Joel shares how persistence helped him land major clients, why a ₱26M billboard deal with no location became his first big break, and how a spectacular installation failure pushed him to level up. He opens up about shifting from static billboards to Asia’s largest LED displays, pivoting during the pandemic to build AI-powered audience measurement, and the leadership lessons he’s learned from working with Gen Z talent. Joel also gets real about staying true to your company’s “why,” keeping innovation constant, and why embracing failure is essential to long-term success.

Resources:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mansueto-callao-73a110a4 

Website: https://nyxsys.ph 

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

PLDT Enterprise: MSME Fiberbiz and 5G SIM Only

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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Mel Nava, founder and CEO of 1Export, to talk about her journey from hustling as a bazaarista and working in export sales to building a tech startup that empowers Filipino SMEs to expand globally. Mel opens up about the struggles of bootstrapping a company, losing her co-founders, and battling depression, and why she chose resilience over giving up. She also shares how 1Export turned a “rejected idea” into a fast-growing export platform, the lessons she learned from her MBA at AIM, and how the company is making compliance, documentation, and global market access easier for small businesses.

Resources:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melnava 

Website: https://1export.com/ 

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Vincent Mendoza, founder and CEO of Farmvocacy, to talk about his journey from selling security systems door-to-door and launching beverages at URC to building a climate fintech startup that empowers Filipino farmers. Vincent opens up about the failures that forced him to start over, why he chose purpose over a stable corporate career, and how Farmvocacy is breaking the cycle of farmer debt with commodity-backed financing and sustainable partnerships. He also shares the lessons he’s learned from surviving multiple “valleys of death,” and how grit, humility, and faith continue to guide him as he brings Filipino innovation to the global stage.

Resources:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincent-roy-mendoza-b39a64121/ 

Website: https://farmvocacy.com/ 

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Lester Cruz, CEO of Singlife Philippines, to talk about the journey that took him from his early sales grind and 15 years at Citi to pioneering digital banking at CIMB and Uno before leading one of the country’s most innovative digital insurers. Lester gets real about the rejections that built his grit, the leadership lessons he learned climbing the corporate ladder, and why he chose to take on the massive challenge of closing the Philippines’ insurance gap. He also shares how he’s redefining the insurance experience for Filipinos, and what running, resilience, and family have taught him about leadership and balance.

Resources:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lester-cruz-0243ab122 

Website: https://singlife.com.ph 

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

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In this episode of Hustleshare, we chat with Nel Laygo, Founder and CEO of Peddlr, to unpack the wild journey that took him from hustling as a kid in Catbalogan, Samar to building one of the Philippines’ fastest-growing fintech startups for micro and small businesses. Nel gets real about how early side hustles shaped his entrepreneurial grit, why breaking through barriers in Region 8 gave him a chip on his shoulder, and what it took to scale Peddlr from idea to 250,000 downloads in just six months. He also shares how he tackled user trust issues, built a grassroots community that became their biggest growth driver, and what he learned moving from bootstrapping to finally raising investor capital.

Resources:

LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nel-laygo-a2486686 

Website:

https://www.peddlr.io 

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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In this episode of Hustleshare, we explore the story of Carl Orale, a repeat founder and CEO of Ticket Nation Philippines—an innovative platform helping venues and event producers deliver seamless ticketing experiences. Carl takes us through his rollercoaster journey: from running his first internet café as a college student, to building a 50-person BPO, to enduring three bankruptcies—including a crushing collapse during the pandemic. He opens up about how his upbringing fueled his hustle, how gaming sparked his passion for tech and entrepreneurship, and the tough lessons learned from financial missteps, scaling too fast, and bearing the responsibility of dozens of employees. Most importantly, Carl shares how he found the grit to rise again—launching Ticket Nation in 2020 and generating over $1.4 million in ticket sales in under a year.

Resources:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carl-angelo-orale/

Website: https://ticketnation.ph/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ticketnationphilippines/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ticketnationphofficial

X (Twitter): https://x.com/ticketnationph

Links/Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Hustleshare, we sit down with Clive Aranha, General Manager of Hotel Casiana, to talk about how he went from running bars on cruise ships to leading one of the top hotels in Tagaytay. Clive shares how growing up in the hustle of Mumbai sparked his love for hospitality, how he built and sold his own restaurant in Australia, and what brought him back to the Philippines. He also talks about the ups and downs of entrepreneurship, building strong teams, and how he helped turn things around at Hotel Casiana in just over a year—with the help of partners to fix key challenges and support their rapid growth.

Learn more about Clive Aranha

Official Website: https://www.hotelcasiana.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gmclivearanha

Sponsors:

OneCFO: https://www.onecfoph.co/

PLDT Enterprise: https://pldtenterprise.com

- MSME Fiberbiz - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-fiberbiz 

- 5G SIM Only - https://bit.ly/pldtenterprise-ROId-nbsi-smart-postpaid

Hustleshare is powered by Podmachine

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.