Danny Combs didn’t set out to be the head of a non-profit that makes a huge difference in the lives of neurodivergent individuals. In fact, he spent most of his high school years working in the trades in the summer before serving a stint in the Air Force. After that, he moved to Nashville to pursue a music career.However, it was the birth of his son that radically changed Danny’s trajectory. After his son was diagnosed with autism, Danny found that most of the programs designed to help his son were deficit-based. Instead of telling his son what he was good at, the programs told him everything he needed to improve. Danny looked for programs that would focus more on his son’s abilities but couldn’t find any.That fact led Danny to create TACT, a Colorado-based nonprofit that teaches vocational skills to neurodivergent individuals and helps them find jobs. He would also become the director of the Colorado Disability Opportunity Office, a state-led organization that maximizes support for new and innovative programs benefiting Colorado’s disability community. In this episode of “Only The Strong Survive,” Danny discusses with host Dan Kahn why he started TACT, its critical mission and how neurodivergent people can make a positive impact in today’s workplace.

Click on the icon above to listen to the entire episode, and here are our top five takeaways:

* The trades offer great career paths for neurodivergent individuals.

* Changing the traditional educational model to better fit the needs of TACT’s students required radically different thinking.

* Creating TACT required a “just do it” mentality but also the right team.

* The focus and loyalty of neurodivergent people can make them ideal employees.

* It is time for business owners to question the narrative built around autism.

There is a lot of Opportunity in the Trades (Especially for Neurodivergent People)The massive increase in college costs and the rise of AI have led many people to consider vocational opportunities instead. With the previous focus on jobs that require degrees, there are also many unfilled jobs in the trades. These facts align perfectly with TACT’s mission and are a huge benefit for its neurodivergent students who might not thrive in a traditional college setting.“The trades offer so many opportunities. I think part of the reason TACT has such a high placement rate is that those businesses (in the trades) are seeing how talented our kids are. They are recognizing that, oh my gosh, this is an untapped talent pool,” said Danny.“When TACT started, it was me driving around in a ’58 Chevy, pretty much begging them to hire our graduates and look at all the things they can do. Now they come to us.”

A Shift in ThinkingFounding TACT required some significant shifts in thinking. First, Danny wanted to create an organization that focused on the abilities of autistic individuals instead of their supposed deficits. He also wanted to abandon the traditional time-based educational model, where people spend a fixed amount of time in programs before advancing. Both shifts played key roles in the success of TACT and its students.“At TACT, it is competency-based rather than timetable-based. So you and I went to high school for four years, and if we went to college, it was for four years. If you ask any educator why it is four years, nobody knows,” said Danny. “It seems to be this arbitrary number that we have come up with. But if you can do the job and you can develop the skills, why can't you just move along at that point?”

Just Do ItCreating TACT seemed like a giant undertaking, but Danny’s advice for anyone considering something similar is to just do it. While he threw himself at TACT with an almost reckless abandon out of sheer passion, he was smart enough to surround himself with the right people. Recognizing where he needed help was key to TACT’s survival and success.“It (starting TACT) was very, I wouldn’t say foolish or reckless, but more like a dad throwing everything into it and just going for it,” said Danny. “My education and trade background helped, but I had never written a grant before and didn't understand how it worked. Or how it works with the state and federal governments. I surrounded myself with people who did know all of that, and thankfully, those people have always ensured everything we do is very much above board.”

Locked In and LoyalMany neurodivergent individuals possess a unique skill sorely missing from much of today’s workforce: the ability to focus completely on a task until it is done. They are also highly appreciative of those who hire them and stay loyal to those employers. These facts can make them extremely talented and valuable employees.“When you look at our graduates, they are on task. They do not want to talk about what they saw on Facebook, what they did at the bar last night or who won the Broncos’ game. They want to work. That is what they want to do, and they are there to work,” said Danny. “Likewise, they are incredibly loyal. Once they get placed, they are not looking to go to theshop across the street for a quarter more because they are happy and feel valued and respected.”

Questioning the NarrativeFor business owners thinking of employing neurodivergent individuals, Danny notes that it is important to question the traditional narrative built around autism. By doing that and keeping an open mind, they can wind up with an awesome employee. Hiring someone with autism also isn’t just for charity, as they can make as big an impact on your business as you do on their lives.“I would encourage people to have an open mind and question the narrative that a lot of us have learned about autism. I would guess that when a lot of people hear the word 'autism,' they think it is a bad thing. That is what I thought when my son was first diagnosed with autism,” said Danny. “But as we are learning more, a lot of us are recognizing that this isn’t something we should shy away from or be afraid of. Maybe there is an opportunity for a demographic that we haven’t even recognized as there that we can bring into our businesses. I would encourage them to look for the programs that are supporting that talent in their area.”

Johannes Crepon of Paramount Data Management (PDM) knows a lot about product data. That might sound boring to some business founders who are more focused on developing actual products than on the data behind them. However, having the right product data is crucial for any automotive aftermarket e-commerce operation. Without ACES, PIES and other data standards, figuring out which parts fit which vehicles and other important information quickly becomes a mess, and selling those parts becomes almost impossible.

Johannes experienced this firsthand when he launched his own e-commerce business focused on selling hot-rod and classic Mustang parts in Europe. As the company grew, adding more parts to the site quickly became challenging with data of varying quality. Pivoting from his original business, Johannes founded PDM to address the challenges of inconsistent, fragmented and complex data in the automotive industry.

On this episode of the “Only The Strong Survive” podcast, Johannes sits down with host Dan Kahn to discuss the important role product data plays. It is an in-depth and interesting discussion of an often-overlooked but critical subject.

Click on the icon above to listen to the entire episode, and here are our top five takeaways:

* Accurate product data offers many benefits.

* Product data affects every channel of your business.

* Understanding the reasons for having good product data makes your brand more successful.

* Create the right infrastructure to ensure product data is accurate across your company.

* Build the right team and continuously invest in it.

The Benefits of Good Product Data are Huge

Some think of product data as minuscule details that don’t really matter. However, it affects everything from how your product appears on a site to whether consumers can even find it in the first place. Not paying attention to or having bad product data can have a significant negative impact on sales, as online consumers have little patience for errors.

“If you take it (product data) seriously, you will come out ahead. It is such an opportunity for companies now to really differentiate themselves from knock-off products and other companies,” said Johannes. “Building a brand and having that effort you put into it pay off has never been greater in my opinion.”

All Channels Benefit from Good Product Data

Another misconception about product data is that it is narrowly focused. However, because it affects so many aspects of e-commerce, the benefits of good data reach far and wide. Sales, marketing, wholesale distribution and all of your other channels perform better when product data is accurate.

“The beauty is that while you have that one channel you are optimizing for, all of your other channels are going to benefit from good product data,” said Johannes. “All channels will benefit from you taking cataloging seriously, at least for one channel to start. Then companies start to see the benefits across all their channels.”

Don’t Just Check the Box

Product data is about a lot more than just checking a box. According to Johannes, the companies that win with product data are the ones that have a clear understanding of what it is for. Without that vision, perfecting product data quickly becomes just another mundane task on a to-do list.

“The most successful suppliers we onboard are coming with a very specific objective. If the goal is that they just want to have ACES and PIES because someone told them to, whether external or internal, then they typically fail, because they are just checking a box,” said Johannes. “The most successful suppliers come with an objective. They see that they have an opportunity to grow their business with a customer, but they need better product data.”

Build Your Infrastructure First

Johannes notes that for any entrepreneur starting a business, it is important to consider where product data lives and to build a proper infrastructure around it. Often, product data comes from multiple sources and resides in different systems. If that data doesn’t match across your company, it can be extremely frustrating for your customers.

“This is why it is so important, this is true whether you are a hard parts supplier or a performance parts supplier, as you are setting up your company, and if you are taking it seriously and it’s not a side hustle, to really start thinking through what are the data points that are relevant to your business and which system owns that data point and how are those systems connected,” said Johannes. “You don’t want to run down the road, and a year later, you are trying to normalize and sync a lot of different systems. There is nothing more frustrating for a reseller than if they get data from you, but your website tells a different story.”

And Build the Right Team

As an entrepreneur himself, Johannes has naturally had his fair share of struggles. The key to getting through them (and avoiding some of them in the first place) is to employ the right people. Just as important as building your team is to continuously invest in it, especially in a rapidly evolving workspace.

“Build the right team and invest in your people. AI has a sense of doom to it that everyone is going to be out of work. Frankly, some people will be negatively affected as AI becomes more present,” said Johannes. “But on the flipside, people who embrace it and don’t shy away from it will benefit greatly, especially in their own professional careers. This is why, for me, as a CEO with a team of amazing people, I want to make sure they are not falling behind. It serves us as a company, but it also makes all of us so much more successful professionally.”

Velocity’s Tom Maxwell on “Only The Strong Survive”Initially, Tom Maxwell wanted to be an actor and got a degree in creative writing while attending university in the U.K. However, he quickly realized that pursuit would only be good enough for “beer money” and pivoted to a more steady corporate job. Corporate life turned out to be a bit too monotonous for Tom, and he made another pivot. This time, he landed at one of England’s premier Land Rover restoration specialists. It was there that his passion for cars and the business of restoring them was born.That pivot to a career in automotive restoration perfectly set him up for his current role as Velocity’s chief revenue officer. A premier builder of reimagined classics like early Ford Broncos, Mustangs, trucks and Chevy K5 Blazers, Velocity has revolutionized the restoration process with transparent pricing, no endless timelines, warranties, bespoke options and dealers nationwide. In his role, Tom is responsible for growing sales, marketing and the customer experience.On this episode of “Only The Strong Survive,” Tom shares with host Dan Kahn his deep insight into selling to a completely different customer base and the restoration market. It is a highly informative discussion for anyone selling high-end products or starting their own shop.

Click on the icon above to listen to the entire episode, and here are our top five takeaways:

* Always be passionate and knowledgeable about your products.

* The restomod market is still going strong.

* You have to do something different to stand out in a crowded market.

* Sales are more than just transactions.

* Hire people, not resumes.

Be Passionate and Be KnowledgeableVelocity’s offerings stretch well into six figures, so selling them takes different tactics than cheaper products. For Tom, it is not about convincing someone to purchase a Velocity build. Instead, it is about being knowledgeable and just as passionate about Velocity vehicles as potential customers are.“The biggest thing I have learned, and that we train into our sales guys, is that you have to be passionate about what you’re selling and you have to have the knowledge,” said Tom. “The truth is, these customers are all ultra-high-worth individuals, and they don’t like to be sold to. They don’t need to be sold to because if they are passionate about it, they are going to buy from you. It is then about building trust, and that trust comes from answering their questions, having knowledge of the product and being equally as excited about it as they are.”

The Restomod Market is HugeYes, the restomod market can be thought of as a niche industry, but it isn’t a small one. In fact, it continues to grow every year and attracts even more customers. It is a fact that even an industry veteran like Tom is surprised by.“What surprises me is how big this cottage industry has become. I remember back in 2017 or 2018 when I was doing Defenders and selling the first $100,000 Land Rover. We danced around like we invented fire,” said Tom. “Now, if you are going to build a restomod Defender, and that market is having a bit of a tough time at the moment, but certainly six to 12 months ago, you were going to be spending $350,000 for that sort of product. Seeing how this market has changed, seeing the appetite, the appeal and the fact that it hasn’t slowed down and continues to grow, that surprised me a lot.”

Create Something DifferentIf you want to compete in a crowded market, you have to differentiate yourself from your competition. While there are plenty of shops selling restomods, Velocity operates on a different business model: fixed pricing, warranties, quick delivery of a custom vehicle and inventory ready for sale. Velocity has also built many vehicles, meaning there are no bugs to work out.“You can go to places and spend really good money and still have issues,” said Tom. “If anybody has owned a classic car before, they will know the worst feeling is being really excited on a Friday night because they know the weather is going to be good on Saturday morning. Then they get in their car, and it doesn’t start, or it leaks or something doesn’t work. So a thing you are paying for (with Velocity) is consistency and knowing you can enjoy your vehicle when you have the time.

Sales are Consultative, not TransactionalIt is easy for a salesperson looking to meet a quota to see a sale as a transaction. However, when a customer is spending six figures, that logic doesn’t work. For Tom, sales should be more of a consultative process, with his role being to guide decisions and answer questions. If you view a sale as only a transaction, you’re more likely to lose it, regardless of price point.“I think all good selling at whatever price point has to be consultative. Our sales are definitely more consultative than most, and they are also passive. You can’t push. There are some people who come in and know what they want immediately, and that can be more transactional,” said Tom. “But a lot of the time, people have lots of questions, and it might be the first time they have ever purchased a vehicle like this.”

Hire the Person, not the ResumePeople can “look good on paper” with impressive resumes and backgrounds. However, for Tom, it is essential to look past a resume when hiring someone. A person might seem like a good fit on paper but not be the right fit for a company in the long run.“Early in my career, I looked at the resume rather than the person. I was trying to hire people on paper who felt like an amazing fit,” said Tom. “I should have known better, because I knew nothing when I got started. People might not be interested in products, but they are interested in people, customer service and standing for the right things. I had to learn that the hard way. I had two or three people who were very well paid and had incredible backgrounds, but just weren’t the right fit here.”

From a young age, Mark Neifeld knew he wanted to be involved in sports. However, unlike most kids who dream of being a star quarterback or center, Mark wanted to pursue a career in sports management. After graduating from college, his first job at the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning allowed him to pursue that dream. Eventually, he would also work with the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers.

However, as a natural entrepreneur, Mark decided to head out on his own and create his own path. The result is the Sport Fishing Championship (SFC), a unique saltwater fishing championship with over a dozen rounds of competition spread across the Atlantic, the Gulf and Cabo San Lucas. Using cutting-edge technology, the SFC delivers all the action from its tournaments to online viewers in real time.

Launching the high-stakes billfishing tournament with multi-million dollar boats, multiple stops and covering competition in the middle of the ocean was no easy task. Making it sustainable over the long run was an even bigger challenge. On this episode, Mark shares with “Only The Strong Survive” host Dan Kahn what he learned from launching the SFC, what it takes to keep it going and how it was the ultimate test of his entrepreneurial skills.

Click on the icon above to watch the entire interview, and here are our top five takeaways:

* Absorb as much knowledge as you can from those around you.

* Doing discovery before launching a business is critical.

* Understanding why your idea or product hasn’t existed before is also essential.

* Long-term thinking always wins over short-term profits.

* Successful entrepreneurs can’t be afraid of failure.

Be A SpongeMark credits a lot of his success to being around the right people early in his career. Whether they were mentors, leaders or successful entrepreneurs, Mark tried to learn as much as he could from them. His advice is to always “be a sponge” and absorb as much wisdom as you can from others.

“I had the great opportunity to work with all the people over at Teall Capital and Ben (Sutton) and all the people he had worked with for over 20 years. You know, just be a sponge,” said Mark. “I was younger back then, but I really was just a sponge. If you have an opportunity to have access to someone who really wants to mentor you and will tell you how they built their business, take it.”

Look Before You LeapMost entrepreneurs like to move fast. However, not taking the time to understand what you are getting into can ultimately lead to failure. For Mark, a detailed, lengthy discovery process for his idea of a saltwater fishing league was hugely beneficial. It helped him get an idea of what potential pitfalls were ahead and how to best tackle them.

“Turn of the calendar year on Jan. 2, I told myself I was going to put 90 days on my calendar to do discovery,” said Mark. “For me, at the time, I didn’t even really know what the problems or opportunities were. I was just asking questions. So I started picking up the phone and calling major tournament owners and asking them why there isn’t a PGA Tour of fishing?”

Know the WhyBeyond discovery, Mark notes that it is also essential to understand why something you are trying to make doesn’t exist. The answer to that question for a saltwater fishing championship was that all of the action takes place in the middle of the ocean. There was simply no way to bring the fishing live to online viewers. However, that was about to change with the advent of new technologies like Starlink.

“If we did what everyone else was doing, we wouldn’t be here right now. Bass fishing has been live for a long time. Why? Because you can transmit from a lake, back to a truck, and up and out. But try broadcasting from 450 miles offshore in the middle of the ocean,” said Mark. “So I got into it with SpaceX and learned about the LEO grid and where they were in that project. That was March of 2021, and as soon as I had that information, it was go time.”

Always Think Long TermFor entrepreneurs, there can be a struggle between short-term profit and long-term thinking. Often, the two can be at opposite ends of important business decisions. However, for Mark, thinking long-term is key and leads to a more sustainable brand that also generates a profit.

“My thing early on was that we needed to build the PGA Tour of fishing. The PGA is a 100-year league, so we needed to build a 100-year league. We need to think about how we can build a sustainable product with a strong business model behind it,” said Mark. “Ultimately, I am a capitalist and an entrepreneur and a red-blooded American. We want to create jobs, we want to lift the community. The captains, the mates and the people who work on these boats are superstars. We have to do our part to elevate them across sports media and entertainment culture.”

Never Be Afraid of FailureFear of failure is something that paralyzes many. However, for entrepreneurs, that fear must be set aside completely. According to Mark, one has to accept that failure is part of entrepreneurship. If you don’t let go of that, you will never take the many chances required to be successful.

“As an entrepreneur, you have to be prepared to fail. I fail all the time. I have failed with SFC, with certain projects or initiatives, or things like that. For me, I have never been afraid of failing,” said Mark. “I am saying all of this because hopefully there is a listener out there who has an idea, has the know-how, and has thought of a business and wants to go out and pursue that business. If I could speak to that person, I would say that you can’t be afraid to fail.”

Jason Noel’s path to success, like many entrepreneurs, has been long and hard-fought. In high school, he discovered a love of woodworking and carpentry and quickly landed a construction job after graduating. Once he reached the six-month mark in his employment, Jason decided to launch his own contracting operation. He quickly learned that, without any formal training or business education, being his own boss was difficult. However, he made a go of it until the 2008 recession wiped out most new construction. Soon, he was forced to close the business, and a divorce shortly after capped off a very miserable year.

Jason pivoted to real estate but soon missed the creative process of building something with his hands. While searching for another career path, his father-in-law had an old pickup that they both rebuilt. After selling it for a profit, buying another and doing the same, the idea for Fat Fender Garage was born. Now, Fat Fender Garage has gone from a one-man shop to a leader in parts, restorations and complete high-end builds of vintage trucks with over 70 employees.

Achieving success with Fat Fender Garage wasn’t instantaneous or easy for Jason. Along the way, he learned several hard lessons about entrepreneurship and running a business. On this episode of the “Only The Strong Survive Podcast,” host Dan Kahn discusses with Jason how he rose to the top of the highly competitive restomod market and the lessons he absorbed along the way.

Click on the icon to watch the entire episode, and here are our top five takeaways:

* Most entrepreneurs consider quitting at some point.

* You have to identify mistakes and take action to fix them.

* Your needs can often be the same as your customers.

* You will never succeed if you aren’t willing to work hard.

* Integrity is everything in business.

The Go/No-Go Period

Every entrepreneur faces a moment when they have to decide whether to move forward or to fold. For Jason, that time came when his neighbors finally got tired of his backyard shop. He either had to take on the cost of moving into a much larger, legitimate shop or close his doors. The decision really came down to how much he believed in himself and his product.

“This was a go/no-go period for me. Do we take on the risk of moving and all the extra expense and money? We are barely making it as it is. Deep inside, I had this belief that we had created something and started something that could be pretty good,” said Jason. “We had a really good product and brand that we were developing, and I always felt like I was almost there. I kept saying that for several years. So we decided to go ahead, let’s lease the building and committed to a three-year lease.”

Figure Out What Went Wrong and Fix It Quickly

Recognizing mistakes and then rectifying them is pivotal for any business. That lesson is especially true for brands just starting, as Jason learned after moving into the new shop. A handshake deal fell apart, costing the business significant money. Jason knew he had made a mistake and had to fix it quickly for Fat Fender Garage to succeed.

“We made a lot of changes. We put contracts in place and took the good-guy handshake deal out of it. We just said that we are running a business on these terms, and if you don’t want us to build for you, you don’t have to hire us. But if you wanted us to work for you, it was based on these terms,” said Jason. “I just decided we weren’t going to be the cheapest shop in town anymore, and we weren’t going to be doing things the way we did before.”

Find a Need and Fill It

Originally, Fat Fender Garage had no plans to be in the parts business and only wanted to focus on vehicle builds. However, after making their own parts to simplify those builds, Jason thought others could use those same parts on their trucks. His notion was correct, and his customers had the same needs. The parts side of Fat Fender Garage was born.

“I could buy all these parts, but they aren’t technically designed to go into the vehicle. They are designed to go into any vehicle, but they are not designed to go into my vehicle exactly the way they should. So we learned quickly that, in order to do it correctly, it was going to require fabrication,” said Jason. “I didn’t want to make a one-off of something five times; that is annoying. So what we started doing was making a part that works for us, because we are doing the same vehicle over and over. When that comes up next time, we just grab it off the shelf, and it makes it easy. That is how we got into the parts business.”

You Have to Put in the Work

Jason freely gives advice to others who ask him how to succeed. However, all the knowledge in the world won’t help if you aren’t willing to put in the work. If you are going to start your own business, you have to be prepared for it to take a lot of effort to succeed, because it absolutely does.

“We have people show up at the shop, and I give them the tour. I tell them that I will tell them everything that I am doing. I can show it to you, I can tell you about it, and I can give you all the tips and tricks,” said Jason. “But I can’t actually do the work for you. So if you are not willing to do the work, you are never going to get there. You have to be willing to put the time, the effort and the work in.”

Integrity is Everything

With a business that sells a six-figure product, integrity is everything for Jason. Without a stellar reputation, clients will look elsewhere. However, he notes that integrity isn’t enough for oneself, but should apply to everyone you do business with. And you need to be prepared for those who don’t think the same way.

“I want to have the utmost integrity in everything I do. However, I learned that not everybody is like that, not everybody is that way. So, as we are working in our businesses, only align yourself with people who have the utmost integrity and show who they are by the way they live their life and the things they are doing,” said Jason. “You can align yourself with those people, but those who don’t have that kind of integrity, just be careful because they are probably only going to be looking out for themselves. That might get you if you are not prepared for that.”

Corky Coker originally had no plans to enter the family business. His father had originally started Coker Tire in 1958 as a small shop that sold tires, performed retreads and handled light maintenance jobs. Even though he grew up as a “car guy” with his uncles and dad constantly working on Model As and Ts, Corky wanted to be a veterinarian. However, after getting all “Bs” in college (babes, brews and banjos, according to Corky), his father promptly told him to come back and help run the family business.

Corky took over what, at the time, was a small niche of the business, focusing on finding tires for classic and collector cars. Having flipped cars before he could legally drive and working in the tire shop since he was a kid, Corky quickly found success. Over the years, he painstakingly grew that niche into the main business, turning Coker Tire into a global leader in tires for collector, antique and restored vehicles.

On this episode of the “Only The Strong Survive” podcast, Corky shares with host Dan Kahn how he grew Coker Tire from a small family-run business into an iconic brand. Filled with deep insight from decades of experience, Corky’s knowledge is valuable for any entrepreneur, leader or CEO.

Click on the icon above to listen to the entire episode, and here are our top five takeaways:

* Success is all about finding the right niche and owning it.

* There are pros and cons to private equity.

* Suppliers play a larger role in a brand’s success than most people realize.

* Investing in quality always pays off in the long term.

* Work hard, but don’t ignore your family.

Find Your Niche and Own It

Coker Tire is a prime example of how crucial it is for a business to find its niche and own it. The company initially started as a more general one, selling tires and performing small maintenance jobs. However, zeroing in on manufacturing specialty tires for collector and antique cars unlocked growth that never could have been achieved in Coker Tires’ original, more generalized form.

“Anything that you do, do to the best of your ability. Just explore and learn everything there is about it,” said Corky. “A niche, a specialty, our business was classified as a niche. I basically owned that niche because I knew everything about it. I knew what the customer wanted, and I knew how to find out what the customer wanted. You have to stand before them and show them empathy and integrity, and that you are one of them.”

The Dilemma of Private Equity

Private equity has made a significant entry into the automotive aftermarket, purchasing multiple businesses. With his children not interested in running the business, selling Coker Tire to private equity made sense for Corky to retire. However, he notes that the move did not come without some unforeseen downsides.

“Private equity has a different attitude about people,” said Corky. “Most private equity firms hire smart people, but they don’t hire people from the industry very often. That is a big mistake because they tick off their customers, their suppliers and their employees. That is their dilemma, and they have come into our industry and paid a lot of money (for companies).”

Your Suppliers Are Extremely Important

Many companies focus on introducing new products and services to stay constantly ahead of their competitors. However, according to Corky, your relationships with your suppliers are just as important. You can create as many products as you want, but none of that matters if you can’t get the supplies needed to manufacture them. Solid relationships with your suppliers are a key to success.

“The hardest part of making Coker Tire a success was sourcing product. We developed products at great places, and we became partners with our suppliers,” said Corky. “That is what some of the private equity folks don’t get. They go and hire buyers from big corporations who believe everything is a commodity, and they try to save five cents here and there. We developed relationships with our suppliers to begin with, so I was always able to get on their production schedules.”

Quality Doesn’t Cost, It Pays

Coker Tires’ ability to grow and scale over the years has been impressive. Central to that growth was a relentless pursuit of quality with its products. While some may view quality as a cost, Corky explains that investing in it always pays off in the end.

“Quality doesn’t cost, it pays. The pursuit of the best you can do pays. People look for it, they desire it and they will tell others about it,” said Corky. “When you have a problem with a product, and you don’t handle it, that guy will tell seven people. If you have a product that is wonderful, you might be on a podcast with a guy who has your tires on his hot rod and loves them. Quality does count, and it does pay, and I am thankful for that.”

Advice for Entrepreneurs from Decades of Experience

Having built Coker Tire from a small family shop to a global leader in specialty tires, Corky’s knowledge runs deep. Thankfully, he doesn’t gatekeep any of that expertise that comes from decades of experience. His best advice for aspiring entrepreneurs is a simple mix of hard work, family and sticking to what you know.

“Make a list and be about it. Number two, do what you know and do it well. Work half the time, that is 12 hours a day. Pay attention to your family and don’t ignore them. I did when I was a young adult, and I was out on the road doing 200,000 miles a year on airplanes, etc. My kids grew up without me, and that is one of the reasons they didn’t want the tire company,” said Corky. “But that was God’s grace for me, too, by the way. I sold the company in December of 2018, and the market just started declining somewhat, then COVID happened, and it hasn’t been the same since.”

2025 has been an amazing year for the “Only The Strong Survive” podcast. Throughout the year, we recorded 25 episodes, bringing our total to 55 installments of OTSS since its launch just over two years ago. We have had some fantastic guests since the start, sharing their insightful knowledge on entrepreneurship, marketing, running a business and what it takes to be successful in today’s ever-changing business environment.

For this special episode, we decided to take a look back at some of our best episodes from “Only The Strong Survive.” Rather than just one guest, this unique episode features a multitude of leaders, authors, experts and entrepreneurs sharing their deep insights with host Dan Kahn. Give it a watch to see our favorite and most impactful moments from “Only The Strong Survive,” and we have even more in store for 2026.

A special thank you to our guests and viewers who have helped make it a great year. Here are our top five takeaways from this episode:

* Company culture is just as critical as the products you make.

* Running a modern business involves having lots of emotional intelligence.

* True leaders aren’t afraid to ask for help.

* Building a community around your brand is central for creating a connection with your customers.

* Ikigai is a path to happiness.

BluePrint Engines CEO Norris Marshall on Crafting Company Culture

Company culture is often overlooked in the drive to produce more products and create new ones. However, it is essential and should never be ignored. Recognizing this fact long before company culture became a more recent focus, Norris Marshall carefully built the right one. The move proved wise, as Marshall built a brand that employees want to be a part of and move forward.

“I guess the culture comes from me, how I want to treat our employees and how I expect our managers to treat our employees. I start with the idea that everybody wants to do a good job, and you just have to find a way to let them,” said Norris. “I also do believe that people are capable of a lot more than we realize if we challenge and encourage them. So, I am big on challenging and encouraging. I’ve got a lot of push, and I am not easy to work for. At the same time, I am on their side, and I want to help them. I think you need to make it personal, too. People need to know that you care about them, and when the moment arises to show that, you really need to show up.”

Hellwig CEO Melanie White on How Running a Modern Business is Different

Melanie White wasn’t always sure that she wanted to run the family business. In college, she pursued a degree in psychology instead of the “usual suspects” of business, finance or marketing. However, that choice proved to be a wise one, as running a business today is different. Now, understanding how to motivate and interact with a wide range of employees is just as important as technical business know-how.

“I feel like it (the psychology degree) has helped me quite a bit,” said Melanie. “Now, it is a very different time when businesses are lucky to have team members. So, it is a shift that we have to make that is subtle but really important. As a business, we have to look at how to motivate our team members, attract them and be a really good place to work.”

Not Your Average Joe’s Tim Herbel on True Leadership

Business leaders often have pretty big egos, and sometimes, rightfully so. However, that same ego that helped build a business can also destroy it. Thinking you know the solution to every problem is a surefire way to slow or reverse your brand’s growth. A true leader will recognize their limitations, ask for help and surround themselves with people who can assist them.

“Once upon a time, I had a lot of talent, and I knew it. The ego got in the way, and it wasn’t until I failed miserably at life and had some time on the anvil that I realized that I don’t have all the answers,” said Tim Herbel. “It wasn’t until I failed and learned from failure that I learned what leadership is. Leadership is about being transparent and saying, ‘I don’t know, and I could use your help.’ Learning to ask for help as a leader is hard. But if you do it, you get surrounded by a good team.”

Author and Marketing Expert Mark Schaefer on the Importance of Community

Brands can be hyper-fixated on the next great product or idea. However, building community is just as crucial for a company as its products. Developing a community creates a connection with your customers that keeps them consistently returning to your brand, rather than your competition.

“As human beings, we don’t just want community; we need community because it helps form our identities. No matter what happens in this world, if a brand can create a community, it is the ultimate emotional connection,” said Mark Schaefer. “People don’t just love your soft drink or your cosmetics; they love each other in a community, and they will literally belong to a brand.”

SEMA’s RJ De Vera on Ikigai

Ikigai is a compound of the two Japanese words “iki” and “kai,” which roughly translates to “a reason for living.” However, the concept of Ikigai builds on this translation by finding fulfillment through aligning one’s passion with their skills and talents. For anyone looking to start their career, RJ De Vera notes that Ikigai is well worth exploring.

“Everyone says to find your passion, but I think there is more to it than that. There is this philosophy called Ikigai. It comes out of Japan, and it is this idea that you merge your passion and your skill,” said RJ. “So, what do you love, what are you passionate about, what are you good at, what does the world need and what can you get paid for? My advice to people would be to find the center point of all of those things. If you love car culture, develop the right skill set in something that can help you make a living, which is hopefully something that this culture and world needs. I think that is where you find success.”

Peter Nam is unique for starting not just one successful brand but two. After graduating from Boston University with a degree in finance, he struggled to find a job in his field immediately following the burst of the dot-com bubble. Instead of continuing his fruitless search, Peter decided to launch a passion project selling high-quality carbon-fiber parts for European vehicles. Over 20 years later, Vorsteiner remains an innovative force in crafting aerospace-grade carbon components for exotic and high-performance vehicles.

Having been passionate about cars since childhood, Peter realized that modern cars were quickly losing their character and were overburdened with technology. In response, he founded Gunther Werks in 2017. Zeroing in primarily on the Porsche 993 platform, Gunther Werks completely reimagines the 993 to perfectly blend modern technology with an analog driving experience. Today, Gunther Werks is well-known across the automotive world for pushing the boundaries of performance and bringing back the joy of driving with its meticulously crafted and highly sought-after vehicles, such as the Turbo, F-26 and the GWX.

On this episode of the “Only The Strong Survive” podcast, Peter discusses what it was like to build two successful businesses from the ground up and the vital lessons he learned along the way.

Click on the icon above to hear the entire insightful interview with host Dan Kahn, and here are our top five takeaways from the discussion:

* Success never comes easy.

* Entrepreneurship involves wearing many “hats.”

* Learning on the job and rapidly adapting is a key to success.

* Efficiently producing a product will be your biggest challenge.

* Don’t count on people changing their ways.

Expect to Struggle

Most people only see Vorsteiner’s current state as a highly successful brand. However, like many startups, there was a long struggle to get Vorsteiner where it is today. Success never comes easy, and you should expect plenty of adversity along the way. If you don’t like struggling, then entrepreneurship probably isn’t for you.

“It was quite a struggle, actually, trying to penetrate the market where people were used to buying from high-end German tuning brands, and here I was, an American-based brand, trying to make products for BMWs,” said Peter. “It was a struggle to convince people that our brand and our products were on the same level as our competitors. It took years for us to break through and penetrate that market.”

Expect to Wear Lots of Hats

Unless you have significant financial backing for the launch of your brand, you will have to fill many roles yourself. In its earliest days, Vorsteiner was essentially a one-person operation, with Peter handling product design, shipping, invoicing and everything else to keep the lights on. Even as the company grew, there wasn’t the budget for financial or management specialists. Peter had to fill these roles himself and try to learn on the fly.

“We were very lean top-down. It was mostly manufacturing and operational staff that I hired. I couldn’t go out and hire a CEO or CFO for $100,000 or $200,000 a year,” said Peter. “We didn’t have the budget for that, so I basically had to wear those hats myself and have people who were manufacturing the products and doing the operations and shipping to support me. I had to wear a lot of hats both operationally and management-wise in my earlier years, and I had honestly no idea what I was doing.”

On-the-Job Learning

Launching what was essentially a low-volume, high-performance bespoke car company with Gunther Werks was definitely a new direction for Peter. Hiring engineering experts and other specialists was a massive help in bolstering the areas where Peter needed specialized knowledge. However, a significant factor in Gunther Werks’ success was Peter and his team’s ability to quickly learn on the job and rapidly adapt.

“There is no book you can read from Barnes & Noble about how to build a car company. You have to learn on the job. Even if I were to work in the finance field and investment banking, just because I have a finance degree, it doesn’t mean anything,” said Peter. “Most of the learning actually happens on the job. You have to adapt and constantly be learning and constantly improving your processes. It is a never-ending process. I am learning every single day, and the more I learn, the more I realize how much I don’t know.”

One-offs are Easy, Production is Not

Most startups have a hyper focus on developing the products they will sell. However, Peter notes that the challenge isn’t coming up with a product or prototype, but rather how to produce it efficiently and on a large enough scale to make a profit. While they are entirely different products, the hard-fought production lessons that Peter learned with Vorsteiner were critical to the success of Gunther Werks.

“When you are building a concept car or a proof of concept or a show display vehicle, anybody can do that in their mom’s garage. It is actually not very difficult for me to build a one-off concept car. It is actually productionizing that car, which is really an incredibly painful challenge,” said Peter. “It is so difficult, and this is where most of the car builders fail. They build a one-off car, and they don’t know how to productionize it and make money doing it. This is why you see so many car builders, a majority of them, fail after two to three years.”

Don’t Try to Change People

One painful lesson that Peter has learned through hiring people for both his companies is that people don’t really change. While most of us want to mentor and develop employees, it can be nearly impossible if the person is unwilling or unable to change. For Peter, holding onto substandard employees with the hope that they might one day change their ways is a recipe for failure.

“One of the things I have learned from hiring hundreds of employees for both of my companies is that it is very difficult to change somebody. I thought, ‘Okay, he could work out, and I can change him and mold him into what I want him to be.’ I would say that is almost always a recipe for disaster,” said Peter. “I think that is the biggest mistake I have made when dealing with poor-performing employees who didn’t have the right vision, and I thought I could change them. I wasted many years trying to mold these people, and it just didn’t work out in the end.”

Growing up in the Adirondack Mountains, Lauryn Menard always had a love of the outdoors. Eventually, the big city and her interest in fashion design called her south to New York City. However, she quickly grew tired of the fashion world and wanted to stop chasing trends and focus on solving bigger problems. That realization led Lauryn to switch to a career in industrial design and co-found PROWL Studio, an industrial design and research studio specializing in sustainable products, with clients including Herman Miller and BMW.

Eventually, Lauryn would fuse her love of nature with industrial design by becoming a bio-designer and founding GOB. The company aims to replace the 40 billion polyurethane single-use earplugs thrown away every year with ones that are fully biodegradable and made from Mycelium, a natural, farm-grown material derived from mushrooms.

On this episode of the “Only The Strong Survive” podcast, Lauryn shares insights from her unique entrepreneurial journey with host Dan Kahn. The in-depth discussion breaks down what it takes to launch a highly innovative business, how she plans to compete in a crowded space and what the musts are for modern brands to thrive.

Click on the icon above to listen to the entire episode, and here are our top five takeaways:

* Create a vision to anchor your brand before building it.

* Always hire someone unbiased to check your products before launch.

* Hire people to fill the gaps where you lack skill.

* Building brand awareness is vital to compete in crowded markets.

* Don’t always listen to advice from others.

Create an Ethos First

Some entrepreneurs start by creating products and figuring out how to sell them. Lauryn pulled back even further and wanted GOB to focus on what happens to products at the end of their life cycles. That foundational work helped guide the vision for biodegradable earplugs and pave the way for future GOB products.

“A product, no matter if you are talking about a massive dump truck with a million moving parts or you are talking about an earplug, it is nothing but materials at the end of the day. Once something is no longer usable, it’s obsolete, and you don’t need it anymore. All that is left are materials,” said Lauryn. “So, what we came up with was basically to begin with the end, which became an ethos and is how we still work at GOB. It is this ethos and idea that when you start thinking about a product, you have to think about its end of life just as much as its form and function.”

Hire a B.S. Detector

One important step Lauryn took early in the creation of GOB was to hire someone to validate whether its earplugs were effective. This move was a crucial one, as some entrepreneurs can have a strong bias towards their own products or ideas. An outside set of expert and unbiased eyes taking a close look at GOB’s earplugs and validating their effectiveness gave Lauryn the confidence to move forward.

“We brought on an audiologist in Berkley, which is near where our office is. He was our b.s. detector to figure out if this is actually working,” said Lauryn. “You can have your own biases when you have an idea, and you think it is working. Then you get to launch, and no one checked you. That is what we wanted to avoid.”

Fill Those Gaps

We have heard the importance of hiring the right people from OTSS guests before. However, Lauryn takes it a step further and notes that it is crucial to identify your weaknesses as a CEO. Then you can hire people to fill those “gaps” and assist you in the areas where you need the most help. Doing so does take an honest assessment of one’s abilities, though.

“I think that what I have uncovered as a creative CEO is that it can be an advantage if you are willing and able to look at the things you are bad at and fill those gaps with people who are incredible at those things,” said Lauryn. “We have a COO who has helped scale consumer product companies before. He was at Quip, the toothbrush company, he was at Fable, the dog care company, and a few others. He fills my gaps perfectly. Obviously, I need to understand the P&L, I need to understand our budget and set those things, but it is more of a collaborative process.”

Brand Awareness is King

If you want to compete in a crowded space, you absolutely have to build brand awareness. For Lauryn, that means embracing a direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales model. That setup allows GOB to reach, interact and market directly to its customers, rather than going through a middleman or wholesalers.

“I think if you want to be successful out in the world physically, at retail stores, venues, etc., these days, you have to have brand awareness, and that starts with DTC. We are scaling our DTC sales for that reason,” said Lauryn. “We want to spread, for lack of a better way to say it, like a virus. We want to be everywhere. Our products that we create basically have the added benefit of being relevant and ubiquitous in so many places.”

Don’t Always Take Advice

Having a mentor and the advice of others as an entrepreneur is huge. However, Lauryn notes that you must weigh that guidance and mentorship against your gut instincts. Ultimately, your instincts are usually correct, even if they go against the advice of others, when making tough decisions.

“Listening to people’s advice as if it is the way things need to be, I think that tends to be a thing with female entrepreneurs. We tend to take advice to heart maybe more,” said Lauryn. “I’ve taken people’s advice on hiring people that I shouldn’t have hired. I wasn’t listening enough to my gut and the signals that were present. I was taking mentorship maybe a little too far, I would say. I have learned to always double-check myself with myself and sit back before making hard decisions.”

Joe Molina built one of the most respected public relations agencies in the automotive world from the ground up. While serving in the U.S. Army and writing for his base’s newspaper, he somehow arranged for a concert with a then-up-and-coming band called Kiss. After the concert with the band that would rapidly become rock legends, Joe quickly realized that he no longer wanted to be a journalist but a publicist.

Not one to ever sit around idly, Joe quickly put his plan into motion. One year after leaving the U.S. Army, he founded JMPR and steadily grew its client base. Over its 40-plus years, and through considerable hard work and persistence, the agency secured some of the biggest automotive brands among its client roster, including Rolls-Royce, Ducati, Lamborghini and many more. Eventually, Joe would sell the company before semi-retiring in Indiana.

Among the many JMPR employees who got their start in public relations at the agency was “Only The Strong Survive” host Dan Kahn. On this episode of the podcast, Joe and Dan reflect on what it was like working together before becoming fierce competitors. The former president and founder of JMPR also explains what it took to build a successful company from scratch and run it for decades. Click on the icon above to listen to the entire insightful episode of “Only The Strong Survive,” and here are our top five takeaways:

* Don’t just do what you love, do what you know.

* Trickling down from the top is quicker than starting at the bottom.

* You have to know when to let go.

* It is okay to not always be number one.

* Hire the right people and strive to retain them.

Do What You Love (and What You Know)

Joe attributes much of his early success to his passion for exotic cars. Combining what he loved and also had an in-depth knowledge of with a fearless attitude opened many doors early on. While there were definitely other agencies, few of them combined the automotive expertise and passion that Joe had.

“It all grew from the fact that, as a kid, I just loved cars. I knew all the things about exotic cars, not just regular cars, although I knew that industry too. I knew everything, every fact, every this, that and the other,” said Joe. “I could talk to anyone about anything, and I knew just enough to where they would say he knows his stuff, so he must be connected somehow.”

It is Easier to Trickle Down Than Up

Another key to JMPR’s success Joe cites was his relationship with publishing icon Robert E. Petersen. At the height of his empire, Petersen published nearly every major automotive magazine in the United States, along with other popular publications such as Guns & Ammo and Teen, and founded the Petersen Automotive Museum. Doing an excellent job for Petersen led him to recommend JMPR to his many contacts across multiple industries.

“For 17 years, we represented the Petersen Automotive Museum. They only ever had two PR agencies; I was one, and you (Kahn Media) were the other. But he introduced me to everybody,” said Joe. “I represented MotorTrend, Hot Rod, Teen magazine, Guns & Ammo, all of his 40-some-odd titles and his events. Then his friends wanted to hire me, and I was dealing with the guys who owned the companies. It was like I started at the top, and it is easier to trickle down than trickle up.”

Knowing When to Let Go

Selling a business is a highly personal experience for any entrepreneur who has built their company from the ground up. The same was true for Joe, as he wrestled with the decision to finally sell JMPR. However, knowing when to let go of a company is just as critical of an entrepreneurial skill as knowing when to start one.

“It’s a very personal thing of when to let go. I happened to be in my mid-60s and had a run for 43 years, 45 if you count some of the army years, and it was just time,” said Joe. “There is a time, if you are successful, or you think you are successful, or they tell you that you are successful, when you have to get off the stage and let other people on to perform. My time was over, everything was changing and I felt like an analog guy in a digital world.”

Nobody Stays on Top Forever (and That’s Okay)

For such a hard-charging and competitive individual as Joe, his perspective on staying ahead might be surprising to some, but it is shaped by decades of hard-fought experience. He notes that the desire to be number one in your industry is natural, but it ignores the cyclical nature of business. Staying on top also requires a lot of sacrifice that might not be worth it in the long run.

“Nobody stays on top forever. There is a rhythm to these things, and if you want to stay up forever, you are going to have to give away your sanity, your family and everything else to keep up with it because you have to be completely obsessed and have very little emotional room for anybody else,” said Joe. “I realized I had my day in the sun, I made it, I was there for several years at the top of the list, and I had made a good living.”

Always Hire Smart People

One piece of advice that Joe gives is one that we hear regularly from guests on “Only The Strong Survive.” That tip for success is to always hire smart people and treat them with respect. The right employees can make all the difference between your brand being successful or an afterthought.

“Always hire people who are smarter and know more than you and understand things that are changing quicker than you. Hold them with respect, and it is not just about paying them, it is about respecting them. You only got them for a little while,” says Joe. “The other thing we all learned is that everything has its time, and it’s a treadmill, and everyone is with you for a portion of their career. But try to find the bright ones, find the ones that can still work a room when there is a room to be worked, even if that is now a digital room.”