Wonder why things are the way they are? Why brands settle for the status quo when there's obviously a better way? That's what Altra Running founder Golden Harper thought as he hacked and modified his running store customers' shoes to alleviate all types of pains. After selling thousands of altered shoes, he figured there was a market for foot-shaped, zero drop shoes, but Nike, adidas, nor any of the other big brands were interested in the tech. So he launched it himself, bringing key friends and angels on board to get the first production run going, then sold the entire copmany before the first shoe ever delivered. There are a ton of lessons here for anyone that things they've found a better way to do something!