Season 2 of Unfinished Business is officially here and a lot has changed since we wrapped Season 1.

When we first started this podcast, we were still at Clay. Hulken was growing, but it wasn’t our full focus. Over the last year, we left venture-backed SaaS, went all in on Hulken, hit $50M in revenue, launched nationwide in Target with an end cap, expanded across Asia, opened our first office in New York, and built a small but senior team around us.

This season is about what happens after the early momentum. When growth is real. When retail calls. When international demand shows up. When profitability matters. When you start asking how to go from 50 to 100 without losing control.

We’ll be building in public. We’re sharing how we’re thinking about intentional growth, breaking the Meta ceiling, retail strategy, international expansion, and what it actually takes to scale a profitable DTC brand today.

If you’re a DTC founder, operator, or aspiring builder, Season 2 is about learning in real time. And if there’s a brand you think we should be studying this season, tell us. We’re just getting started.

Melanie Travis didn’t go to fashion school. She didn’t work at a legacy brand. She didn’t have a co-founder, a warehouse, or a team.

What she did have was a miserable experience swimsuit shopping for a company retreat and a hunch that other women felt the same.

In this episode of Unfinished Business, Melanie joins Alex and Lee to share how she turned a universal frustration into Andie Swim, a nationally recognized brand that’s sold millions of swimsuits and recently expanded into new categories through strategic acquisition.

We talk about:

– The origin story: from BarkBox employee to Kickstarter campaign to CEO

– How she taught herself the fashion supply chain using an Airbnb “fashion tour”

– Why she believes the classic DTC playbook no longer works

– The truth about raising $30M and still struggling to reach profitability

– Her approach to omnichannel growth, from Nordstrom to private label deals

– What she looks for in brand acquisitions (and how she bought her first)

– How she’s building a multi-brand portfolio while juggling two young kids

Melanie keeps it brutally honest about fundraising, scaling, hiring, and growth. This episode is a masterclass for consumer founders and a reality check for anyone chasing the DTC dream.

No guests. No prep. Just us.

In this episode, we sat down together — two co-founders, two moms, two longtime partners in life and business — to talk about what’s really keeping our relationships strong. And what’s absolutely not.

We covered:

– Why Alex has never farted in front of her husband in 10 years (yes, really)

– Why French kissing still matters (even after a decade)

– How to maintain attraction without pretending it’s 2014

– What our moms taught us about effort and appearance

– The one yearly trip that saves our sanity and our spark

– Why mystery is underrated and boundaries still matter

This is the stuff that doesn’t always make it into podcast interviews.

But it’s real, it’s funny, and we think it’s worth saying out loud.

If you’ve ever wondered how to balance love, motherhood, marriage, and not totally losing yourself… this one’s for you.

Watch the full episode now and don’t forget to subscribe.

Liz Teich and her brand The New York Stylist is the real deal. A New York fashion stylist with nearly 20 years of experience, a loyal online following, and a sustainable wardrobe philosophy that actually makes sense.

In this episode, Liz sits down with Alex and Lee to talk about how she built her business, her brand, and her confidence… without chasing trends or cutting corners.

We cover:

• The personal story behind The New York Stylist

• What it’s really like to style celebrities (including Mike Tyson)

• Her best advice for anyone starting a creative business

• Why she prioritizes sustainability and “shopping your closet”

• What pieces actually belong in your wardrobe

• The connection between style, confidence, and showing up for yourself

Plus: why Lee needs to clean her sneakers, how Liz fakes the perfect tuck, and the psychological power of getting dressed (even if it’s just for your mailman).

If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by fashion, disconnected from your closet, or unsure how to show up with confidence—this episode will make you feel seen, smarter, and a little more stylish.

Tieghan Gerard built one of the most beloved food brands on the internet.

Today, Half Baked Harvest has over 6 million followers across platforms, four bestselling cookbooks, a candle line, a sold-out national tour with Williams-Sonoma, and a fiercely loyal community that shows up for everything she creates.

But the story behind the brand? It’s chaotic, personal, and deeply real.

In this episode of Unfinished Business, Tieghan sits down with Alex and Lee to talk about:

• Starting Half Baked Harvest with her mom at 19

• Growing up as one of eight kids in a wildly creative (and noisy) household

• Managing anxiety while running a massive business

• Why she focuses on her website and email list (not just social media)

• How she stays creatively inspired without following trends

• What she’d do if she had to start all over in 2025

• And why she still makes pancakes for lunch when she’s feeling off

This isn’t a story about recipes. It’s about resilience, identity, and building a brand that lasts… without selling your soul to the algorithm.

If you’re a creative, entrepreneur, or multi-hyphenate woman trying to build something real, this one’s for you.

Victoria Brito has lived many lives: ballerina, global fashion model, queer icon, and now podcast host. But beneath the resume is a story of resilience, reinvention, and radical self-trust.

In this episode of Unfinished Business, Victoria opens up about:

• Being raised by a single mom and mentored by Pelé (yes, that Pelé)

• What it takes to stay grounded in industries built on performance

• Her viral relationship story—and what it’s like becoming a queer stepmom overnight

• Cutting ties with people (including family) to protect your peace

• The shift from being the face of a campaign… to becoming the voice behind the mic

Victoria is magnetic, raw, hilarious, and refreshingly self-aware. You’ll walk away from this one thinking about your identity, your energy, and your boundaries.

Subscribe for more honest conversations about growth, pivots, and the messiness of building a life you actually want.

What do branding and dating have in common?

More than you’d think.

This week on Unfinished Business, we sit down with creative director and wellness advocate Alex Sall to talk about what it really means to show up as your authentic self—in business and in love.

We get into:

• How to build a brand that actually feels like you

• Why confidence is the real secret to success (on Hinge and on Shopify)

• The toxic trap of outsourcing everything too early

• How a wellness journey can start with flossing—and lead to life-changing fertility insights

• Why “settling” is often just fear in disguise

Plus: Red lipstick, functional medicine, gut health, and why your oral microbiome might matter more than your Instagram.

This one’s honest, eye-opening, and unexpectedly hilarious.

Alex and Lee are back with a brutally honest look at what it’s really like to build a profitable, non-venture-backed brand.

They reflect on:

• Scaling Hulken to $30M+ with a tiny team

• Saying no to VC—and why they’re not looking back

• What it means to build a “Kleenex-level” brand in a world of dupes

• DTC strategy, community magic, and the power of going slow

Plus: They tease new product drops (carry-on alert!), share their TikTok Shop strategy, and reveal what’s actually on their minds as founders in year two.

It’s fun. It’s raw. It’s the season opener you didn’t know you needed.

Would you post about your period online to build your business? Nadya Okamoto did—and that’s just the beginning.

In this episode of Unfinished Business, we sit down with Nadya Okamoto, the fearless founder of August, a Gen Z brand that’s flipping the tampon industry on its head.

We talk about:

• What DTC brands get wrong about Gen Z (and why “Hey Bestie” doesn’t work)

• Why she posted 5,500+ videos to launch August—and still creates 5+ daily

• How she keeps CAC low and virality high with unpolished, human content

• How to build a brand without becoming the brand

• Her brutally honest advice for first-time founders (hint: it’s not “raise capital”)

• What founders get wrong about social media, team building, and retail expansion

This is the blueprint for building a mission-led brand without faking the voice to get there.

If you’re a founder, content creator, or aspiring entrepreneur—watch this.

What do ballet and building a company have in common?

Way more than you’d think.

Megan Fairchild is a principal dancer at New York City Ballet, an author, an NYU MBA grad, and a mom of three (including twins). In this episode, she gets radically honest about the pressure to perform—on stage, at work, and at home.

We talk about:

🩰 Perfectionism as a tool, not a personality flaw

🧠 How to give and receive feedback without spiraling

🤯 Living in constant comparison—and how to break out of it

🪞 What parenting taught her that ballet never could

🧘‍♀️ The anxiety that brought her to her knees—and how meditation brought her back

📚 Why she spent 15 years finishing her undergrad (and what it taught her about discipline)

If you’ve ever struggled with burnout, imposter syndrome, or the pressure to always be “on”—this episode will hit home.

🔔 Subscribe for more unfiltered conversations about ambition, identity, and doing things your way.

👇 Let us know in the comments: What’s something you learned the hard way about chasing excellence?