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The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the Robert H. Smith School of Business produces Bootstrapped, a podcast featuring founders, investors and serial entrepreneurs. While the podcast covers many aspects of startup life, the heart of the show focuses on funding from both the founder and investor perspectives, thus the name Bootstrapped. The podcast is hosted by Elana Fine, Managing Director of the Dingman Center, and Joe Bailey, Associate Research Professor at the Smith School. Each epi ...
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Lauren Foundos: FORTË Fights COVID by Bringing the Gym to You
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27:14
This episode of Bootstrapped features UMD alumna Lauren Foundos ’06, a former Maryland varsity field hockey player, and Founder and CEO of FORTË. After years of working in the finance industry, Foundos left the stability of her well-paying job to start FORTË, a technology company that helps gyms and studios livestream their classes. An entrepreneur…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Oliver Schlake: Coping with COVID: How to Sustain a Business During Quarantine
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27:32
On this episode of Bootstrapped we discuss running a business in a post-COVID world with Oliver Schlake, Clinical Professor at the Robert H. Smith School of Business. With years of academic and professional research under his belt, Schlake is a dictionary for all things entrepreneurship. We dive deep into the pressing questions of our time, includi…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Harry Geller: How to be a Startup Millionaire: Lessons from a Serially Successful Entrepreneur
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22:49
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we sat down with our Entrepreneur-in-residence Harry Geller ’81, who has over forty years of experience as a serial entrepreneur, investor, and mentor. Geller shares invaluable insights and real-world advice from his experience turning his startup Global Mail into a 60 million dollar success. He also takes us throug…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Aaron Epstein: The Y Combinator Effect: From Dorm Room Hustle to Thriving Business
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31:08
This episode of Bootstrapped features the story of University of Maryland alumni entrepreneur Aaron Epstein ’03, founder of Creative Market. From small beginnings in his college dorm room, Epstein started Creative Market by creating a color-matching web-based service during the dot com boom. After graduating from UMD, he became a self-taught develo…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Mary Schulman: PYT Beauty: Building a Beauty Brand Without the BS
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25:15
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we talk PYT -- not the Michael Jackson song, but rather the clean beauty brand. Maryland Smith alumna Mary Schulman ’97 discusses her entrepreneur journey as the founder and CEO of PYT Beauty, a makeup brand that offers beauty without the BS, that is, without the harsh chemicals contained in beauty products that can…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Amanda Nachman: Growing College Magazine from a Student Project to Nationwide Publication
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27:34
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we dive into the story of Amanda Nachman ’07, founder and CEO of College Magazine. A QUEST Honors Program alumna and English major, Nachman began her venture with an idea that she submitted for a business project. Nachman envisioned a trusted guide on how to navigate college, an idea that ultimately became College M…
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Sahil Rahman: From Finance to Fast-Casual: Building a Restaurant Chain
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30:35
This episode of Bootstrapped follows the story of QUEST alumnus Sahil Rahman ’12, co-Founder of RASA, an Indian Fast Casual restaurant located in Washington, D.C. Equipped with a bachelor’s degree in Operations and Supply Chain Management, Rahman launched his career as a Business Analyst for Deloitte. Then, in 2014, he and his childhood best friend…
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Lauren Filocco: Setting the Barre High: Building an Exercise Studio
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29:59
This episode of Bootstrapped features University of Maryland alumna Lauren Filocco '12, Founder of OpenBarre in College Park. Filocco’s background in supply chain and operations management from the University of Maryland landed her positions at McCormick & Company and Amazon. A few years into her corporate career, Filocco became obsessed with takin…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Sergio Malarin: Building a Kombucha Brand with Mobtown Fermentation
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36:38
Kombucha may be sour, but to our guest entrepreneur it's a sweet business opportunity. On this episode we interviewed Sergio Malarin ’13, Co-Founder of Mobtown Fermentation, the brewery behind Wild Kombucha. A University of Maryland alumnus with a major in history, Malarin worked for a time as a manager at Thompson Creek Window Company but found hi…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Ori Zohar: Serial Entrepreneur Turns Struggle to Scalable Spices
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47:31
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed serial entrepreneur Ori Zohar ’07, co-founder of spice company Burlap & Barrel. A University of Maryland alumnus who majored in Marketing and participated in the QUEST Honors Program, Zohar speaks on the struggles and triumphs of his entrepreneurial experiences, beginning with his very first venture: …
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Andy Shallal: Turning Passion for Politics Into a Thriving Business
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33:50
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed Andy Shallal, MBA ’19, founder and CEO of Busboys and Poets. Shallal founded the iconic restaurant chain in 2005, where it started from a restaurant/events venue/coffee shop/bar/bookstore in D.C. and expanded to eight locations today across the DMV. After years of operating his business, Shallal retur…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Pramod Raheja: An Airline Pilot Turned Entrepreneur
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On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed University of Maryland alumnus Pramod Raheja '91, co-founder and CEO of Airgility and mystaffNOW. Since graduating from Maryland, Pramod navigated a split career as an Airline Captain for United Airlines and also as a serial entrepreneur. Now as the CEO of Airgility, Pramod has been able to leverage h…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Zeki Mokhtarzada: From Brothers to Co-Founders: Building Businesses with Family
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25:31
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed University of Maryland alumnus Zeki Mokhtarzada '00, co-founder of TrueBill and formerly of Webs. After graduating from Maryland, Zeki was ready for a life of entrepreneurship and he knew exactly where to find co-founders. Alongside his brothers, Zeki co-founded Webs, one of the earliest free web host…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Bill Boyle: From Founder to Funder: An Entrepreneur’s Transition to Investing
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On the season 6 premiere of Bootstrapped, host Joe Bailey and new co-host Holly DeArmond, MBA '17, managing director of the Dingman Center, interviewed University of Maryland alumnus Bill Boyle ’81. Bill is the founder of FiberGate, Inc, chairman of the Dingman Center’s Board of Advisors and an active member of the Dingman Center Angels. From Fiber…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Aurora Tights: Building Diversity, Inclusion and Empowerment into your Brand Identity
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26:29
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed current University of Maryland student Jasmine Snead ’19 and alumna Imani Rickerby ’17, co-founders of 2019 Pitch Dingman Competition finalist startup Aurora Tights. As both women of color and figure skaters, Jasmine and Imani struggled to find tights that matched their skin tone, and saw their perfor…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Santana Moss: From Touchdowns to Startups: Lessons on Success, Failure, and Investing from an NFL Star
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On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed Radio & Television host Santana Moss. Moss played in the NFL for fourteen seasons. As the first-round pick in the 2001 NFL draft, Santana knew that he was going to need to take proactive measures to maintain his newly acquired wealth. Santana adopted a live and learn approach to entrepreneurship and b…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Jay Sunny Bajaj: Flipping the Mental Switch from Entrepreneur to CEO
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31:16
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed alumnus Jay Sunny Bajaj ’99, the Founder and CEO of DMI and a Robert H. Smith School of Business advisory board member. Growing up with two entrepreneurs as parents, Sunny knew he was going to have his own business one day. Now, Sunny operates a $350 million company that offers comprehensive digital s…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Charlene Brown: From Doctor to Entrepreneur: Launching a Recruiting Service for Caregivers
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Listen to Dr. Charlene Brown’s story of starting CareGiver Jobs Now (formerly Reciprocare Jobs), a recruiting platform to help caregivers find jobs in the healthcare industry. She shares the challenges of balancing a two-sided market and navigating product market fit.By Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Stephen Steinberg: Bootstrapping a Green Cleaning Solution for Smelly Sports Gear
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As a student hockey player at University of Maryland, startup founder Stephen Steinberg developed a powerful yet safe-on-skin cleaning solution for his smelly sports gear. Learn how he bootstrapped his company, Raw Athletics, which sells green cleaning products to gyms, athletic teams and consumers all over the country.…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Daniel Sugarman: Lessons on Ecommerce and Pivoting from a Y Combinator Alumnus
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28:20
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed UMD alumnus and co-founder and CEO of Zentail Daniel Sugarman ’10. Daniel and his co-founder, Daniel Sperling-Horowitz, first launched a business called HD Trade Services that used technology to decrease fraud in international trading. After entering Y Combinator, they ultimately realized their busine…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Scott Nash: Going Green: Bolstering Your Brand With Social Activism
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27:12
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed founder and owner of MOM’s Organic Market Scott Nash. Scott started MOM’s Organic Market in 1987, selling produce out of his mother’s garage and using his sister’s Chevy Malibu to deliver grocery orders at night. Today, Scott has grown MOM’s Organic Market to a point where it has stores in four states…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Oscar Zeballos: From Broadcasting to Podcasting: How to Leverage Unfair Advantages
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32:29
On this episode of Bootstrapped, our executive producer switched to the special guest chair as we interviewed UMD alumnus Oscar Zeballos EMBA ’16, co-founder of Podcast Village and executive producer of Bootstrapped. Often, podcasters have a difficult time nailing every aspect of their show as they don’t always have the resources or know-how. To re…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Jon Chapman: From Bootstrapped to Series D in Seven Years with EverFi
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37:28
On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed alumnus Jon Chapman MBA '07, Co-Founder and President of EverFi, a leading EdTech company. Jon and his co-founders launched EverFi during the recession of 2008, when they identified an opportunity to teach young adults critical skills such as financial literacy through a gamified educational platform.…
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Melissa Bradley: Applying a Business First Approach to Social Venture
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35:20
Entrepreneurship can be overwhelming. Social entrepreneurship, more so! In this episode, Melissa Bradley explains the nuances of social entrepreneurship and how social entrepreneurs can make the impact they set out to make.By Melissa Bradley, Elana Fine, University of Maryland, Joe Bailey
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Dingman Bootstrapped
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Eddie Inlow: Managing Public-Private Partnerships as an Entrepreneur
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On this episode of Bootstrapped, we interviewed UMD alumnus Eddie Inlow MBA ’09, founder and CEO of Shift Transit. Before becoming an entrepreneur, Eddie had extensive experience in strategy and operations, having worked on the leadership team at Under Armour and consulting for Best Buy and Ross Stores. Eddie’s first exposure to the bike share indu…
