Episodes

Brendan Hoffman left Vince ($VNCE) in 2020. Five years later, he's back as CEO, leading a company that looks different from the one he left, and partnered with Authentic Brands Group. He talks about what's stayed the same and what's changed since he returned, why the ABG partnership makes sense for Vince, and what non-financial KPIs he's watching as the brand pushes into handbags, home, and other new categories. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 🔗 Follow Mark...

David Barry, President & CEO of Pursuit Attractions and Hospitality (NYSE: PRSU), an attractions and hospitality company with 17 iconic destinations across the US, Canada, Iceland, and Costa Rica that has 4x in size over the past decade. David joined Pursuit in 2015 with no formal business education, having worked his way up from ski instructor to heli ski operations to PE-backed CEO – teaching himself finance from Fortune magazines he pulled from a colleague's trash. He breaks down the leadersh...

Peter Colis is the co-founder and CEO of Ethos Technologies (Nasdaq: $LIFE), the vertically integrated platform reinventing life insurance from underwriting to distribution. What started as a Stanford Business School project in 2016 is now one of the largest underwriters in the United States, with more than 600,000 policies issued and over 15,000 agents selling Ethos products in the last year. In this episode of Marketopolis, guest host Katie Perry, author of Ticker Shock, sits down to unpack ho...

Yoni Assia co-founded eToro nearly 20 years ago with a simple thesis: open the markets for everyone. The platform now has 40 million registered users, $20B in assets, and a target of $1 trillion AUM. He covers the IPO that almost didn't happen (Liberation Day tariffs that caused a volatility spike), how eToro went from 25% to 95% AI-written code in under a year, and why he thinks the $120 trillion generational wealth transfer is a defining opportunity in capital markets. Also in this episode: wh...

Sweetgreen co-founder and CEO, Jonathan Neman gets candid about nearly two decades of building one of America's most recognizable food brands and what it really takes to run a turnaround as a founder-led public company. Jonathan breaks down the transformation plan: new menu items, the Infinite Kitchen automation rollout, and why execution on the fundamentals is the only focus right now. He also opens up on what investors misunderstand about Sweetgreen's TAM, why optimization kills innovation, an...

What really happens when a founder takes a company public? FuboTV co-founder & CEO David Gandler shares the realities of running a public company, navigating FuboTV’s merger with Disney’s Hulu + Live TV, surviving the pandemic, and building one of the biggest names in live sports streaming. From startup risk-taking to shifting founder-control in public markets, this is a candid conversation on media, streaming, leadership, and resilience. In This Episode: FuboTV's journey from a 2015 startup thr...

John Fieldly, Chairman & CEO of Celsius Holdings ($CELH), breaks down Celsius’ transformation from a turnaround story into a multi-brand energy platform. Fieldly discusses the company’s 2025 financials, portfolio strategy across Celsius, Alani Nu, and Rockstar, and why the “better-for-you” movement continues to reshape the energy category. He also shares how Celsius is thinking about retail execution, international expansion, capital allocation, and building iconic consumer brands. Highlights In...

Nirav Tolia, Co-Founder & CEO of Nextdoor ($NXDR) shares why he returned to the CEO role, how the landscape has shifted in the post-COVID and AI era, and how Nextdoor is using AI to improve efficiency, product quality, and local advertising outcomes. Tolia breaks down Nextdoor’s core advantage – its neighborhood graph of 100M+ verified users, and addresses a key misconception: that Nextdoor’s potential is capped rather than under-executed. Highlights Include: Founder comeback: Why Tolia returned...

Matt Schultz, CEO & Chairman of CleanSpark ($CLSK), sits down to trace his journey building CleanSpark into a leading U.S. Bitcoin mining company, and now an energy platform expanding into AI/HPC data centers. Schultz shares the story of going public via reverse merger, explains CleanSpark’s “monetize megawatts” strategy across Bitcoin and AI compute, and addresses common retail misconceptions around long-term execution and shareholder alignment. Highlights Include: From gasification to Bitcoin ...

In this episode of Marketopolis, host Matt Joanou speaks with Aaron Levie, CEO & Co-Founder of Box ($BOX), about his early investing experiences, the realities of going public, and the transformative impact of AI on Box's operations and product strategy. They discuss the importance of effective communication with investors, the hiring process in the age of AI, and the future of work as AI continues to evolve. Aaron shares insights on how companies can leverage AI to unlock new opportunities and ...

Surf Air Mobility ($SRFM) Co-Founder Sudhin Shahani shares how the company is modernizing short haul aviation through a connected ecosystem that combines regional flight operations, Surf OS aviation software for operators, and the development of electric aircraft. Highlights Include: Building a unified regional mobility platform combining scheduled flights, charter service, and Surf OS (aviation software) Why short haul aviation is accelerating with electrification, hybrid aircraft, and vertical...

Recorded live at the Benzinga FinTech Day, Webull ($BULL) CEO Anthony Denier sits down with Matt Joanou to unpack how Webull is using AI to deliver smarter insights, building a global platform, and empowering retail investors in today’s fast-moving markets. Highlights Include: Launching Vega, Webull’s new AI platform for smarter, personalized trading How retail investors are evolving — becoming more data savvy and selective Webull’s global expansion across 14 markets Lessons from taking the comp...

reAlpha CEO Mike Logozzo shares how he’s reimagining the homebuying journey with AI, turning market challenges into opportunities for growth. He explains how reAlpha pivoted from short term rentals to an AI powered, asset-light platform, how it opened early ownership to retail investors through a Regulation A round, and how he’s building a community of long term believers in the mission. Highlights include: reAlpha’s shift from asset-heavy investing to an AI driven homebuying platform Lessons fr...

Dynex Capital Co-CEO & President, Smriti Popenoe breaks down how a 35-year old mortgage REIT is navigating today’s macro volatility. She also shares how disciplined capital management, long-term thinking, and ethical stewardship shape the company’s approach to retail-first public market communication. Highlights include: Why Dynex views its 16% dividend as a risk management tool, and how it preserved positive total return even through the 2020 crisis How a co-CEO structure creates “two brains”, ...

Dave CEO Jason Wilk and CFO/COO Kyle Beilman break down how the company wins by leading with short-term credit, using real cash-flow data instead of FICO, and keeping distribution open so customers don’t have to switch banks. Highlights include: Why Dave’s “open” model (work with your existing bank, get value in minutes) lowers CAC and drives word-of-mouth compared with closed ecosystems How cash-flow–based underwriting and AI sharpen risk decisions, inform longer-duration credit roadmaps, and g...

What happens when a health food brand born from a surfer’s kitchen turns into a publicly traded company? Laird Superfood ( NASDAQ: LSF ) is redefining the functional food market under CEO Jason Vieth — from mushroom-powered coffee to partnerships with Costco and Bluestone Lane. In this episode of Marketopolis , Jason shares what it takes to scale a micro-cap brand into a global challenger, build long-term trust with retail investors, and lead a lean team with big company discipline. He explains:...

This episode was recorded September 3rd, 2025 How do you turn a love for dogs into a publicly traded powerhouse? Matt Meeker , CEO and co-founder of Bark & Co (NYSE: BARK) , reveals how a simple idea for monthly dog toys became a global pet-care empire—and why passion, patience, and brand purpose are the real competitive advantages in business. From co-founding Meetup to launching BarkBox in a Brooklyn apartment, Matt shares the hard truths of scaling consumer brands, navigating public markets, ...

This episode was recorded September 3rd, 2025 Can legacy media survive the modern attention economy? Paul Edmondson , CEO of The Arena Group (NYSE: AREN) , reveals how he’s leading one of the boldest reinventions in journalism — transforming iconic brands like Sports Illustrated , TheStreet , and Parade into a next-generation media powerhouse. In this candid conversation, Paul breaks down how the collapse of traditional advertising, the rise of AI, and the dominance of social platforms have forc...

This episode was recorded July 25th, 2025 How does a beanbag built in a college basement become a billion-dollar public company? Shawn David Nelson, CEO and founder of Lovesac (NASDAQ: LOVE), reveals the full story behind one of retail’s most unlikely success stories — how failure, creativity, and calculated chaos turned a small idea into a household name. From near-bankruptcy to IPO, Shawn breaks down the mindset that keeps Lovesac growing: innovation through discomfort, sustainability as strat...

This Episode Was Recorded July 17th, 2025 What if everything you thought about Grindr (NYSE: GRND) was completely wrong? Grindr isn’t just a hookup app. Under CEO George Arison, it’s becoming a cultural force, a global community engine, and one of the most profitable social platforms in the world. With a nearly $4 billion market cap and bold bets on AI, George reveals how Grindr is reshaping relationships, activism, and shareholder value all at once. From immigrant beginnings in the Soviet Union...