Legendary British ad man Rory Sutherland invented a fake business on a podcast, a coffee shop appealing to the busy commuter called “Flat White or F**k Off.” But it’s one thing to have a post go big on TikTok or Instagram… but to turn that viral moment into an actual COMPANY is a very different challenge. On TWiST, Jason and Lon chat with Charlie Hurst, Tom Noble, and Will Sudlow, founders of the online brand “Flat White or F**k Off,” about how they took a funny little slogan and turned it into a string of popular social media accounts, a line of merch, a pop-up café, and let’s face it, an entire lifestyle. PLUS we’ve got Mog and Dubs from Subnet 75 — Hippius! Hear how they’re using the blockchain for decentralized storage, and providing server space much cheaper than their famous hyperscaler rivals. This Week In Startups is made possible by: Plaud - https://Plaud.ai/twist LinkedIn Jobs - https://LinkedIn.com/twist. Wispr Flow - https://wisprflow.ai/twist Northwest Registered Agent - https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist Timestamps: 00:00:00 Intro 00:01:28 Plaud - If your work depends on conversations — interviews, meetings, calls — you need a Plaud NotePin. You can check it out at https://Plaud.ai/twist and use code TWIST for 10% off! 00:03:22 What is "decentralized cloud storage"? 00:05:42 How Hippius came together 00:09:57 LinkedIn Jobs - Hire right, the first time. Post your first job and get $100 off towards your job post at https://LinkedIn.com/twist. 00:11:38 Incentivizing miners 00:14:25 How many people are contributing? 00:18:42 But where does the value accrue? 00:20:18 Wispr Flow - Stop typing. Dictate with Wispr Flow and send clean, final-draft writing in seconds. Visit https://wisprflow.ai/twist to get started for free today. 00:29:55 Northwest Registered Agent. Get more when you start your business with Northwest. In 10 clicks and 10 minutes, you can form your company and walk away with a real business identity — Learn more at https://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist 00:35:53 The best places to eat in Dubai 00:38:06 The inspo behind "Flat White or F Off" 00:42:16 From social media to IRL business 00:53:06 The secrets of experiential marketing 00:57:28 Hospitality's "Rule of 3s" 00:59:33 Inside the Flat White London pop-up 01:13:11 Lon and Jason's Oscar picks 01:26:06 Lon went "Inside the Manosphere" Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.com Check out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.com Subscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp Follow Lon: X: https://x.com/lons Follow Alex: X: https://x.com/alex LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm Follow Jason: X: https://twitter.com/Jason LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis Check out all our partner offers: https://partners.launch.co/ Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis Follow TWiST: Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartups TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartups Substack: https://twistartups.substack.com
