The Friday Sponge

Jack Payne
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Every Friday, The Friday Sponge sits down with the entrepreneurs, founders, and community builders shaping the world around us. Real conversations. Real stories. Real business. No fluff - just the unfiltered journeys of the people actually doing the work. New episodes drop weekly. Features by invitation only. SOAK IT UP

Episodes

  1. 3d ago

    #9 — When Your Startup Dies, Who Are You?

    Somya Gupta didn't come to New York to build a startup ecosystem. He came to go to class, pass his exams, and live a comfortable life. Two and a half years later, he's thrown 75+ founder events, shut down his own company in the most painful way possible, and somehow walked away calling it the best thing that ever happened to him. In this episode, Somya and I unpack the full arc — from co-founding an AI-powered edtech platform at NYU, growing it to 3,500 users, pivoting to B2B, landing university pilots, striking what looked like a game-changing partnership… and watching it all collapse in a single phone call. We also get into what it actually feels like when your company becomes your identity — and then disappears overnight. But this episode isn't really about failure. It's about what you do with the version of yourself that comes out the other side. In this episode: Why Somya says "delusion" is a competitive advantageThe Washington Square Park customer interview mistake (don't do it)Why VCs hate EdTech — and why he gets itThe Georgian restaurant conversation that ended ContextWhat's next: IRL experiences, hackathons, and making NYC #1Timestamps 00:00 — Intro & small talk (pickleball, NYC spots)07:09 — Welcome + who is Somya Gupta?08:52 — From India to NYU: the mindset shift14:16 — How Context was born17:53 — The problem they were solving (and why it was personal)21:53 — B2C to B2B pivot: the hard conversation25:53 — 3,500 users, zero revenue — now what?31:24 — The moment it felt like it might fall apart38:29 — Fundraising, EdTech's VC problem, and $15K from NYU42:08 — University pilots and the California partnership45:24 — The phone call that ended everything48:17 — Identity crisis on the Brooklyn Promenade50:14 — What came next54:47 — Building NYC's founder ecosystemFind Somya:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/somya-gupta-sg/ Instagram: Coming soon 👀

    57 min

  2. May 29

    #8 He Survived the UFC. Starting a Business Almost Broke Him

    Most people wait until they have time to start a business. Mike and Jimmy never had time. Full-time police officers, fathers, husbands — and somehow, owners of a thriving martial arts franchise in Short Hills, NJ. In this episode of The Friday Sponge, Jack sits down with Chief of Police Mike and UFC fighter-turned-instructor Jimmy to talk about what building a business actually looks like when you're already stretched thin. They cover the real cost of passion projects, what a shareholders agreement protects you from (hint: it's not just strangers), why giving away a membership can be worth more than selling one, and the brutal truth about going into business with your friends. No MBA. No safety net. Just two guys who found something they loved — and refused to let time be the excuse. [00:00] — Why college kids need to think like entrepreneurs[01:11] — "We don't have extra time" — how passion creates time[03:38] — From getting picked on at school to owning a franchise at 22[06:21] — Getting punched in the face (literally and in business)[07:22] — The real rules of running a franchise[09:40] — Why giving away memberships builds a better business[13:03] — How to retain great employees without just throwing money at them[14:43] — Structuring a business so partners can exit cleanly[20:29] — The Liquid Death lesson every entrepreneur needs to hear[22:25] — Should you even go to college?[24:01] — Going into business with friends — the honest truth Company Information: Tiger Schulman Martial Arts Short Hills Instagram @tsma_of_shorthills Website: https://tsk.com/ Jimmie Rivera Instagram @jimmierivera

    26 min

  3. May 15

    #7 She Left Everything to Fix the One Thing Nobody Talks About in Healthcare

    She moved from Belarus, got a computer science degree in her second language, and watched doctors get crushed by insurance chaos from the inside. So she built an AI company to fix it. Stefaniya Barabanava is the co-founder of Sphere — a startup rebuilding how healthcare providers handle insurance communication. "Many of the times they really don't know whether they're getting paid for the work they do." 00:00 Introduction to Financial Literacy and AI in Healthcare02:45 Stefaniya's Journey from Belarus to Healthcare Innovation05:45 The Challenges of the US Healthcare System09:02 Founding Sphere: Addressing Pain Points in Healthcare12:02 Navigating the Startup Landscape: Lessons Learned15:01 The Weight of Responsibility in Healthcare18:06 The Importance of Mentorship and Collaboration21:12 Finding Purpose Beyond Profit24:00 Future Aspirations for Sphere26:51 Fundraising Insights and Storytelling for Startups Follow The Friday Sponge for more stories like this.thefridaysponge.com Connect with StefaniyaLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefaniyab/Sphere: https://sphereint.net/

    25 min

  4. May 8

    #6 - Whipdd - Akshay Kalekar (Co-Founder)

    What started as a dinner party conversation is now one of Canada’s fastest-growing butter brands. Akshay, co-founder of Whipdd Butter out of Toronto, joins us this week to share how a single evening with his co-founder and their spouses sparked a business that would go from zero to over 100 retail locations in under two years — including a landmark deal with Whole Foods Toronto and nearly $500K in annual revenue. Born and raised in India, Akshay didn’t come from the food industry — he came from the school of knocking on doors and hearing “no.” And it turns out, that’s exactly the skill set you need when you’re trying to break into one of the most competitive shelves in grocery retail.In this episode, we get into the gritty origin story behind Whipdd — the hustle, the rejections, the wins, and why Costco and Walmart should probably start paying attention. This week we talk about:• Navigating rejection and turning “no” into momentum• Breaking into major retailers from scratch• Pursuing a bold vision in an oversaturated market  Tune in and soak it all up — it’s Friday, and this one’s worth your time. Company: https://www.whipdd.com/ Instagram: @whipdd.to LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshaykalekar

    44 min

  5. Apr 24

    #5 Miles Square Theater - 23 Years of Defying the Odds

    Most arts organizations with their funding model would have closed by year five. Mile Square Theater just hit year 23. This week, we sit down with Elizabeth DiCandillo and Chris Cragin-Day — two leaders who could have taken the corporate path and didn’t. Instead, they built something Hoboken didn’t know it needed: an award-winning theater running on operational brilliance, deep community roots, and a stubborn refusal to quit. But this conversation goes beyond the stage. Elizabeth makes a case that the loneliness epidemic and the collapse of real relationships didn’t start with social media — it accelerated the moment we convinced ourselves a Zoom call was a substitute for showing up. She argues that the antidote isn’t an app. It’s a room full of people watching something they can’t rewind. If you’ve ever wondered what 23 years in the trenches of live performance teaches you about leadership, community, and human connection — this one’s for you.  Real stories. Real business. Every Friday. Company Websites: https://www.milesquaretheatre.org/ Instagram: @milesquaretheaterTikTok: @milesquaretheater

    1h 17m

  6. Apr 10

    #4 John Maguire - Founder of International Voyager - From Y2K to Gen AI

    John Maguire didn’t pick an easy time to start a business. Launching the day before 9/11, he built International Voyager from a basement in Montclair, NJ — credit cards maxed, employees sleeping under his roof, and a travel industry in freefall. What followed was 25 years of surviving things that shouldn’t be survivable. A terrorist attack. A global recession. A pandemic that wiped out the entire travel sector overnight.In this episode, John gets brutally honest about what it actually takes to keep going when every signal is telling you to quit - and how a company born in the Y2K era is now using AI to outmaneuver competitors half its age. This one hits different. Company Websites:  internationalvoyager.comCruiseDirector.com Socials: - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmaguireceo/

    1h 4m

  7. Apr 3

    #3 Khurram Kalimi - Co Founder of Vinn Corp - People still want to buy from people

    From Oracle and Microsoft to building a thriving services company - Khurram Khalimi’s journey is anything but ordinary.In this episode, we sit down with Khurram, co-founder and COO of Vinn Corp, a full-service digital agency doing everything from app development and UI/UX design to video and social media creation. What started as a bold leap of faith in Pakistan has evolved into a multi-million dollar operation that just landed in the US. We dive deep into Khurram’s story — including how he left his corporate job without telling his family and bootstrapped his way to success. He shares the philosophy behind his book “Soldiers,” which reframes sales as the art of storytelling and problem-solving rather than pushing products. We also explore his vision to scale Vinncorp from 2 million to 10 million in annual recurring revenue over the next five years. Key takeaways: the power of personal branding, mastering storytelling, and why flexibility and agility are non-negotiable as a founder. Learn more about Khurram and Vinn Corp:Website: https://vinncorp.com LinkedIn: Khurram Kalimi  Instagram: Instagram

    49 min

  8. Mar 27

    # 2 Nick Morgan Jones - Founder of Overtone - From Stigma to Status: Redesigning the Most Ignored Product in Healthcare

    Nick Morgan Jones couldn't find a hearing aid he wasn't embarrassed to wear — so he built Overtone, a designer hearing aid brand doing to audiology what Warby Parker did to glasses. In this week's episode, Nick opens up about the founder journey behind one of the most unexpected product categories getting a complete reinvention. Real stories. Real business.

    59 min

  9. Mar 20

    #1 Alex Jeremijinko - Co Founder of Kove Studios - "So what, now what?"

    Alex Jeremijenko grew up in Australia where wellness was a way of life - accessible, communal, and built into the culture. When he moved to New York City, he found the opposite: saunas, cold plunges, and recovery spaces reserved for those who could afford them. So he built Kove Studio to change that. In this episode, Alex shares his journey from college rower at Yale to co-founding one of NYC's fastest-growing wellness studios - and what it really takes to keep going when the city literally shuts your doors. Through the highs, the sellouts, and the shutdowns, his mindset stays the same: so what, now what? Website: https://kove.studio/ Instagram: @kove_studio Tiktok: kove.studio

    42 min
  • 9 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Every Friday, The Friday Sponge sits down with the entrepreneurs, founders, and community builders shaping the world around us. Real conversations. Real stories. Real business. No fluff - just the unfiltered journeys of the people actually doing the work. New episodes drop weekly. Features by invitation only. SOAK IT UP

Information

  • Creator
    Jack Payne
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    9
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Jack Payne
  • Show Website
    The Friday Sponge