The Startup Junkies Podcast

Startup Junkie
  • 5.0 (46)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

The Startup Junkies podcast is hosted by Jeff Amerine and his team at Startup Junkie Consulting. We’ll cover topics ranging from getting started, planning, growing your business, proving your concept, leadership, marketing, exit strategies and so much more. We’ll interview business owners, entrepreneurs, experts and people we think will bring value to our audience. Subscribe and together we will move your business to the next level.

  1. 2d ago

    How Cities Can Make Starting a Business Easier with Fayetteville Mayor Molly Rawn

    Starting a small business is full of unknowns. Fayetteville's mayor says City Hall should be the one predictable part.  In this entrepreneur interview, Molly Rawn, Mayor of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and part of the founding team behind the Scott Family Amazeum, talks about leading a city with a founder's mindset, why government shouldn't be a barrier to small business, and what most people get wrong about what a mayor can actually do.  What you'll learn:  - Why running for office mirrors launching a startup  - Translating "soon" from city-speak to plain English  - The Business Starter Kit and cutting through red tape  - How small business sales tax funds city services  - Why infrastructure follows housing growth  - Her advice: What would you do if you weren't afraid? ⏱️Chapters 0:58 Molly Rawn's origin story  1:45 Seeing herself as an entrepreneur 4:12 Running for office like launching a startup  6:31 Leadership lesson: Patience in city government  8:06 Why "soon" means something different at City Hall  9:30 The city's role in a thriving startup ecosystem  11:15 Fayetteville's Business Starter Kit  12:59 Why small business matters to city budgets  15:59 The pitch for founders considering Fayetteville  17:18 Growth, housing, and infrastructure  20:57 Bond projects and bus shelters  23:04 What surprises people about being mayor  26:50 Transparency and public meetings online  28:49 Startup Junkie Time Machine: Advice to her younger self — Connect with Mayor Molly Rawn Instagram: @MayorMollyRawn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mollycollierrawn/ Website: https://www.fayetteville-ar.gov/526/Mayor 🎙️ The Startup Junkies podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, which helps Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections.  The Startup Junkies podcast shares new founder stories and entrepreneur interviews every week. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.  🔗https://startupjunkie.org/

    How Cities Can Make Starting a Business Easier with Fayetteville Mayor Molly Rawn

  2. Oct 6

    How Small Businesses Can Win Defense Contracts with Chip Laingen

    Small businesses, not the big defense primes, are where the Department of Defense is looking for its next breakthrough. Here's how to get noticed, and how to be ready when you do. In this entrepreneur interview, Chip Laingen breaks down what it really takes for a small business or startup to sell to the government. Chip is executive director of the Defense Alliance, a 21-year Navy veteran, and has advised defense-tech companies for two decades. In This Episode:✅ Why the DoD is turning to small-business innovation✅ Navigating government contracting as a startup✅ Teaming with partners to leverage past performance✅ Preparing for a five-minute pitch with a buyer✅ Technology readiness vs. business readiness✅ OTAs and Defense Production Act funding✅ Servant leadership lessons from the Navy ⏱️ Chapters:0:38 Introduction1:13 From Navy helicopter pilot to defense contracting4:26 How the Defense Alliance helps small businesses5:47 Why selling to the government isn't logical8:42 Leveraging partnerships and past performance10:30 How to prepare for a five-minute pitch with a buyer12:36 Servant leadership lessons from the Navy16:34 What it takes to build a defense innovation cluster19:09 Technology readiness vs. business readiness21:02 How defense procurement is changing: speed and scale22:47 How one startup got a $50M factory funded24:19 Advice to his younger self25:54 How to connect with the Defense Alliance —About Chip Laingen:Chip Laingen is executive director of the Defense Alliance, an SBA-funded regional innovation cluster. It helps small businesses navigate defense contracting at no cost, and it has members in 38 states.  Join free at https://www.defensealliance.com/ Connect with Chip - https://www.linkedin.com/in/laingen/ —🎧 Follow the Startup Junkies Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 👍 If you enjoyed this episode, like, subscribe, and share it with a friend. The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections.

    How Small Businesses Can Win Defense Contracts with Chip Laingen

  3. Sep 29

    How Korean Founders Break Into the US Market: Founder Interviews from Startup Crawl 2024

    What does it take for a startup from Korea to break into the US market? Four founders share how they're doing it. Recorded live at Startup Crawl in Fayetteville, Arkansas, this episode features founders from the Korea Global Expansion Accelerator. They build AI companion robots for isolated seniors, AI-powered lead generation, classroom analytics for early childhood education, and hotel operations software. We also go inside RISE Arkansas, a no-cost program for tech and tech-enabled startups. The episode closes with a look at how Startup Crawl grew from one building to a downtown-wide event. In this episode:✅ AI companionship for aging populations✅ Selling without a network in relationship-driven markets✅ Asian business data for US brands✅ AI insights into how young kids play and learn✅ Tech vs. tech-enabled startups✅ Why staying power matters in entrepreneurial support ⏱️Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 0:20 Live from Startup Crawl 2024 0:55 From Hong Kong IT to senior care 2:24 AI companion robots for isolated seniors 5:05 Selling in Asia without connections 7:45 How AI lead generation works 9:32 Asian business data for US brands 13:10 AI that tracks how preschoolers play and learn 15:08 From Hasbro toy designer to edtech founder 17:40 RISE Arkansas: free support for tech startups 18:30 Tech vs. tech-enabled startups 20:02 109 startups in 101 days 27:58 Hotel operations tech from Korea 33:58 How Startup Crawl grew from 2019 to 2024 36:55 Why staying power matters Featured guests:Louis Lee, CMO, Wonderful Platform: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louisleedonguk/Jay Lee, Co-founder & CSO, DeepSales: https://deepsales.com/Sarah No, Head of Product, PlayTag: https://playtag.ai/Stephen Park, Do WhatChris Adams & Kate Lockridge, RISE Arkansas: risearkansas.org -----🎧 Follow the Startup Junkies Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 👍 If you enjoyed this episode, like, subscribe, and share it with a friend. The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections.

    How Korean Founders Break Into the US Market: Founder Interviews from Startup Crawl 2024

  4. Sep 22

    How AI Agents Fix Denied Insurance Claims with Shahbaz Virk of Cair Health

    Denied insurance claims cost clinics money, staff time, and patient care, and AI agents are starting to change that. In this entrepreneur interview, Shahbaz Virk (co-founder of Cair Health) explains how AI agents can handle medical billing from start to finish. That covers checking eligibility, reworking denied claims, and even waiting on hold with insurance companies. He shares why so many claims get denied, how growing up with a nurse mom shaped his founder story, and why rural health is central to his mission.  Whether you're a startup founder building in healthcare or an operator buried in admin work, this conversation shows what an AI-powered billing team actually looks like. In This Episode: Why insurance claims get deniedAI agents that call insurers for you90% touchless claims after six months150 minutes per claim cut to under threeY Combinator vs. a healthcare-specific acceleratorAI's role in rural health  ⏱️ Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 0:44 What Care Health does 2:06 Why medical billing affects patients 3:15 Why insurance claims get denied 5:35 A nurse mom and the origin of Care Health 6:37 From health economics research to AI 8:40 Y Combinator vs. the Fuel Accelerator 10:45 The metrics that matter: touchless claims 11:44 How AI agents work together on a claim 13:17 Will AI replace medical billers? 15:08 Customers and traction 16:14 AI for rural health in Arkansas 17:53 Care Health in three years 18:40 From 150 minutes per claim to under three 20:00 Large vs. small health systems — Connect with Shahbaz 🔗 https://www.cairhealth.com/ 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/shehbazvirk/ — 🎧 Follow the Startup Junkies Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 👍 If you enjoyed this episode, like, subscribe, and share it with a friend. The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections.

  5. Sep 15

    AI and Data Privacy for Growing Companies with Carl Maloney of FloX

    On this episode of the Startup Junkies Podcast, hosts Daniel Koontz and Caleb Talley sit down with Carl Maloney, founder of FloX, a technology consulting firm helping mid-sized companies replace spreadsheet chaos with AI-driven systems.  Carl shares his journey from a decade-plus corporate career and burnout to a six-month sabbatical, and ultimately launching his own consulting business. Plus how he validates customer problems, runs marketing solo, and thinks about privacy and compliance when implementing AI for clients in regulated industries like healthcare. In This Episode:☑️ Warning signs a company has outgrown Excel-based operations☑️ AI implementation, data privacy, and HIPAA compliance☑️ A solo founder's marketing strategy☑️ Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs  ⏱️CHAPTERS00:00 – Welcome to the Startup Junkies Podcast00:59 – Meet Carl Maloney of FloX,01:17 – From Corporate Burnout to Launching His Own Business02:28 – Sabbatical Adventures: Road Trip & Mountain Biking03:06 – The Rebrand: Choosing the Name FloX,03:26 – What FloX, Does for Growing Companies04:15 – AI, Data Privacy & HIPAA Compliance05:17 – Warning Signs You've Outgrown Excel06:05 – Validating the Problem With Customer Discovery07:01 – Marketing & Running FloX, as a Solo Founder09:47 – Why Entrepreneurship Is Harder Than It Looks12:24 – Entrepreneurship as a Mountain Bike Trail13:41 – FloX,'s Growth Vision, Team & the NWA Startup Ecosystem16:52 – Defining Success & Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs21:21 – Advice to His Younger Self, Where to Find Carl & Closing —Connect with Carl🔗 https://flo-x.io/🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/carl-maloney-bab29b6/ —🎧 Follow the Startup Junkies Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 👍 If you enjoyed this episode, like, subscribe, and share it with a friend. The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections.

    AI and Data Privacy for Growing Companies with Carl Maloney of FloX

  6. Sep 8

    Lawn Care Olympics in Fayetteville, Arkansas with Quinn Childress of Willow Street Lawns

    Quinn Childress, owner of Willow Street Lawns and founder of the digital lawn care marketplace Lawnly, joins the Startup Junkies Podcast to talk about the first-ever Lawn Care Olympics coming to Fayetteville, Arkansas on September 20th. Quinn shares how he went from experiencing homelessness as a teenager to building a lawn care business, and now a platform designed to funnel local dollars toward nonprofits and people experiencing homelessness in Northwest Arkansas. In This Episode Why Quinn started Willow Street Lawns after experiencing homelessness at 15What the Lawn Care Olympics is and why it's coming to FayettevilleHow Lawnly connects homeowners, lawn care pros, and nonprofitsWhy local dollars, not charity, are the key to breaking poverty cyclesHow Startup Junkie's ecosystem helped Quinn scale two venturesWhat advice Quinn would give his younger self today⏱️ Chapters 1:01 – Welcome to the Startup Junkies Podcast1:42 – Meet Quinn Childress: Willow Street Lawns & Lawnly2:09 – Announcing the First-Ever Lawn Care Olympics2:29 – The Vision: Turning Lawn Care into a Community Sport3:23 – Partnering with Nonprofits to Fight Homelessness4:45 – Quinn's Story: From Homelessness to Business Owner6:30 – Lawn Care Olympics Event Details (Sept 20 at New Beginnings)7:26 – Judges, Challenges, and Who Can Compete11:41 – Inside Lawnly: A Two-Sided Marketplace for Lawn Care14:06 – RISE Arkansas Sponsor Message14:34 – Quinn's Roots in the NWA Ecosystem & Building Lawnly19:18 – The Real Motivation: Helping the Local Economy Thrive22:22 – Time Machine Question: Advice to His Younger Self29:20 – How to Connect with Quinn & Support the Olympics — Connect with Quinn 🔗 https://www.willowstlawns.com/ 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/quinn-childress-9a2065155/ — 🎧 Follow the Startup Junkies Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 👍 If you enjoyed this episode, like, subscribe, and share it with a friend. The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections.

    Lawn Care Olympics in Fayetteville, Arkansas with Quinn Childress of Willow Street Lawns

  7. Sep 1

    Cutting Health Care Costs for Self-Funded Employers with Kirat Kharode of HealCo

    Employer health care costs have risen 70% over the last decade while wages have grown just 30%. Kirat Kharode, CEO and Founder of HealCo, joins the Startup Junkies Podcast's Fuel Accelerator health tech series to break down why self-funded employer health plans are becoming unsustainable, and how HealCo's governance layer helps route employees to lower-cost, high-quality care before costs spiral. In this episode: Why self-funded health plans are under more scrutiny than everThe site-of-entry problem driving up specialty care costsHow HealCo's governance and routing model worksWhat a real cost-savings diagnostic looks like for employersWhy Northwest Arkansas is fertile ground for this kind of infrastructureThis episode is part of our Fuel Accelerator series ⏱️ Chapters:  00:18 – Welcome & the Fuel Accelerator health tech cohort00:42 – Meet Kirat Kharode, CEO & Founder of HealCo01:00 – 20 years inside hospital C-suites 01:26 – Inside the self-funded health plan landscape 02:07 – Why costs are outpacing wages 03:06 – Site of entry: where health costs really start 04:02 – Specialty care and the $15K vs. $50K cost divide 05:33 – HealCo's origin story and validation lab 06:36 – Building the governance layer and how employees benefit 09:06 – Sponsor: RISE Arkansas 09:33 – Validating the model & where self-funded care is headed 11:48 – HealCo's 5-year vision, case studies & broker demand 15:49 – Why Northwest Arkansas, plus advice for CFOs 18:50 – Connect with Kirat + episode wrap-up — Connect with Kirat & HealCo 🔗https://www.healco.us/ 🔗https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirat-kharode/ — 🎧 Follow the Startup Junkies Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 👍 If you enjoyed this episode, like, subscribe, and share it with a friend. The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections. Learn more at RiseArkansas.org.

  8. Aug 25

    How to Be a Great Startup Mentor with Permjot Valia & Ross Webb

    In this episode of the Startup Junkies Podcast, host Caleb Talley sits down with Permjot Valia, founder of Mentor Camp, and Ross Webb, a longtime AI product manager and returning Mentor Camp mentor, to unpack the philosophy behind one of the most unusual mentorship models in the startup world. This is a masterclass for founders on how to actually get value out of mentorship, and for mentors on how to build relationships that last well beyond a single conversation. In this episode: ✅ The origin story of Mentor Camp ✅ How to build genuine trust and social capital as a mentor or founder ✅ The question that ruins a mentoring session  ✅ Advice Permjot and Ross would give their younger selves ⏱️ CHAPTERS 0:24 – Welcome & Meet the Guests 1:09 – Permjot Valia's Sales Background  2:24 – Ross Webb: From Cape Town to AI Product Management  3:06 – Building an AI Product That Hit $50M in Revenue  4:18 – The Origin Story of Mentor Camp  5:19 – Why the Mentor Is the Client, Not the Startup  6:35 – Creating a White-Glove Mentor Experience (and Why Top Mentors Keep Coming Back) 10:25 – Real Relationships vs. One-Way Mentoring  13:29 – Fixing Transactional Mentorship in the Fuel Accelerator  13:52 – Social Capital: Why Mentors Shouldn't Hand Over Contacts Right Away  15:55 – Ross Webb's Charity "Gating System" for Mentoring Requests  19:19 – Spotting an Uncoachable Mentee (and the #1 Advice for Every Mentee)  22:10 – Asking for Insights, Not Opinions, in a Mentoring Session  24:29 – Advice to Their Younger Selves & the Shoelace Story That Changed Lives — Connect with Permjot Valia & Ross Webb 🔗 https://mentorcampnwa.com/ 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/permjotvalia/ 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/rosswebb/ — 🎧 Follow the Startup Junkies Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 👍 If you enjoyed this episode, like, subscribe, and share it with a friend. The Startup Junkies Podcast is brought to you in part by RISE, helping Arkansas tech and tech-enabled startups grow with no-cost coaching, capital navigation, and expert connections. Learn more at RiseArkansas.org.

    How to Be a Great Startup Mentor with Permjot Valia & Ross Webb
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About

The Startup Junkies podcast is hosted by Jeff Amerine and his team at Startup Junkie Consulting. We’ll cover topics ranging from getting started, planning, growing your business, proving your concept, leadership, marketing, exit strategies and so much more. We’ll interview business owners, entrepreneurs, experts and people we think will bring value to our audience. Subscribe and together we will move your business to the next level.

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  • Creator
    Startup Junkie
  • Years Active
    2015 - 2026
  • Episodes
    513
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright Startup Junkie
  • Show Website
    The Startup Junkies Podcast