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Outback Steakhouse co-founder Chris Sullivan joins Nick Friedman to reveal how a plan for a nice little local company that might make $1 million a year turned into a $4 billion company, starting with the first Outback in Tampa in 1988. Chris breaks down how Outback grew through area joint venture partners and a managing partner program it called proprietors, how he kept partner turnover to about 5%, and how 50/50 joint ventures helped Outback add brands like Carrabba's. It's a conversation on entrepreneurship, leadership, culture, branding and franchising for founders, franchise owners, restaurant operators and business owners. Chris Sullivan is one of the four co-founders of Outback Steakhouse, along with Bob Basham, Tim Gannon and Trudy Cooper. Before Outback, he spent nine years at Steak and Ale, then ran Bennigan's with Bob Basham and grew it from 24 to 120 restaurants in three years. 0:00 Intro 2:12 Early Life and Career Beginnings 7:29 Mentors Norman Brinker, Stephen Covey 10:01 Founding Outback Steakhouse 12:33 Joint Venture Partner Model 23:23 Building Culture, Avoiding Wobble 26:49 Carrabba's, Fleming's, and Roy's 33:03 The Bloomin' Onion Story 36:59 Taking Outback Public 40:44 Advice for Young Entrepreneurs

College HUNKS co-founder Nick Friedman sits down with Jack Tonnessen to break down how Jack went from a 17-year-old warehouse employee to the youngest College HUNKS franchise owner, financed his own business, built a high-performing team, developed a winning culture, and began investing in real estate. 00:00 Intro 02:10 Starting in the warehouse 06:23 Minor leagues to majors 08:47 From buddy to boss 11:06 Golf lessons for business 18:33 Your feel vs. your real 20:43 Extreme ownership mindset 32:44 Building a local brand 36:39 Culture is never static 46:13 Buying in with SBA

Blaine Gabbert spent 13 years in the NFL and won two Super Bowls as the backup quarterback. Nick sits down with him onwhat it takes to stay fully prepared for a job you may never be called into, why the routine is the reset after a bad week, howgreat leaders read a locker room, and the day he pulled a family out of Tampa Bay after a helicopter went down. Plus his takeon youth sports, life after football, and full-time dad mode. 0:00 Intro 1:03 Rising Through Every Level 5:57 Leadership and Culture 11:29 A Quarterback's Weekly Routine 16:22 Winning the Super Bowl 18:13 The Backup Quarterback Mindset 20:01 Brady vs. Mahomes 25:47 Life After Football 37:25 Youth Sports Specialization 39:27 The Helicopter Rescue

Todd and Anne Smith join College H.U.N.K.S. co-founder Nick Friedman to reveal how they left corporate careers, launched a franchise during COVID, built an award-winning team in Asheville, and led their employees and community through the devastation of Hurricane Helene. They discuss: ◼️Why Todd and Anne left corporate America after 25 years and opened a franchise during COVID ◼️How they learned to run a business together after 30 years of marriage but never working side by side ◼️What happened when Hurricane Helene devastated Asheville and their team helped move 170 displaced families ◼️How they hire for character, develop young leaders and protect their core values as the business grows ◼️Why managing your energy, not just your time, may be one of the most important skills in entrepreneurship 00:00 Intro 01:41 Leaving the corporate world 03:35 Virtual franchise training during Covid 04:47 Dividing roles as spouses 06:24 Becoming Asheville's go-to resource 08:19 Hiring and developing the team 15:08 Setting promotion expectations 19:42 Surviving Hurricane Helene 26:40 Protecting your energy 33:16 Vision for what's next

Founder and investor Shelly Sun Berkowitz joins Nick Friedman to reveal how she built BrightStar Care into a $750 million franchise business, scaled through franchising and national marketing, survived the sacrifices of entrepreneurship and walked away from the wrong buyer just 10 days before her company sale was set to fund. They discuss: ◼️ Why 98% of aspiring entrepreneurs never do the work required to turn advice into results ◼️ How she scaled BrightStar Care into a $750 million franchise business through systems, technology, national accounts and brand building ◼️ Why taking venture capital or private equity too early can cost founders control of the company they created ◼️ How she knew when employees had reached their ceiling and found leaders capable of taking the business to its next stage ◼️ What every founder should know before selling a company, including why she stopped her own transaction just 10 days before funding and chose a different buyer 00:00 Intro 01:33 Starting BrightStar Care 04:41 Naming the BrightStar brand 06:43 Choosing the franchising path 15:39 Leadership lessons while scaling 24:31 Undercover Boss experience 30:52 Balancing motherhood and business 37:12 IFA and franchising advocacy 44:12 Spotting potential worth mentoring 49:07 Selling BrightStar, next chapter

In Episode 16 of the HUNKS Talking Junk podcast, Erica Fine shares how she left the corporate world, launched a College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving franchise as a single mother, and grew it into one of the company’s largest and most highly rated operations in just three years. They discuss:◼️ How she went from owning one truck to operating one of the largest College HUNKS franchises in the country ◼️ Why pride, accountability, and strong leadership are essential for building a high-performance team ◼️ What businesses must do to consistently earn five-star reviews and deliver an unforgettable customer experience ◼️ How she balanced entrepreneurship, franchise growth, and raising two children as a single mother ◼️ Why meaningful business success should be measured through community impact as well as revenue 00:00 - Intro 00:45 - Meet Erica Fine 01:34 - Chief Enthusiasm Officer story 03:06 - Corporate to entrepreneur transition 09:21 - Shifting from bag to legacy 11:53 - Balancing single motherhood, business 15:48 - Delegating operations to team 20:26 - Building her personal brand 23:36 - Expanding into new territories 34:49 - Recovering from negative experiences

Micah Pueschel is the vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter for Iration, the Hawaii-rooted alternative reggae, rock, and pop band known for songs including “Time Bomb” and “Falling.” He shares the business and personal lessons behind the band’s rise, including touring with Pepper, building a loyal fan base, managing five equal owners, protecting the Iration brand, and learning to perform without relying on alcohol. They Talk About: ◼️How Iration went from college bars, borrowed money, and a passenger van to sold-out venues and major festival stages ◼️Why ego destroys bands and getting along can matter more than raw talent ◼️What happened when Pandora revealed the band had roughly 880 million streams they did not know about ◼️How his wife’s boundary pushed him to stop relying on alcohol to face stage anxiety and touring pressure ◼️Why authentic songwriting, patient branding, and equal ownership helped Iration build a lasting music career 00:00:00 - Intro 00:01:08 - Guest intro & Hawaii roots 00:02:17 - Learning to sing growing up 00:05:17 - Joining Iration as backup singer 00:08:06 - How Iration got its name 00:11:11 - Turning music into a business 00:15:37 - Early touring & van life 00:20:23 - Breakthrough moments & streaming era 00:30:47 - Band chemistry, family & balance 00:45:40 - Golf talk & rapid fire questions

Adrian Thomas and Austin Thomas are brothers, College Hunks franchise owners, and the team behind the North Columbus, Ohio location. They rose through leadership roles, learned the business from the inside out, leaned on their faith through major personal loss, and eventually returned home to Ohio to buy and rebuild a struggling franchise. They Talk About: ◼️How Austin went from being homeless and living in his brother’s car to becoming a business owner ◼️Why their father’s death became a turning point that pushed them to go all in ◼️How starting on the trucks taught them leadership, humility, trust, and emotional intelligence ◼️Why faith, family, and serving people became the foundation of their franchise success ◼️How they took a major pay cut, bet on each other, and turned a struggling location around 0:00 - Intro 1:05 - Welcome to the show 2:37 - Starting out on the truck 4:04 - Austin's homelessness story 9:14 - Learning leadership lessons 12:50 - Becoming managers timeline 14:28 - Father's passing 20:02 - Leading former peers 26:14 - Deciding to buy franchise 39:30 - Finding work-life balance

Kevin Harrington is a serial entrepreneur with over 50 years of experience, the inventor of the modern infomercial, one of the original Sharks on Shark Tank, a pioneer behind the As Seen On TV industry, and a business builder connected to more than $6 billion in sales. They talk about: ◼️How Shark Tank forced investors to make million dollar decisions with almost no due diligence ◼️Why most entrepreneurs lose after getting money because they expect the investor to run the business ◼️How the “tease, please, seize” formula creates an irresistible offer that gets customers to buy ◼️Why Celsius grew from a tiny stock into a multi billion dollar brand using gyms and influencers ◼️How TikTok Shop, AI commercials, and live selling are becoming the modern version of the infomercial 00:00 - Intro 00:47 - Shark Tank origin story 07:20 - Getting recruited for the show 11:33 - Departure from Shark Tank 17:15 - Shark Tank's cultural impact 23:41 - Building the infomercial business 28:35 - What makes a great pitch 32:14 - Founding Entrepreneurs Organization 38:31 - Celsius and board investing 49:35 - TikTok and the future of shopping

Tom Hughes is a Marine Corps veteran, College HUNKS franchise owner in Omaha, Nebraska, former Franchise Advisory Council Chair, and leadership-focused entrepreneur who has built successful teams in fitness, sales, technology, and franchising. After serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, Tom dedicated his career to helping others grow personally and professionally while developing high-performing teams and strong company cultures. 0:00 - Guest intro: Tom Hughes 1:40 - Growing up in a small town 3:11 - Joining the Marine Corps 4:30 - Transitioning to civilian life 5:35 - Starting a fitness business 13:00 - Discovering College Hunks franchise 17:51 - Military resilience applied to business 21:05 - Franchise Advisory Council role 23:15 - Leading through COVID 25:16 - Managing team turnover 29:29 - Having hard conversations

Tamar Slay is a former NBA player, Marshall University Hall of Famer, and founder of Slay Basketball Academy. After a successful professional basketball career with the New Jersey Nets, Charlotte Bobcats, and teams across Europe, Tamar transitioned into coaching, mentorship, and youth development while building a nationally respected basketball training brand. 00:00 - Introduction 05:10 - Mentors who showed up 10:41 - Sit in the storm 13:16 - Marshall years 19:00 - NBA draft night 23:17 - Mental health breakthrough 25:00 - Guarding Kobe and Jordan 32:27 - Nine years in Europe 40:00 - Near-death health scare 44:30 - Slay Basketball Academy 49:08 - Ranking Jordan, Kobe, LeBron

Nick Friedman sits down with Steven Nickels and Ted Panebianco to celebrate the 10th episode milestone of HUNKS Talking Junk, sharing the incredible story of how Steven helped build the operational foundation of College HUNKS as the company’s first executive employee 18 years ago before he and Ted went on to build the brand’s largest $10M+ franchise operation in just 10 years, all while overcoming the 2008 crash, maxing out credit cards, adopting their son during launch, and proving their vision was possible from the very beginning.

Nick Friedman sits down with Tommy Mello to break down how to scale a home service business from nothing to billions, covering branding, hiring, leadership, and the systems that actually drive growth. Tommy Mello is the “Home Service Billionaire,” founder of A1 Garage Door Service, a $200M+ company with a billion dollar valuation and over 700 employees across 19 states. He's a best-selling author, top 0.01% podcast host, and business educator helping entrepreneurs scale service companies.

Nick Friedman sits down with his sister Alison Friedman for a special episode recorded in honor of National Sibling Day, where they dive into leadership, nonprofit strategy, mission driven culture, international business, and why the performing arts can bring people together in an age of loneliness and distraction.

Kevin Brown joins Nick Friedman to break down leadership, culture, branding, resilience, purpose, and what it really takes to build extraordinary teams that care. Kevin Brown is a global motivational speaker, bestselling author, and leadership expert known for THE HERO EFFECT, UNLEASHING YOUR HERO, and BE THE G.O.A.T., and he helped grow Servpro from a family business into a multi-billion-dollar brand before becoming one of the world’s most in-demand keynote speakers. 00:00 - Introduction 02:43 - Leadership 08:11 - Self Care 13:11 - Franchise Advice 17:32 - Disaster Cleanup 24:31 - Purpose 27:57 - Branding 31:19 - The Hero Effect 35:35 - Culture