Entrepreneur Stories 4⃣ Inspiration

Dr. Dan Cohen is the former Chairman of CNS, Incorporated. Dr. Cohen was the driving force behind the meteoric rise of Breathe Right nasal strips, acquiring the rights to manufacture and sell the product for the medical equipment company he founded in 1982. In 2006, GlaxoSmithKline acquired CNS, including its Breathe R

Jon Ostenson is the Founder of FranBridge Consulting. Jon is a top 1% Franchise Consultant in the US, and frequent contributor on franchising across a variety of outlets and publications. Jon is a multi-brand franchisee himself, and along with his business partners, he has great operators leading these ventures. As a r

Carey Smith founded Big Ass Fans in 1999 and served as its Chief Big Ass until the company's sale in 2017. Under his guidance, Big Ass Fans grew an average of 30% a year, with offices across the globe. It made the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies 11 consecutive years — a feat achieved by only 34 othe

Rick Skidmore is the Founder and CEO at Timberlane, Inc. Having been born an entrepreneur, it should have been clear early on that despite considerable success in the insurance and investment industry, Rick's future was outside the traditional career path. Rick founded his current company, Timberlane Inc., in 1995, bas

Jim Kalb is currently the President of OptiFuse, an innovative high-growth manufacturer of power protection components distributed by high-quality select wholesalers throughout the world. OptiFuse has been listed on the Inc. 5000 for the last 5 years, as well as being named as one of Forbe's magazines "25 Best Small Co

Anne Hed is a lifetime resident of Minnesota. Her history as a business owner began back in the 1980’s, when she raced as a professional triathlete. She completed eight Ironman Triathlons in Hawaii, and met her late husband, Steve, through the sport. He became one of her first sponsors...   This Episode is Sponsored By