Living Entrepreneurship Blog / Babson Entrepreneurs

Babson Built Podcast

It is very difficult to visit Babson’s campus without meeting an entrepreneur. Most conversations with students and faculty alike are seasoned with tidbits about startups, and many would argue that entrepreneurship is the very lifeblood of the school. Every year, nearly 18% of MBA students go on to start their own business, the highest of any program in America, and the school is consistently ranked as one of the best in the world for entrepreneurship across numerous sources. Babson Built is a podcast created to showcase Babson’s founders and entrepreneurs.

Babson Built is unique in that it tells the stories of fledgling and seasoned entrepreneurs alike. The stories told on Babson Built are honest and open, helping people see the true struggles that entrepreneurs face on a daily basis, as well as the successes they reach. Amongst the initial interviewees are the following companies:

InnerCity Weightlifting

InnerCity Weightlifting reduces youth violence by connecting proven-risk young people with new networks and opportunities, including meaningful career tracks in and beyond personal training. In our conversation, founder Jon Feinman ’10 opens up about what drove him to start this venture, his initial struggles, and how they are using the gym to disrupt the status quo that leads to urban street violence.

Lula 

Hear the story of how a late night pizza craving turned into one of the hottest startups in the ride sharing economy. Lula was started by Michael and Matthew Vega-Sanz, who are currently still undergrads at Babson.

Briggs Original

Do you like drinking? Briggs Original cranberry vodka seltzer is available in liquor stores all over Massachusetts, but did you know that it was started as a moonlighting project by a couple of undergrads? Their team consists of current undergrads Michael Kurson and Neil Quigley along with Charles Morris ‘19 and Guillermo Gomez ’19 as their first investors.

 

Project 99

Yulkendy Valdez and Josuel Plasencia, who graduated Babson undergrad in 2017, talk about how their business has helped encourage Fortune 500 companies to become diverse and equitable workplaces with fun activities and games.

The Babson Built podcast is now live and can be listened to on both iOS devices (using the Podcast app) and Android devices (using Podcast Addict app), with upcoming episodes from Detrapel, WakuGreen Piñata Toys, and Honest Discounts, to name a few. If you need something to listen to on your commute to work, or your next road trip, consider checking out an episode! Furthermore, if have any suggestions for Babson businesses to feature, please email babsonbuilt@gmail.com.