Join us as Chris Bailey, hardware founder and creator of GearBrake, shares how he turned a homemade Arduino prototype in an Altoids tin into a venture backed motorcycle safety product, and what really happened when the company hit technical and financial walls. What started as a side project for safer riding evolved into a global hardware business with distribution in major catalogs and dealerships.In this episode, Chris opens up about winning pitch competitions, getting into top accelerators like Velocity and Techstars Mobility, raising capital, and then facing the brutal realities of hardware: complex engineering, tight margins, and a painful decision to shut down. He also shares how those lessons led him to build and later sell a second, bootstrapped hardware company entirely on his own terms.🔑 KEY HIGHLIGHTSTHE POWER OF STORYHow one storytelling insight, “the one who tells the best story wins”, transformed Chris’s pitch and started him on a streak of winning competitions.FROM ALTOIDS TIN TO GLOBAL DISTRIBUTIONThe journey from an Arduino plus accelerometer hack in an Altoids box to a manufactured brake light sold through dealers, catalogs, and power sports distributors.ACCELERATORS, TECHSTARS AND FUNDRAISINGHow Chris leveraged community, pitch competitions, and mentors to get into Velocity and Techstars Mobility, and turn that into investor interest and a seven figure raise.WHEN HARDWARE HITS A WALLInside the pivot to motorcycle telematics, the engineering challenges around power, Bluetooth, and GPS, and why a technical constraint ultimately killed the product.FAILURE, REBOUND AND A SECOND ACTWhat it was really like to shut down a venture backed startup, talk to investors, face the community, and then come back with a bootstrapped hardware company funded 100 percent by customers.🌐 RESOURCES & LINKSConnect with Chris Bailey on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/christopherleebailey/Podcast Website: foundersecretspod.com🔗 CONNECT WITH US ON SOCIAL MEDIAInstagram: /foundersecretspodLinkedIn: /founder-secrets-podcast🎧 LISTEN TO THE PODCASTApple Podcasts: tinyurl.com/4h59tyerSpotify: tinyurl.com/4wjb26v8🔔 DON’T FORGET TO SUBSCRIBE!Enjoyed this episode? LIKE, COMMENT, and SUBSCRIBE for more inspiring founder stories from around the world.