Founders in Full

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Founders in Full

Dan Ritzke

25 episodes

3 weeks ago

Karina Muller, Founder of Maripossa Wellness, shares how her journey from individual therapeutic work to large-scale corporate wellness programs led her to build a model centered on human connection, psychological safety, and adaptive teaching. What began as one-on-one support evolved into a mission to equip entire teams—nurses, investment bankers, educators, tech professionals—with the tools they need to navigate stress, burnout, and emotional regulation in the workplace. We explore: ✅ How a...

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Entrepreneurship

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Karina Muller, Founder of Maripossa Wellness, shares how her journey from individual therapeutic work to large-scale corporate wellness programs led her to build a model centered on human connection, psychological safety, and adaptive teaching. What began as one-on-one support evolved into a mission to equip entire teams—nurses, investment bankers, educators, tech professionals—with the tools they need to navigate stress, burnout, and emotional regulation in the workplace. We explore: ✅ How a...

Show more...

Entrepreneurship

Episodes (20/25)

Founders in Full

Karina Muller | Maripossa Wellness

Karina Muller, Founder of Maripossa Wellness, shares how her journey from individual therapeutic work to large-scale corporate wellness programs led her to build a model centered on human connection, psychological safety, and adaptive teaching. What began as one-on-one support evolved into a mission to equip entire teams—nurses, investment bankers, educators, tech professionals—with the tools they need to navigate stress, burnout, and emotional regulation in the workplace. We explore: ✅ How a...

3 weeks ago

1 hour 18 minutes

Founders in Full

Amy Briggs | Aviva

Amy Briggs, Founder & CEO of Aviva, shares how her unexpected path from pediatric speech-language pathologist to tech founder led her to build a virtual scheduling assistant designed to give parents back their time—and their sanity. What began as a desire to lighten the mental load for families became a mission to eliminate the invisible labor of managing school forms, appointments, activities, and the endless stream of emails that govern modern parenthood. We explore: ✅ How Amy’s work wi...

1 month ago

1 hour 26 minutes

Founders in Full

Mike George | Soaring Families

Mike George, Founder of Soaring Families, shares how three decades of caring for his son with complex medical needs led him to create a platform that helps families move from overwhelm and exhaustion to confidence and hope. What began as a personal journey evolved into a mission to help caregivers build stronger support systems and navigate their care responsibilities with clarity and resilience. We explore: ✅ How Mike’s family caregiving experience shaped the foundation of Soaring Families...

1 month ago

1 hour 5 minutes

Founders in Full

Anthony Snowell | LifeSummary.ai

Anthony Snowell, Founder of LifeSummary.ai, shares how his background in computer science—and his personal experience navigating the chaos of family documents after losing his mother—inspired him to build an AI-powered platform that helps families simplify, organize, and truly understand the most important parts of their lives. What began as a personal challenge to make sense of everyday financial and insurance paperwork has evolved into a mission-driven company using AI with intention: not a...

2 months ago

1 hour 13 minutes

Founders in Full

Barrie Farivar | Leaf

Barrie Farivar, Founder of leaf, shares how her experience at Google—and her life as a mom—sparked the idea for a private audio app designed to help families preserve the voices and stories that matter most. What began as a personal project to capture her children’s first words has evolved into a mission-driven platform empowering families to build digital legacies that feel as intimate and meaningful as old photo albums. We explore: ✅ How Barrie’s own family experiences inspired her to crea...

2 months ago

1 hour 8 minutes

Founders in Full

Tim Carstensen | Foam Party All Stars

Tim Carstensen, Founder of Foam Party All Stars, shares how a summer side hustle turned into a thriving entertainment business that brings joy to kids (and relief to parents) across the Chicago suburbs. A full-time elementary PE teacher by day, Tim started the business with one foam cannon, a DIY website, and a few postcards—and quickly grew it into a multi-location operation serving hundreds of daycares, schools, and families each year. We explore: ✅ How Tim’s entrepreneurial streak—and a kn...

2 months ago

1 hour 2 minutes

Founders in Full

Lauren Clough | bQuest

Lauren Clough, Co-Founder of bQuest, shares her path from a 13-year career in her multigenerational family business and a stint in private equity to building a mission-driven platform that helps families navigate aging, loss, and end-of-life care. Lauren explains how bQuest pivoted from a direct-to-consumer idea to partnering with financial advisors—giving them tools to guide families through life’s most emotional transitions. We explore: ✅ How personal caregiving experiences revealed the nee...

3 months ago

1 hour 8 minutes

Founders in Full

Paul Richardson | Tumbleweed

Paul Richardson, Founder of Tumbleweed, shares how his own family experiences—and a 20-year career in healthcare—sparked the idea for a digital platform that helps families plan for aging and end-of-life. After losing six loved ones in six years and seeing first-hand how disorganized the process can be, Paul built Tumbleweed to simplify everything from storing key documents to closing gaps in planning and even supporting families after a death. We explore: ✅ How a four-month cross-country roa...

3 months ago

1 hour 23 minutes

Founders in Full

Michael Taverna | The Ad Village

Michael Taverna, Founder of The Ad Village, shares his journey from a career in digital marketing and ad tech to building a mission-driven platform designed to protect kids online. Drawing on his experience working with major automotive brands and mobile data startups, Michael explains how he’s repurposing the very tools advertisers use—pixels, ad tracking, and programmatic buying—to disrupt harmful ads and instead serve children positive, uplifting messages. We explore: ✅ How Michael combine...

4 months ago

1 hour 12 minutes

Founders in Full

Greg Hearn | Petunia

Greg Hearn, Founder of Petunia, shares his journey from a career in automotive and tech to creating a mission-driven platform that helps families navigate the complex, emotional process of senior living. Inspired by his own family’s experience, Greg talks about building Petunia as a solo founder, the lessons he’s learned in the AgeTech/FamTech space, and why he sees a huge opportunity to rethink how families discover and decide on assisted living and memory care. We explore: ✅ How personal ex...

4 months ago

1 hour 9 minutes

Founders in Full

Erica Bethe Levin | Globowl

Erica Bethe Levin, Founder of Globowl, joins me to talk about her entrepreneurial journey—from launching one of Chicago’s first digital publications to helping scale a venture-backed hospitality tech startup, to now leading a mission-driven CPG brand rooted in culture, nutrition, and flavor. We dive into how Erica went from being a food writer and new mom to building a baby and toddler food brand that’s challenging the status quo. She shares the pivotal moment that sparked the idea for Globo...

5 months ago

1 hour 22 minutes

Founders in Full

Cindy Abel | Vescent

Cindy Abel, Founder of Vescent, joins me to share how her career in tech and decades of experience running a consulting firm—combined with her personal experience as a parent—led to building a mission-driven platform that supports teen girls through mentorship, mental health literacy, and community. In this episode, we cover her career path, the early warning signs she noticed around social media and mental health, the evolution of Vescent, lessons from launching with limited resources, and ...

5 months ago

1 hour 5 minutes

Founders in Full

Sara Mauskopf | Winnie

Sara Mauskopf, Co‑Founder & CEO of Winnie, joins me to share how her background in tech and product leadership at companies like Google, Twitter, and Postmates led to building a fast‑growing marketplace that helps parents find childcare. In this episode, we cover her career path, what drew her to Silicon Valley, the origin and evolution of Winnie, lessons learned from early pivots, and how she’s scaling a platform that supports both parents and childcare providers. 👉 Learn more about Wi...

5 months ago

1 hour 6 minutes

Founders in Full

Katie Taylor | Child Life On Call

Katie Taylor, Founder & CEO of Child Life On Call, joins me to share how her background as a certified Child Life Specialist led to building a podcast and a parent‑facing app that supports families through medical experiences. In this episode, we cover her career path, the origin of the Child Life On Call podcast, how it evolved into a hospital‑licensed app, what she’s learned from early customers, and how she’s growing a community of child life professionals. 👉 Learn more about Child L...

5 months ago

1 hour 6 minutes

Founders in Full

Dale Jarosz | Bschool Travel

In this episode of Founders in Full, I talk with Dale Jarosz, co-founder of Bschool Travel, a company that designs immersive international learning experiences for MBA and university students. Dale’s journey started in mechanical engineering, took him to Caterpillar designing hydraulic valves, and eventually led him to business school at Michigan—where travel, entrepreneurship, and frustration with the status quo planted the seeds for a new kind of company. What began as a scrappy startup run...

5 months ago

1 hour 14 minutes

Founders in Full

Chris Borek | Spira Farms

In this episode of Founders in Full, I talk with Chris Borek, co-founder of Spira Farms, a Chicago-area vertical farm growing nutrient-dense microgreens for restaurants, grocery stores, and health-conscious consumers. Chris’s journey started in a condo during grad school, growing greens for his family while researching sustainability and nutrition. After his mother’s cancer diagnosis, what began as a personal health project quickly turned into a purpose-driven business rooted in freshness, l...

6 months ago

1 hour 26 minutes

Founders in Full

Lauren Cain | Elm Dirt

In this episode of Founders in Full, I talk with Lauren Cain, founder of Elm Dirt, a company reinventing the way we care for lawns, gardens, and soil health—using the power of microbes, composting worms, and a lot of trial and error. Lauren’s path started in chemical engineering, took her through a high-pressure career at ExxonMobil, and eventually led to launching an e-commerce business with her husband. After years of freelancing and experimenting with product ideas, it was a dirt-loving to...

6 months ago

1 hour 7 minutes

Founders in Full

Joe Weber | Four Star Mushrooms

In this episode of Founders in Full, I talk with Joe Weber, founder of Four Star Mushrooms, a Chicago-based mushroom company on a mission to transform our food system through regenerative agriculture, chef-driven partnerships, and urban farming innovation. Joe’s journey began with a deep interest in ecology and sustainable agriculture. But after a lightbulb moment listening to a Paul Stamets podcast, he realized mushrooms could be the keystone species that brought his vision to life. With no...

6 months ago

1 hour 8 minutes

Founders in Full

Sarah Spliethoff | Sunniemade

In this episode of Founders in Full, I talk with Sarah Spliethoff, founder of Sunniemade, a personal care brand on a mission to make sustainability feel effortless with plant-powered, plastic-free products that people genuinely love using. After more than a decade in the agency world—working in experiential marketing, creative strategy, and brand development—Sarah set out to build a brand of her own. What started as a side hustle making bar soap in her kitchen has grown into a thriving busin...

7 months ago

1 hour 3 minutes

Founders in Full

Will Nitze | IQBAR

In this episode of Founders in Full, I talk with Will Nitze, Founder and CEO of IQBAR, a company on a mission to fuel brain and body with clean-label functional nutrition products—from protein bars to hydration mixes and brain-boosting coffee. Will shares his unconventional path from selling software to oil and gas companies to launching a brain-focused nutrition brand out of pure obsession, grit, and a little bit of gray-hat marketing. His story is a masterclass in strategic product developm...

7 months ago

1 hour 4 minutes