April 16, 2023

Podcast Episode 1 - Funding Main Street & Bagels

Hello, friends, I’m really jazzed up about launching our podcast! Episode 1 is one of the most interesting conversations I’ve had so far, and it is available now here!

In Episode 1, you’ll meet Ben Lozano, founder and CEO of SMBX. Ben built SMBX to fund Main Street businesses in a totally unique way, leveraging crowdfunding, the concept of bonds, and traditional credit principles. Along the way, he funded a bagel shop that led the New York Times to declare that the best bagels no longer exist in NYC!

I think Ben’s story is so compelling. He’s a professor of finance who built SMBX to serve the kind of Main Street businesses he saw his dad help as a CPA while he was growing up. He was able to leverage his expertise to build something totally unique in the marketplace and help the kinds of entrepreneurs who are overlooked the most.

Give it a listen and learn more about how other capital entrepreneurs are changing the funding landscape. I take something away from every one of these conversations, and I hope you do too. I find that these conversations always help me think about my work at Novel in new ways.

Last but not least, give me feedback! I have so much fun having these conversations, but if you want me to touch on themes I consistently miss while I’m dorking out on what world-changers like Ben are doing, just drop me an email with your suggestions!

Mostly though, just subscribe and listen in! You can subscribe here for Apple Podcasts, here for Spotify, and here for Google. Or if you prefer another player, you can find the right link here.