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Stephen Starr didn’t plan to get into the restaurant business.He set out to be a radio DJ. Then a nightclub owner. Then a music promoter.Along the way, he booked a young Jerry Seinfeld for $75, promoted shows for U2 and Madonna, and spent years pretending to be more successful than he really was.Then, in his late 30s, Stephen walked into a glitzy martini bar in New York.He was so taken with it, he decided to start his own version in Philadelphia.Today, Starr Restaurant Group generates nearly half a billion dollars in annual revenue and includes some of the most successful independent restaurants in America: Pastis, Buddakan, Le Diplomate, Parc, Makoto, and dozens more.The surprising part?Stephen did not start out as a foodie.Instead, he became obsessed with the theatre of dining: design, upholstery, lighting, music. A “wow!” feeling when you walk in the door.In this conversation with Guy, Stephen talks about the hard lessons he learned in the comedy and music business, and the unexpected path he took to redefining dining.What You'll Learn:The unglamorous economics of rock concerts and restaurantsHow rejection, romantic heartbreak, and failure can become powerful motivatorsWhy he believes he's spent his career "throwing the party" without attending itHow building the right team of designers can make a restaurant feel magicalWhy Stephen says today's entrepreneurs have a much harder path than his generation didThe model Stephen says new restaurateurs should follow todayTimestamps:00:06:03 — A lonely childhood: Making up skits in his room00:09:49 — Losing his mother at age 1900:11:17 — Starting a comedy club: Deli by day. Stand up at night00:20:49 — Going broke and reneging on a bank loan00:28:26 — Music promotion: Feeling like a fraud while promoting U2, Madonna00:36:52 — A New York martini bar inspires Stephen to start his own00:42:20 — The bold design behind a line-out-the-door restaurant01:03:31 — Opening Buddakan in New York: “I can’t do anything better. This is Sgt. Pepper”01:09:08 — Starting a restaurant today: “I would say don’t do it … but if you do, keep it smaller”This episode was produced by Alex Cheng with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant with research by Sam Paulson. Our audio engineers were Patrick Murray and Robert Rodriguez.Follow How I Built This:Instagram → @howibuiltthisX → @HowIBuiltThisFacebook → How I Built ThisFollow Guy Raz:Instagram → @guy.razYoutube → guy_razX → @guyrazSubstack → guyraz.substack.comWebsite → guyraz.com See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today’s callers: Daisy in the United Kingdom looks to grow her barefoot shoe brand across the pond in the United States. Then Rachel in Pennsylvania considers private labeling for her protein-packed sprinkles. And Andrew in California wonders whether he should seek investment for his pleasantly-scented soil additive.Plus, Shazi discusses why entrepreneurship is one of the most creative outlets a person can have.Thank you to the founders of Freet Barefoot, SprinkleBites, and PlantAmika for being a part of our show.If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to [email protected] or call 1-800-433-1298.And be sure to listen to Happy Family Organics’ founding story as told by Shazi in 2020.This episode was produced by Sam Paulson with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by John Isabella. Our audio engineer was Robert Rodriguez.You can follow HIBT on X & Instagram and sign up for Guy’s free newsletter at guyraz.com or on Substack. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When Maxine Clark left a top job in retail to start a make-your-own stuffed animal store, people thought she’d lost her mind. Investors doubted it. Friends questioned it. Retail experts couldn't understand how it would scale.But drawing on more than 20 years as a retail executive, Maxine built a massively  successful shopping “experience,”  where kids could stuff, dress and personalize their own stuffed animals. Today, Build-A-Bear has generated billions in sales, survived the decline of malls, weathered the financial crisis, and become a global brand.WHAT YOU'LL LEARN How a failed errand—and an offhand comment by a kid–inspired a business plan How Maxine leveraged two decades of retail experience to launch Build-a-Bear How Willy Wonka and Walt Disney were early inspirations How she built a wedge against competitors How she got through the financial crisisHow she knew when to step down as CEO– and how to collaborate with her successor  TIMESTAMPS: 05:52 - A mom Who Worked for Eleanor Roosevelt 09:18 - The Impromptu Interview That Changed Maxine’s Career16:00 - Becoming One of the Few Female Fortune 500 Executives18:43 - Why She Walked Away From Payless21:27 - The Beanie Baby Disappointment That Sparked Build-A-Bear26:14 - Designing the First Store: “Make it Like Willy Wonka.”37:53 - Opening Day — and a Line Out the Door39:53 - Defending the Brand Against Copycats and Lawsuits45:53 - Scaling to Hundreds of Stores and Going Public58:25 - Letting Go: Stepping Down as CEO and Building a LegacyThis episode was researched by Rommel Wood and produced by Kerry Thompson, with music by Ramtin Arablouei, and edited by Neva Grant. Follow How I Built This:Instagram → @howibuiltthisX → @HowIBuiltThisFacebook → How I Built ThisFollow Guy Raz:Instagram → @guy.razYoutube → guy_razX → @guyrazSubstack → guyraz.substack.comWebsite → guyraz.com See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today’s callers: Whitney in Utah  wonders how to bridge the gap between pre-seed and institutional investment for her fitness/retail combo space. Then Chloe in the U.K. considers which markets to target for her at-home crafting kits. And Christy in Washington wants to convert gifters into repeat customers for her coffee flavoring brand.Plus, Christina’s take on why Milk Bar is better served with her as Chief Experimenter rather than Chief Executive.  Thank you to the founders of The Beau Collective, Cotton Clara, and Vashon Island Coffee Dust. If you’d like to be featured on a future Advice Line episode—where Guy and former show guests take questions from early-stage founders—leave us a one-minute message that tells us about your business and a specific question you’d like answered. Send a voice memo to [email protected] or call 1-800-433-1298. And be sure to listen to the story of how Christina founded Milk Bar from our episode back in 2019.This episode was produced by J.C. Howard with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by John Isabella. Our audio engineer was Jimmy Keeley.You can follow HIBT on Twitter & Instagram and sign up for Guy's free newsletter at guyraz.com and on Substack. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 2004, German programmer Tobias Lütke was living in Ottawa with his girlfriend.An avid snowboarder, he wanted to launch an online snowboard shop, but found the e-commerce software available at the time to be clunky and expensive.So he decided to write his own e-commerce software.After he launched his online snowboard business, called Snowdevil, other online merchants were so impressed with what he built that they started asking to license Tobi's software to run their own stores.Tobi and his co-founder realized that software had more potential than snowboards, so they launched the e-commerce platform Shopify in 2006.Since then, it has grown into a publicly-traded company with over 7,000 employees and $11 billion in revenue.Timestamps: 07:20 - Tobi discovers snowboarding–and meets his future wife–on vacation in Canada11:25 - Building a new kind of snowboarding company29:35 - Pivot point: skateboards or software?34:25 - The night before Tobi’s wedding, Shopify switches business models45:25 - The 2008 financial crisis hits… revealing a huge opportunity 58:55 - After a decade, Shopify goes publicThis episode was produced by Casey Herman with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant. This archive episode was produced by Katherine Sypher.Follow How I Built This:Instagram → @howibuiltthisX → @HowIBuiltThisFacebook → How I Built ThisFollow Guy Raz:Instagram → @guy.razYoutube → guy_razX → @guyrazSubstack → guyraz.substack.comWebsite → guyraz.com See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.