UtahPreneur - Inside Utah's Most Iconic Businesses
What if your favorite Utah business never made it? UtahPreneur is a storytelling podcast uncovering the make-or-break moments behind the shops, brands, and founders at the heart of Utah’s entrepreneurial excellence. While most business podcasts focus on unicorns and viral growth, we dig into the stories that almost didn’t happen, but shape our everyday experience here in Utah now. From bootstrapped startups to neighborhood storefronts, these stories show what it really takes to build a business in Utah. 🎧 Weekly in-person interviews with founders across Utah 🧠 Practical insights for entrepreneurs + curious locals ⛰️ Real stories from the edge of success, survival, and what almost wasn’t Subscribe and rediscover the soul of your city. Notable Guests: Costa Vida, Beehive Meals, Project Solar, Kid-to-Kid, & Spencer Mecham (Buildapreneur) Topics: Small business funding, local marketing strategies, Utah startup stories, hiring and leadership, brick-and-mortar growth, high growth founder origin stories, surviving hard seasons, scaling without burnout, building community through business, building a business with your community, and what makes a business last
Episodes
⭐ Vanessa Quigley never planned to be a tech founder. But when her youngest son cried over a photo book from his preschool teacher, she realized how badly families need better ways to preserve their memories. That moment sparked Chatbooks—a startup that began with a simple idea: “Print my Instagram.”
In this episode, Vanessa shares the full backstory of how she and her husband built one of Utah’s most beloved consumer brands—without...
🎙️ Shauna Sloan is the Utah mom who turned her love of thrifting into a national resale empire. In this episode of UtahPreneur, we dive into the origin story of Kid to Kid, one of the most recognizable children's resale franchises in the country. Shauna shares how she and her husband launched the business in 1992 with no outside capital—just grit, a clear vision, and a stroller full of flyers. From rollerblading through neigh...
🎙️ Heather Griffith Barber helped turn Queen of Wraps into one of Utah’s most recognized print and vehicle wrap companies. What started with her brothers—and a cape and crown—grew into a full-service branding powerhouse with 30 employees and clients across the country. But at the height of it all, Heather made the bold move to step away.
In this episode, we dive into why she left, how she’s building again, and what she’s ...
🎙 Jake Baadsgaard built Disruptive Advertising into a $25M powerhouse by helping businesses stop wasting money on bad ads. But behind the scenes, Jake was burned out, disconnected from his family, and hiding behind the success of his company. In this episode, he shares the raw, honest story of what happened after he hit $10M in revenue—and realized he didn’t like the person he’d become.
We talk about how Jake rebuilt his ...
🎙 Dale Majors started flipping bike parts online as a teenager, eventually turning that hustle into BikeWagon, a $10M/yr e-commerce business. After scaling and selling the company, he didn’t retire—he used his entrepreneurial skills to design a life built around freedom, adventure, and family. From long-distance bikepacking trips across Europe to launching Venture Anyway, a peer group for entrepreneurs, Dale has always prioritized...
🎙 After spending 15 years in prison, Dave Durocher had two choices—continue down the path that led him there or turn his life around. He chose the latter, and today, he’s the Executive Director of The Other Side Academy, a two-year residential program in Salt Lake City that helps ex-convicts, addicts, and those looking for a second chance rebuild their lives.
In this episode of UtahPreneur, Dave shares his raw and inspiri...
✨ She walked away from a 15-year career in architecture, cashed out her $10,000 IRA, and risked it all on cookies—long before Utah’s cookie boom.
Back in 2008, Tami Steggell saw an opportunity to reinvent the cookie industry by using 100% real ingredients—no preservatives, no artificial flavors, no shortcuts. She founded RubySnap Cookies in a rundown Salt Lake City neighborhood, determined to make it a destination for gourmet, ...
This Running Store Went From Barely Surviving to a 30 year legacy | Salt Lake Running Company (SLRC)
✨For 30 years, Salt Lake Running Company has been more than a store—it’s been the go-to destination for Utah’s running community.
Back in 1995, SLRC started as a small specialty shop in Salt Lake City. Three decades later, it’s one of the most trusted names for runners of all levels. But staying in business for this long—especially in retail—is no easy feat. Competing against big-box retailers and online giants, SLRC has built ...
✨ From starting a parking lot striping company, to building two of Utah’s most well-known brands, Sean Collins has done it all.
Back in 1999, Sean and his business partner, Dave Rutter, had an idea for a family entertainment center—and they made it happen. FatCats launched in 2001, and soon after, they got another opportunity. The founders of a small Mexican restaurant called Costa Azul came to them for funding. They passe...
✨ Russ Relyea was at rock bottom—personally and financially—when a simple corndog changed his life. After a chance encounter with a corndog vendor in North Dakota, Russ became obsessed with perfecting the recipe. After a lot of persistence, he finally got the secret formula—and started selling corndogs out of the back of his truck. It was an instant success, with lines of customers forming from day one.
But that’s not even the best ...
🌟 Right in the heart of Lehi’s historic Main Street, Pioneer Party & Copy has been a beloved staple in the community for over a century. What started as a small-town pharmacy has transformed into a family-run hub for personalized gifts, ready-to-go presents, and all things celebration.
In this episode, we’re diving into the incredible story of how this iconic Utah business has survived and thrived for generations. You...
🌟 What started as a freezer meal side hustle turned into an 8-figure business transforming family dinners across Utah.
When Allyse Jackson’s husband was between jobs, she decided to sell freezer meals on Facebook to make ends meet. That single post made $10,000 in sales—and Beehive Meals was born. Today, the business is a household name, helping busy families enjoy home-cooked meals without the hassle.
In this episode, Allyse shares...
🌟 Right in the heart of downtown Salt Lake City, Ken Sanders Rare Books has become a cultural cornerstone for Utah’s literary community.
With its collection of rare and historic titles, including an unmatched selection of Utah and LDS history, Ken Sanders Rare Books has cultivated a loyal following over decades. But its story hasn’t been without challenges. After losing their previous location to developer pressure, thousands of do...
✨John Jonas, a Utah entrepreneur, created a job board that connects business owners with highly skilled workers in the Philippines. By cutting out the middleman, OnlineJobs.ph helps entrepreneurs reclaim their time while providing life-changing opportunities for Filipino talent.
Don’t miss this episode, where John shares how he grew OnlineJobs.ph into an 8-figure platform that’s changing lives globally.
➡️ Learn m...
🌟 From the foothills of Orem to nationwide disruption, this is the story of how Project Solar is flipping the billion-dollar solar industry on its head.
Matt and his co-founder Trevor Hiltbrant saw a huge problem in the solar industry—prices varying by tens of thousands of dollars, depending on how much your sales rep is pocketing. Their solution? Cut out the middleman and bring solar online, saving homeowners thousands while ...
From working $10-an-hour jobs to becoming the top ClickFunnels affiliate and building a thriving content and affiliate marketing business, Spencer Mecham’s journey is anything but ordinary. In this episode, we dive into how Spencer leveraged platforms like YouTube, blogs, and social media to create a life of financial freedom while staying true to his family-centered values.
Discover how he stumbled into accidental wins li...
From a small warehouse in Bluffdale, Utah, Mailbox Power is redefining marketing by blending the personal touch of physical gifts with the efficiency of automation. With over 10,000 brownies shipped each month and endless personalized postcards, this Utah-based company is helping businesses nationwide stand out in a crowded digital landscape. In this episode, we sit down with the Vice President of Mailbox Power to uncover their jou...
From an abandoned bowling alley to a thriving entrepreneurial hub, this is the story of how Salt Mine became a cornerstone of Utah's tech community. In this episode, we explore how David Edmunds transformed a haunted house-like space into one of the first major coworking facilities outside of downtown Salt Lake City. Through the lens of Salt Mine's evolution, we get an insider's perspective on Utah's explosive t...
From a backyard trailer park pool to three bustling locations serving over 50,000 families, this is the story of how SwimKids Utah grew from humble beginnings into a lifesaving community staple. In this episode, we dive into the challenges and triumphs of turning a one-person swimming lesson hobby into a family-run business with real impact. Hear about the journey from teaching neighborhood kids, in exchange for rides to the pool, ...
From teaching swimming lessons in Pleasant Grove to building a $500K marketing agency from my BYU dorm room, this is the full story of how I turned $2.8K into $3.2M in Utah's growing tech scene. I'm sharing everything – how my Mormon mission changed my business approach, why I dropped out of BYU to pursue entrepreneurship, and how I scaled my agency to serve 50+ orthodontists before selling it. Plus, the surprising pivot ...
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