Jim Smith & Rebecca Hurst, Smith Hurst, PLC
In this episode of the Northwest Arkansas Founders podcast, hosts Cameron Clark and Nick Beyer sit down with Jim Smith and Rebecca Hurst, the…
The Northwest Arkansas business podcast: Conversations with the founders building Northwest Arkansas
NWA Founders is a Northwest Arkansas business podcast hosted by Cameron Clark and Nick Beyer: long-form conversations with the region's founders, owners and operators. A new episode comes out every other Tuesday.
Rated 5.0 on Apple Podcasts from 23 ratings On NWA Daily's list of the best NWA podcasts
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Matt Hesse, UHP
In this milestone 50th episode of the Northwest Arkansas Founders Podcast, host Cameron Clark rides around the UHP (Unlock Human Potential) campus with founder Matt Hesse, a former Army veteran and serial entrepreneur who has dedicated his life to solving the veteran transition crisis. After selling his sports nutrition company, Hesse invested heavily in veteran suicide research and discovered that loss of purpose, not combat trauma, is the primary driver of veteran suffering. In just four years, he has transformed 800 acres of raw Arkansas farmland into a $40+ million campus that trains veterans in human performance, industrial trades, and entrepreneurship, with a goal of serving 1,500 veterans per month by 2031.
Show notes, chapters and transcript →Recent episodes
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Sarah Autry, Stephanie Peters and Garrett Peters, Duncan & Stone Paper Co.
This episode of the Northwest Arkansas Founders Podcast features the team behind Duncan & Stone Paper Co., Garrett Peters, Stephanie Peters, and…
Steve Graves, Cornerstone Coaching
Steve Graves joins NWA Founders to talk about his four-decade career coaching CEOs, founders, and business owners through his firm, Cornerstone…
David Harris, David Harris Construction
David Harris is a fifth-generation Rogers, Arkansas native and founder of David Harris Construction, one of Northwest Arkansas's most respected…
Allisha Watkins, Paradox
Allisha Watkins is the founder and CEO of Paradox, a Rogers-native-turned-NWA-entrepreneur who spent 20 years in the corporate CPG world…
Alex & Lauren Blass, Blue Ribbon Industries
Alex and Lauren Blass are the husband-and-wife team behind the Blass family office in Northwest Arkansas, a fourth-generation operation that spans…
New here
Start with these three
Cameron and Nick picked them.
Leading a family manufacturer, in business since 1949, without letting it drift. Chaplains on staff, clinics for employees, and why culture has to be reinforced every day rather than left to scale on its own.
A broke college student, a secondhand stove, and one of the most productive candle factories in the country. Including the seven years it went the wrong way, and the decision not to sell to private equity.
A single Northwest Arkansas cafe turned into an international specialty coffee company, and what it took to add structure without giving up the quality the whole thing was built on.
Notable moments
All 306 moments- 22:30 Landscape of PR & Communications in NWAEp. 42 · Andrea Ritchie & Mary Mickel, AM Group Watch on YouTube
- 1:15:00 Staying rooted in NWA while growing a national client baseEp. 17 · Cameron Magee, avad3 Watch on YouTube
- 55:15 Building a purpose-driven workplace and launching Project BiscuitEp. 7 · Sam Russell, The Buttered Biscuit Watch on YouTube
50episodes since Nov 2024
75hours of conversation with 67 founders and operators
868,000words transcribed, every one searchable
5.0Apple Podcasts rating across 23 ratings, as of Oct 20
Named among the best podcasts in Northwest Arkansas by NWA Daily.
How the show is made
Recorded at the business, not in a studio
We record on location, usually at the guest's own business. So far that's 50 episodes, with companies in 8 Northwest Arkansas cities, and about 75 hours in the room with founders and operators.
See where they were recorded- Episodes
- 50
- NWA cities
- 8
- Industries
- 8
- Hours recorded
- 75
Who has been on
The companies behind the conversations
- UHP
- Smith Hurst, PLC
- Duncan & Stone Paper Co.
- Cornerstone Coaching
- David Harris Construction
- Paradox
- Blue Ribbon Industries
- Hubbard Clothing Company
- AM Group
- TRS Healthcare
- Teslar Software
- Crisp, Arkade
- AdFury.ai
- Natural Capital
- Chandler Capital Group
- Specialized Real Estate Group
- Givingtons
- Simmons Foods
- Custom Electronics
- KenzKustomz
- Lefler Capital
- Zweig Group
- Cushman & Wakefield | Sage Partners
- Hanna's Candle Company
- + every guest →
By city: Fayetteville founders, Rogers founders, Springdale founders, Bentonville founders, Lowell founders, Gentry founders, Johnson founders, Siloam Springs founders.
Your hosts
Two founders who started a Northwest Arkansas podcast
Cameron Clark (founder, CJC Development) and Nick Beyer (founder, Neat Commercial Cleaning) started NWA Founders in 2024 to inspire entrepreneurship in Northwest Arkansas by highlighting the people building it. The conversations run about ninety minutes and aren't scripted.
About the podcast
The NWA Founders letter
The biggest takeaways, every other Tuesday
The new episode and its biggest takeaways, the big moments worth jumping to, and a short roundup of Northwest Arkansas business. No issue has gone out yet, so if you sign up now, you’ll get the first one.
Founders
Know a founder we should talk to?
Nominate them, or nominate yourself. We love to share the story of a business built in Northwest Arkansas.
Be a guestLocal businesses
Interested in partnering with the show?
Every guest is a founder or operator of a Northwest Arkansas business. Sponsorships are available for the show or a season.
Sponsor the show