i mean who doesn't want to wear sweats and eat take-out for 7 days straight? i will be there waiting. get ready to binge with xfinity on demand or the xfinity stream app. xfinity watchathon week starts april 16th. good morning, everyone. coming up on msnbc's "your business." 400 investor meetings? 400 no thanks. how the creator of the pelaton is valued at more than $4 billion. and the man behind dippin' dots on not getting distracted and developing a culture that is fun. and will this owner convince executives to let her go on hsn to sell her product? that's all coming up next on "your business." >> "your business" is sponsored

by american express open. helping you get business done. hi, everyone. i'm jj ramberg and welcome to "your business," the show dedicated to helping your growing business. indoor fitness company pelaton has built up a passionate way to engage users valued at more than a billion dollars. so it is hard to imagine that just a few years ago they were getting no's from every investor their ceo met with. now raising money is no longer a problem with the help of investment from big names including our parent number comcast. we sat down with john foley at pelaton's headquarters in new york from closed doors to the top of the fitness industry. ♪ in 2016, john foley's company pelaton looked from the outside like it was killing it. >> people would come up to me

and say, congratulations on pelaton. we are running out of money, i'm thinking this is a higher profile failure than it was two years ago. >> peloton was started two years ago. >> you have kids, you're busy, and we found the workouts were the first thing to go. i was in a cycling class and said, wait a second, i think you can digitize this and create a technology platform that would allow you to consume the same content as it were. >> he shopped the idea around to institutional investors but nobody was interested. >> so i went out to the valley. >> silicon valley. >> the infamous road. >> where you just draw something on a napkin and people hand it over to you. >> people lay out millions of dollars, and i got over the course of the three years 400 institutions that gave me 400 no's. >> while john was traveling the country after getting no after no after no, his co-founders

were back in new york building the company. with some angel bhun they had raised, they designed the bike and found instructors. >> i wanted to create excitement. >> in response to this, he received an e-mail from a woman named jen sherman. >> john foley, look no further, you found your girl. >> today jen along with the 11 cycle instructors teach classes out of this place in new york to more than a million people fo following up not long ago. >> they build their own steaks, have a their own relatively new company to handle. you have made the decision to do a lot internally. to not outsource things that

others have. why did you make that decision? >> some of it was that in cessty. so we did partner on content. >> but the partnerships never materialized. >> we thought of selling through channel, but we met with a bunch of people and didn't feel right based on the way they sold and the way wanted. >> when john surveyed his customers on things that peloton could do better -- >> the number one thing was the delivery experience. >> so he decided it had to become a logistics program, too. you can bring the bike up to your bedroom or home gym or basement, wherever you want it, and they will set it up. >> but as instructors became celebrities with large followings, the bikes were selling fast and the press couldn't get enough. john continued to raise money.

how long before you said, we have enough money in the bank, we do not have to worry anymore. >> that was four months ago. >> so for five-and-a-half years, you have been worried about money running from the outside an incredible company. >> for sure. very stressful. >> what kept him going? >> i just had to keep getting up in the morning and just say -- successful entrepreneurs are not an option. >> sometimes things fail. >> i felt like we could deliver it. >> reporter: this tenacity is something john has always had. but he didn't grow up in the world of private equity and celebrities. after paying his way through college in georgia, he worked as a production shift company at

this place. after a few years of working at one in los angeles, this inspired him to go to business school. >> i have read every book i can imagine. if there's a business book or finance book, for the last 15 to 20 years, i have a fire in my bell low. >> peloton has grown 300% year over year. and it recently made a valuation of 1.25 billion. that's a lot to live up to. you've done a thing that business owners, founders, ceos dream of, right? you have built this army of passionate, passionate, yes.

>> we have, yes. >> do you feel that the point goes forward? >> we keep up with them. we listen to them. almost every one in this build, we are the passionate riders. >> that is why john is not stopping with just the bike. later the peloton -- >> we are not a stationary bike company, we are not a treadmill company, we are not the nest product company. we are an innovation company at the nexus of technology, exercise and media. i'm here on the set of hsn, the original television shopping company. now i'm here today for our elevator pitch. and this is a really big deal. our elevator pitch will have the chance to show the product from

two products called the american dreams program. this is where they look for entrepreneurs all over the country and bring some of them to pitch their products on live hsn. the other is quality control. meaning if there's anything wrong with the puckroduct, he g it out. if they get the answer they want, they get to pitch their way to households. elizabeth, so good to see you. >> hi, jj. >> my kids and i are cupcake bakers. so what is the name of your product? >> this is the cupcake rack. >> okay, let's go see how you do to the judges. you are going to be speaking to two people. have you ever been on television before? >> a couple of times. >> you have? got it, so are you nervous?

>> i'm still nervous. no, i'm really excited about this opportunity. and i am nervous. >> what does it mean if you get to be on hsn? >> it means the world to me because i have worked so hard on the cupcake rack the last five years. to be here at hsn is a dream come true. >> all right, east let's see if we can make it happen. >> hi. >> hi. >> thank you. i'm liz crout from sheridan, oregon. and my product is the patented cupcake rack. and i was wondering if you have ever seen a cupcake bouquet, a display of cupcakes that resembles a bouquet of flowers. with the cupcake rack, practically anyone can easily create cupcake bow cays. all you have to do is insert 19 homemade or store-bought cupcakes into the rings of the rack. for my daughter's baby shower, i was intrigued with the idea of presenting a beautiful cupcake bouquet instead of a traditional cake, realizing it was too expensive to buy and too tedious

to make it. because i have no time, no patience and no decorating skills. i decided to go ahead and buy a cake at all, but that's when i realized i had hand" for a product like me to create beautiful cupcake bouquets. >> i loved it. >> thank you. thank you so much. >> i need to step in because i love it, too. you did such a good job. i am the most ugly cupcake maker. and you are going to make my cupcakes beautiful. it doesn't matter what i think. >> i loved it because i literally, not only do i not have a green thumb, but i could never do this without that. so this is problem, solution, i like that. a product with a problem solution. >> matt, how did she do on the pitch? >> this can make anyone enter as

a presenter. when i think about connecting with the customer, she has to understand how to do this. so when you think about pitching this product, what are yo providing her that gives her the ability to recreate all this beauty that you have been able to create. a hairdresser does a great job when you are there, but you have to do a great job at home. >> so you may or may not have the chance to sell this on hsn in front of millions of people. i don't know if you need to condition for, but let me give you a second to talk. >> i have one question, what does it retail for? $19.95. and it is durable and will last forever. these are store bought. that came with the cupcake. >> we have conferred. >> all right. here comes the moment if you find out if you're going to be on hsn. and the answer is -- oh, yay!

>> thank you. thank you so much! >> i love what you said. >> i looked and got it. here, there, can this stay here? >> that can stay all day. >> how many is she going to sell? >> at $19.95 she will sell a lot. >> thank you so much. >> and one other thing, so i not only, is this going to be a dream for you, but i have always wanted to be on hsn. and when you go on camera to sell this, i get to be there with you. >> i'm so happy about that. that's wonderful. >> see you april 9th selling these. >> thank you. i can't believe it. i'm so excited. >> did you hear that? april 9th. you're on air, girl.

>> she's coming with you. >> oh, good. >> all right, liz. this is fantastic. what do you think? it's going on hsn. >> i can't believe it. i started this five years ago. and it's a dream when you are an inventor. i am so happy. this is happy. i love bod casts. i listen about politics, business, history. my family listens to them on road trips. and i'm not alone. this is a fast growing media. so it's a great way for you to reach a new audience and potential new customers or connect with the current ones. but how do you do it? i asked the host of the award-winning podcast entrepreneurs on fire at the recent traffic at conversion in california. >> listen, you have a voice. you have a message. you have a mission that you want to be sharing with the world. and not everybody can hear you on the current platforms you're using. so why not use other platforms so that when people are driving

in their car, when they are working out at the gym, when they are mowing their lawn, they can pop in an ear bud, turn the iphone on and hear your voice sharing that mission, why not? it is another way to share with more people. >> how do you think about what the content should be? >> it has to do something you're curious and obsessive about as an individual, but what are skills you have acquired over the years? what's the value you can bring? how do you marry the two things together? a podcast marathon is not a -- podcasting three to five years before you start to sea real, awesome results. you have to go into it with that menialty. what are you going to be waking up to, not just tomorrow, but two years ago still excited to talk about. that's what your podcast talk should be. the thing about the podcast is you get to adjust on the fly, communicate with your audience as they start to grow. and you can learn from them what their biggest struggles, obstacles and points are and craft your show to meet the needs. and they feel like they are hearing frontal you. the best podcasts where i am.

>> how professional do you have to be? >> i believe that podcasts are looking for intimacy. after my session people said, john, i love to listen to your podcast and feel like i know you as an individual. i make mistakes, i cough, i say um, i stutter and leave it in. i'm a human being. that's the key. audio quality, very important. but actual professional delivery, not that important. >> so what are the three things you tell people when they say, i want to start a podcast? you say you better do a, b and c? >> number one, know your topic. >> and it should be kind of niche as well. >> topic is one, niche is number two. once you have the topic, i want to talk about figure skating, not just figure skating but w t what -- canada, you're touching

a big cord with a certain niche of people. but people get the momentum, earn your chops, learn and expand out. maybe five years from now you are the international figure skating prodcast, et cetera. and a number three is the avatar. you need the listener, should i have it one day a week? a topic base, a q&a? if you know your avenatar, that will tell you which way to go. >> how much selling? >> this is your podcast and your show. i'm all about delivering free and consistent information in the form of a podcast. we get to minute 28 or 29 and

we're wrapping up, i will say we just had a great talk with jj. i like the outro call to action. because the people that stayed that long have been gone almost a half hour of free invaluable content from you. and dpeguess what? they are your super fans. give them something more than they can get. >> congratulations on all your success over the years. it's been great to watch. speaking of podcast, we have launched the second season of our podcast "been there bought that." and we are talking to jim cook who makes sam adams. he'll tell the emotional story

of the day he thought he would have to shut down his business. and if you have wondered what the difference is between sales and marketing, jim explains it in a way you'll never forget. i hope you all get a chance to listen to it. and if you do, please do. the podcast is still pretty new. go check it out. you can find wherever you get your podcasts. cookies & cream, rainbow ice and chocolate chip cookie dough. after 30 years, those are the most popular ice cream flavors at iconic brand dippin' dots. they are reaching more at malls and ballparks than ever. we met with scott in the hometown of paducah, kentucky. there he told us about being a learner and understand iing in this learning from the pres.

♪ >> main fun of your montra. for dippin' dots and me it was important for our brand to stay fun, relevant and cool. and to keep fun, what went throughout our infrastructure and culture that not only strengthened the integrity of our culture, but it kept us connected to our consumers and our fans. i think it is really important for companies in today's world to make sure of the morale that is burdened by mistakes and concerns from the past or the anticipations of fears of the up too. but to keep it relevant, fun and present. you have to keep it as a family. if you have have the fun be part of the family, have the fun be a part of your brand, people relate to that because they know who they are. become a learner, not a knower. for a 30-year-old-plus kid to come into a business like dippin' dots with many movie

pieces like dippin' dots, it was really important for me to surround myself with my people. and i was lucky enough to find those out there with experience and wisdom to pull and my grea is to not know what i don't know. i would much rather get the confidence in knowledge and than miss opportunity for awareness. we kept culture to where there's no egos and everyone has a voice. we participate as a team. i love to absorb knowledge and to absorb wisdom. know where every dollar goes. every dollar that we infuse into the company, i make sure that we as a collective team know exactly what the purpose and expectation of the dollar is. to know where every dollar goes is a process of math and awareness to me. it snowballs and produces return

and allows us to emerge from bankruptcy five years ago fighting to keep the lights on to a company that did $300 million in sales last year. to know where every dollar goes, you can still take risks. we acquired dot popcorn because it was heavy into the mall segments. so by acquiring dot popcorn we were able to co-brand which got dippin dots more points of presence in the mall location. i had a strategic purpose to us. i think it's really important for companies not to get d distracted by shiny object and for example, dippin dots, we have our core business in parks, sustainable revenue stream been around for 30 years. it has generational brand equity with our consumers. that's really special. we've had different opportunities with say dippin

dots and alcohol. or something that's kind of against our brand equity. and those are options that are outside of our box. they could be considered as a good opportunity but it wasn't core to us. it wasn't core to our brand equity. and it's not a business that's been around with us for the past 30 years. ♪ >> when we come back, how do you get your vendors to work more closely with you? and how do you handle conflict between your employees? thank you so much. thank you! so we're a go? yes! we got a yes! what does that mean for purchasing? purchase. let's do this. got it. book the flights! hai! si! si! ya! ya! ya! what does that mean for us? we can get stuff. what's it mean for shipping? ship the goods.

you're a go! you got the green light. that means go! oh, yeah. start saying yes to your company's best ideas. we're gonna hit our launch date! (scream) thank you! goodbye! we help all types of businesses with money, tools and know-how to get business done. american express open. >> ats what point do you decide this is fixable and we can take care of it or we let one of them go because it cannot be repaired? >> i think friction between employees as good friction and bad friction. friction can produce heat and friction can produce light. i have found that some of the best interactions between employees are when they don't agree and when they debate and have intellectual databased arguments about what the company should do. that's when i've gotten the best

decisions, my co-founders and i would debate almost every morning and create friction that moved the business forward. but there's also bad friction. there's friction that produces heat. if people aren't getting along and being petty or personally insisting, then i tell both of them they've got to figure it out or they are both gone. i probably wouldn't fire one of the two for a personal disagreement. i would tell them, you're either both going to figure out how to be adults or work together or both going to find something else. >> we now have the top two tips you need to go to help you grow your business. let's introduce your panel. the president of the not toxt ri company and ceo of barry's boot camp. good to see you both. >> you've been on a roller coaster ride because you're in reta retail. what have you learned in the past few years you can share with the audience? >> one of my top tips i've been working on a lot recently is to really try to be a top spokesperson and top sales person for some of our top

vendors, people often think of the client vendor relationship, the vendor has to pursue the client. sometimes as a potential client there may be a good vendor you want to work with but your budget isn't as big or maybe there are other reasons they may not spend as much time on you. what i always say to potential vendors, work with us, you're working with a family business. if our relationship goes well and you help our business, i'll be out there for you pounding the pavement and helping you attract new clients and really being a spokesperson in terms of our relationship and what you've done for us. >> do they believe you from the beginning? you're small and maybe they have someone with a very large company that they can be spending time with. how do you prove it's going to be worth while? >> it is all about the relationship. as we explore these vendors and i have a track record as well of speaking at conferences and doing vendor reference calls and doing a lot of media interviews as well and there has to be that trust. i always tell these people, you

may not be the biggest contract at first but let's work together and i have a track record of really helping our top vendors draw a new business. >> this would be worth more than just the money exchanged through this contract. >> absolutely. that's worth a lot to them. when i'm looking at new vendors, the client reference is really the most important thing for me. i know how valuable that is to our vendor so i try to do a good job of being ai spokesperson for our top vendors. >> good idea. joey, you started as someone who was working out at barry's boot camp now you are the ceo, company valued more than $100 million, congratulations. >> thank you. >> you've grown this thing. what have you learned snd. >> so i'm really in the service business and culture is at the top of my list. you really need to go through values exercise with the executive team to make sure that everybody is aligned not only on the vision, the shared vision of the team but also how to execute upon that vision. so you shape behaviors, right?

and you teach people like how they ought to behave and there's accountability for everybody -- >> do you do role playing xer sigs siss? >> we have group meetings and team meetings with each facet of the company. it's just sharing like what is the leadership style that we expect at barry's and it's different for every company. it really -- i believe trickles down not only from the executive team down through in studios bs lut c but also consumers. >> as ceo or founders, you expect that people believe the same things you do and i was surprised early on that it didn't exactly translate. so the things that i expected -- the things i assumed everyone knew, they didn't. we had to talk about it. to your point, you have to talk about it. >> yeah, and by the way, some

people can't adjust because they might have a value system that is in conflict with your own. so -- >> that's fine, it's just not the place for them. >> exactly. >> so good to see both of you. >> you too. thank you. >> this week's injure biz selfie comes from jacqueline muhammad, in houston, texas. this is a franchise that offers small businesses and entrepreneur s accounting and tx prep and payroll services. why don't you pick up your cell phone and take a picture of you and your business but send to your business at msnbc.com and share with our audience or tweet to your biz. in order for us to air your picture, please include your name and name of your business and its location and use the #yourbizselfie. thank you so much for joining us. if you have any questions or comments or anything to say to us, send an e-mail to your business @ msnbc.com. if you missed anything on the

show today, head over to our website, msnbc.com/yourbusiness, we posted all of the segments from today plus a whole lot more and find even more every day on the digital and social media plaid form platforms. we look forward to seeing you next time. until then, i'm jj ramberg, we make your business, our business. so that's the idea. what do you think? i don't like it. oh. nuh uh. yeah. ahhhhh. mm-mm. oh. yeah. ah. agh. d-d-d... no. hmmm. uh... huh. yeah. uh... huh. in business, there are a lot of ways to say no.

thank you so much. thank you. so we're doing it. yes. start saying yes to your company's best ideas. we help all types of businesses with money, tools and know-how to get business done. american express open. welcome to "politics nation." this week i traveled the country attending events, commemorating the 50th anniversary of dr. martin luther king's assassination. meanwhile, president trump continued to push for his agenda of america first, deploying national guards to defend the border with mexico, preparing to withdraw u.s. troops from syria, and starting a trade war with china. see