From Scratch with Jessica Harris

When we see a painting hanging on the hallowed walls of a museum, we get a sense of an artist's technique and imagination, but we don't get a sense of the process and hurdles that artist faced on the way to critical acclaim. What goes on behind the scenes, or behind the canvas? How does a starving artist becoming a financially secure cultural icon? Jessica speaks with one such artist, Chuck Close. Chuck is considered one of the leading contemporary painters of the 20th and 21st century. His works hang in New York's Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney, the Walker Museum in Minneapolis, and the National Gallery in Washington DC, just to name a few. Many of us are familiar with his work, but this show makes us more familiar with his life, as he tells us how he built a successful art career, from scratch. Listen to the interview

Connie Duckworth is the founder and President of Arzu, an organization that promotes economic independence among women in Afghanistan through the sale of rugs. Arzu sources rugs from weavers in Afghanistan, sells them in the United States, and compensates these women at above market rates. Connie is also the author of The Old Girls' Network, a book that provides tips to women in entrepreneurial and corporate environments. Connie describes how she launched Arzu after retiring from a 20 year career at Goldman Sachs, from scratch. Listen to the interview

Pastry chef and restaurateur Sarabeth Levine started her business by first selling marmalade, a family recipe, in a small cafe on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Prior to life in the culinary world, Sarabeth was a substitute teacher, a dental assistant, and sold health insurance. Sarabeth speaks to Jessica Harris about how she pioneered “brunch” in New York City, from scratch. Listen to the interview

Most people recycle due to a sense of moral obligation towards the environment. Ron Gonen also saw a business opportunity. RecycleBank partners with municipalities and encourages households to recycle by rewarding them with points and gift cards that can be used at stores. RecycleBank is able to reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfills and save cities money on waste transport and landfill costs. Jessica speaks with Ron about how he launched his recycling business, from scratch.

Tim Westergren, a former jazz musician and film composer, founded the online radio station Pandora in 2000. Tim brought together a team of musicologists to analyze and classify hundreds of thousands of songs based on some 400 attributes. This project, called the Music Genome Project, is the backbone of Pandora. Pandora works like this: a user enters a song or artist, and Pandora plays songs that most resemble that entry. The company became profitable for the first time ten years after launch, and Pandora has become increasingly popular thanks, in part, to its availability as an app on Apple’s iPhone. Jessica Harris speaks with Tim about his previous musical career and how a small startup blossomed into the most well-known internet radio site, from scratch. Listen to the interview

Mike Lazerow co-founded Buddy Media with his wife Kass in 2007.  Buddy Media helps corporations connect with their customers using social media. Clients like IBM, Ford, Pepsi and Jet Blue use Buddy Media's software to engage consumers through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other platforms.  Mike is a serial entrepreneur who formerly launched Golf.com (bought by Time Warner) and University Wire (an Associated Press-like service for the university community now owned by CBS). Jessica and Mike speak about the importance of social media in engaging consumers, and how Mike and Kass launched Buddy Media—a leading social media software company—from scratch.

During the New York newspaper strike of 1963, people missed reading the New York Times Book Review. A literary group of friends—including New York Review of Books founding editors Bob Silvers and Barbara Epstein—decided to start a book review of their own. With essays on politics, science, art, and books, the New York Review of Books has become an iconic literary institution. Bob speaks with Jessica about the launch and life of the New York Review of Books, from scratch. Listen to the interview

Richard is the founder of the TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) Conference, TEDMED, and 19.20.21. He is also an architect and the author of over 80 books ranging from health care to travel. Throughout his career Richard has strived to make information easier to understand. Jessica speaks with Richard about his wide array of projects, and how he built one the most high profile conferences on innovation, from scratch.

Jessica meets Simon Pearce, a glass blower, potter, and the founder of Simon Pearce, Inc. Simon started blowing glass in Ireland in the 1960s, and he moved the company to Quechee, Vermont in the early 1980s. His products are known around the world for their high quality and practical design. Jessica speaks to Simon about his hands-on approach to turning his craft into a successful business, from scratch.

Jessica speaks with Sam Farber, founder of the leading kitchenware company OXO. OXO's universal designs are appropriate for users of all ages, whether you're 75 years old with arthritis, or a five year old who hasn't yet mastered apple peeling. OXO's Good Grips line has won worldwide acclaim, and has been selected for the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art, among others. Sam discusses how he launched--ironically after retirement--from scratch.

LinkedIn is an online network of professionals, founded by Reid Hoffman. LinkedIn helps people find and post jobs, reference check candidates, and create new trusted contacts. Jessica speaks with Reid about how he has helped to connect professionals online, and from scratch.

Bikram Choudhury is the founder of Bikram Yoga, a series of 26 yoga postures practiced in a room that's roughly 100 degrees. Bikram started practicing yoga in India when he was four years old, and there are now over 2000 Bikram Yoga centers across the globe, including in South Africa, China, England and the United States. Bikram refers to his class as a torture chamber but insists that 90 minutes of suffering is better than 90 years of suffering. Bikram explains how he launched a popular—and controversial—yoga brand, from scratch.

Prior to founding Badger, Bill Whyte was a carpenter who wanted to find a remedy for his dry, cracked hands. While tinkering with different botanical and natural ingredients like olive oil and beeswax, he discovered that he had a knack for creating natural solutions to common skin conditions. Bill and his family started Badger in 1995, and the New Hampshire based company sells its expansive line of natural body care products—including sunscreen, lip-balm, body oils and soap—worldwide. Bill speaks with Jessica Harris about how he and his family launched a leading natural skin care company, from scratch. Listen to the interview

Babies are discriminating about the food they eat. Peas and carrots out of a jar don't taste as good as the 'real thing.' Organic baby food companies are emerging to offer more tasty and nutritious options for babies. HappyBaby, founded by Jessica Rolph and Shazi Visram, is one such company. Jessica and Shazi explain how they launched their natural food company, from scratch. Listen to the interview

There are more and more students graduating from college looking to become entrepreneurs. But where do they start? What kind of business should it be? Where will they get the funding without a track record? Jessica speaks with two pioneers who launched their natural food company when they were recent college grads. Kelly and Brendan started Bear Naked, a line of granola and cereal that’s available across the United States. They explain how they managed to build a multi-million dollar food company, from scratch. Listen to the interview