On this week’s episode presented by Busey Bank, Josh sits down (remotely) with some wonderful folks – Johanna Hartzheim and Ismail Salhi – the team behind Wildgrain. Wildgrain is the first bake-from-frozen artisan bread, pastry and pasta subscription box. Founded in early 2020, Wildgrain has grown exponentially in the last 3 years, has 15,000+ 5-star reviews and was recently voted the #1 subscription box in the country (a pretty crowded field) in USA Today. Full disclosure, Josh’s bakery – Companion – is one of many artisan shops across the country that are vendor/partners baking products for Wildgrain’s nearly 60,000 active members. They talk about the challenges in scaling a business that relies on outside manufacturers, the power of non-traditional marketing, and their aggressive plans for continued expansion. They’ve passed through milestones of growth in a matter of months that many businesses take years to experience. So many lessons to learn for all-sized companies in this one and their honesty and transparency is super refreshing. If you’re interested in a monthly subscription, be sure to check out all of their offerings at Wildgrain.com

On this week’s episode of the Baked-In podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh had the opportunity to sit down with Steve and Will Smith, the father-son development team at New + Found – the folks behind the City Foundry and lots of other projects in the St. Louis metro area. While the firm works around the country, the Smiths clearly have a strong personal desire to change how St. Louis works, lives and plays. They discuss the back story of the ideation of the Foundry concept that began as simply a food hall and has grown into a multi-dimensional gem for the city, how it brought Will back home to work with his dad, and the future development on the property. It’s really one of the many great things happening in St. Louis. Let’s go…

On this week’s episode of the Baked-In Podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh had a chance to catch up with Tara and Michael Gallina of Take Root Hospitality – who in less than 7 years have opened 4 distinct restaurant concepts in St. Louis and given the community dining and hospitality experiences on par with the best the town has to offer. They talk about the challenges of scaling their roles and their organization and how they define success after years in the industry. The restaurant business is never easy and their honestly and candidness is what makes these conversations so powerful.

Can a hotel be more than a hotel? Can it profoundly impact a neighborhood and a community? On this week’s episode of the Baked-In Podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh sits down with the creative forces behind St. Louis’ newest boutique hotel – 21C Museum Hotel a multi-venue contemporary art museum, coupled with a hotel and chef-driven restaurant. GM JP Roberts, Director of Community Impact Christopher Randall and Executive Chef Matthew Daughaday all share their insights on what makes this place special and why they’re excited about their future in Downtown STL, specifically Downtown West. They discuss the vision for the hotel, the importance and focus on being great stewards and supporters of the neighborhood and attracting not only travelers but also locals to all the great things happening down on Locust street. The intentionality behind what they’re doing to drive more than simply “heads in beds” is certainly inspiring.

On this week’s episode of the Baked-In podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh had the distinct pleasure of sitting down with world renown inspirational speaker, podcaster and best-selling author John O’Leary. John just wrapped on the film adaptation of his 2016 book - On Fire: The 7 Choices to Ignite a Radically Inspired Life. The movie will tell the story of O’Leary, who was burned on 100% of his body at age nine in a house fire. While this conversation could have gone in a million different directions, they spent the time together discussing the challenges of bringing this movie to the starting line and especially to St. Louis, the on-set culture John helped to foster with his daily presence and the lessons learned on set that had nothing to do with movie making. His infectious positivity is incredibly inspiring. For more on John, be sure to check out the Live Inspired Podcast with John O’Leary wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

On this week’s episode of the Baked-In podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh celebrates episode 30 with his Companion co-founder and sister, Jodi Allen. In the midst of all of the holiday craziness, they took a few minutes to look back on the 30-year history of the bakery and the lessons learned from family, the value of failure and, most importantly, the role their mom has played in their success. It’s the right time of year for a conversation like this one.

On this week’s episode of the Baked-In Podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh has the pleasure of catching up his former professor from Stanford University in the Bay Area. Patrica Ryan Madson taught acting and improvisation at Stanford for many years and she had an incredible influence on his life as an entrepreneur.

On this week’s episode of the Baked-In podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh chats with Michael Dorf of City Winery. Founded in New York City in 2009, the urban winery, restaurant and intimate music venue has more than a dozen locations across the US with plans to keep expanding.

On this week’s episode of the Baked-In Podcast presented by Busey Bank, Josh has the immense pleasure of talking to Andy Cohen – TV personality, best-selling author, award-winning producer and his cousin.

On this week’s episode, Josh has the chance to catch up with Ben Hillman, president of the chef-inspired burger joint Hi-Pointe Drive-In and co-founder of Chicken Out all through his family’s private equity company, Lewis & Clark Capital.

On today’s episode, Josh goes deep into the mind of Rick Wolf, creator and proprietor of Found Vintage, Found by the Pound and Mednik-Riverbend – one of the most vertically integrated company concepts around. They discuss the booming industry of donated and recycled clothing, $900 vintage t-shirts and monkey fur.

On this week’s episode, Josh has the chance to catch up with Joe Edwards, the “Duke of Delmar”, who is the visionary and developer behind the Delmar Loop – one of the 10 greatest streets in America. Joe opened his first business – the iconic restaurant, Blueberry Hill – in 1972 with the hope of revitalizing a once popular high fashion district in St. Louis, MO.

On this week’s episode, Josh had the honor of sitting with the Dierbergs Markets family – the 3rd and 4th generations of leadership at the grocery chain with St. Louis roots dating back to 1854. Bob Dierberg, Greg Dierberg and Laura Dierberg Padousis shared insights into multi-generational family businesses.

On this week’s episode, Josh sits down with David Wolfe, co-founder of the Urban Chestnut Brewing Company in St. Louis. David, along with his co-founder Florian Kuplent, worked together in the New Products and Innovations division at Anheuser Busch InBev before embarking on their own craft brewing adventure in 2011.

On this week’s episode, Josh had the opportunity to catch up with Melany Robinson of Sprouthouse – a communications agency with offices in 11 markets across the US focused on helping clients in the restaurant and hospitality industry tell their story well beyond traditional PR.

On this week’s episode, Josh has the great opportunity to sit with Brian Lagerstrom, chef and YouTube sensation. Brian, who spent time working with both Niche Food Group and Loafers Stl before leaving professional kitchens behind and embarking on a career behind the camera. What started as a pandemic side hustle has blossomed into a full-time gig – with Brian hitting the elusive 1 million subscriber threshold in July 2023.

On this week’s episode, Josh sits with Rick Erwin, creative director at the City Museum in downtown St. Louis. Housed in the former warehouse of the International Shoe Company, the museum is the brainchild of internationally acclaimed and classically trained sculptors Bob and Gail Cassilly.

On this week’s episode, Josh has the chance to sit with Michael Rubenstein of Wally’s. Established in 2020, Wally's is a luxury travel center proud to serve as the Home of the Great American Road Trip. Specializing in great service, delicious food, clean restrooms, and retail souvenirs for everyone.

In this week’s episode, Josh has the honor of sitting with Ali Hogan and Leslie Gill, the founder and president respectively of Rung for Women – a career accelerator focused on helping women acquire the skills and training needed to uplevel their lives professionally and personally.

On this week’s episode, Josh talks with Loryn Nalic from Balkan Treat Box about growing her wildly popular food concept from a food truck dream to one of the most versatile and exciting food brands in St. Louis.