Welcome
Welcome back to The Trailblazer's Journal. September's four guests on Ingleside Reviews: Innovators Unveiled each hit a wall that could have ended the story: a boss who answered a big idea with one word, an agent who said bad skin would keep him off TV, a corporation that released a product she says copied hers, and a business that couldn't grow past its own founder. This issue is about what each of them did next.
Starting in November, the Journal arrives the first Thursday of every month.
What's inside this month's Journal:
THE TRAILBLAZER'S JOURNEY
HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY INSIGHTS
TRAILBLAZER TIP OF THE MONTH
SUCCESS STORIES
THE INNOVATORS UNVEILED BUSINESS 15
THE TRAILBLAZER'S JOURNEY
S2E10 | Amanda Sima, JoJo Cups
She Built It, Patented It, and Watched a Corporation Copy It?
Amanda Sima went from history major to political fundraiser to founder of a collegiate apparel company that landed a seven-figure Amazon order. Her next invention, a spillproof disposable lid for kids' cups named after her two oldest daughters, is the product she's proudest of. About three months after she began sharing it with sales reps, she says a major corporation had a copycat on the market, and she's now three years into a legal fight. Her hardest lesson: a design patent can be sidestepped with small changes, while a utility patent protects how your invention works. She wishes she'd filed the second one.
S2E11 | Neal McLeod, CTK Industries
Started a Business at 12, Now He Automates Yours
At 12, Neal McLeod built an online store on his family's only computer, reselling Walmart and Amazon products at a 5% markup. He later bootstrapped CTK Trucking with one truck bought from saved tax refunds. Today, CTK Industries helps business owners use AI and automation to get themselves out of the bottleneck. His growth rule will rearrange your calendar: spend about 70% of your time on outreach and 30% on the work itself.
S2E12 | Chris Gibson, Clear Revolution
He Turned Cystic Acne Into a Skincare Empire: Chris Gibson's Story
In his early 20s, an agent told Chris Gibson his skin would keep him off television. He took on the problem himself through fasting, probiotics, and cutting sugar, then turned what he learned into Acne Free in 3 Days, a self-published book that drew pages of orders its first night online. When the Great Recession wiped out his business, he spent ten years rebuilding it, this time with a backup for every lab, bank, and supplier. He still lives by a line from an old boss: you get what you inspect, not what you expect.
S2E13 | Mike Konrad, Aqueous Technologies
Mike Konrad on Rejection, Risk, and Building Aqueous Technologies From Scratch
A canceled flight in London in 1985 landed Mike Konrad in the electronics industry by accident. Seven years later, he pitched his boss on a better way to clean circuit boards as a ban on the industry's go-to solvents approached. His boss answered with one word: "Fine." Mike's wife asked why he was trying to give a great idea to his employer, and Aqueous Technologies opened in 1992. Thirty-four years later, his team runs the company, and when a buyer came calling, he declined without even hearing the offer.
HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY INSIGHTS
Founder Takeaway of the Month
"The only thing that's preventing a company from growing is you."
Neal McLeod, CTK Industries
Neal says that if he removed himself from his own company and it had unlimited capital, nothing would stop it. The owner who puts out every fire becomes the ceiling. His fix starts on paper: write down each process step by step, automate it, and create handoff documentation so your team can run it without you. Mike Konrad learned the same lesson the long way. Once he stepped back, his team ran Aqueous Technologies better than he ever had.
TRAILBLAZER TIP OF THE MONTH
Protect your idea before you pitch it (from Amanda Sima, S2E10)
Keep your circle small in the early stages. Amanda chose local partners she could look in the eye.
Get an NDA signed before anyone sees your materials.
Never send anything unsolicited. Mark every file proprietary and confidential, and add a confidentiality disclaimer to your email signature.
Learn the difference between a design patent and a utility patent before you file.
Trust your gut. Amanda still remembers the uneasy feeling of handing her materials to the person she believes passed them along.
SUCCESS STORIES
From "Clear That Up" to a Million Subscribers: Chris Gibson
Chris Gibson was told in his early 20s that his skin would keep him off TV. Decades later, people watch him on their TVs every day.
After solving his own cystic acne, Chris wrote Acne Free in 3 Days and self-published it. He answered every reader email personally and folded those answers into later editions. A TV producer picked up his book at a Toronto skincare event, tried his method, and invited him on air. That one appearance led to four years of national TV spots.
Then the Great Recession erased the business. Chris rebuilt over ten years, adding backups for every critical partner. In 2018, he restarted a YouTube channel he'd ignored for eight years and committed to building it no matter how long it took. Today he has more than 1 million YouTube subscribers and runs Clear Revolution skincare and Replenish Mode supplements alongside the channel.
A.D. Edwards
ON THE CHANNEL
Coming Soon: Legends Unveiled
You know the brands. Now meet the founders behind them. Legends Unveiled breaks down the world's most famous entrepreneurs in about 10 minutes: the green flags worth copying and the red flags to avoid. We kick off with Ray Kroc and the story of how McDonald's really grew. It's coming soon to our YouTube channel, right alongside the founder interviews you already know.
Hear from today's founders. Learn from timeless legends.
THE INNOVATORS UNVEILED BUSINESS 15
One trusted business per category, featured across the Innovators Unveiled community.
Coaching | Jared Kallen, Action Pact Coaching
35+ years of individualized coaching in executive functioning, career, and life transitions, with daily accountability that helps clients get organized, take action, and follow through.
Founding partner spots are open in select categories. Learn more →