Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Mark Rampolla is the Co-founder and Managing Partner of GroundForce Capital, a private equity firm that invests in and supports purpose-driven consumer brands focused on health, wellness, and sustainability. He is a visionary entrepreneur and investor who works closely with founders to scale impactful businesses and build enduring companies. Mark is also the Founder and former CEO of ZICO Coconut Water, having pioneered the global coconut water category and led the company through its acquisition by The Coca-Cola Company. He later reacquired ZICO and continues to play a leadership role in shaping its growth and strategy.
In this episode… Why do so many promising brands fail while a select few break through and dominate their category? Is it luck, timing, or something far more intentional behind the scenes? What separates fleeting trends from enduring, billion-dollar brands?
Mark Rampolla, a seasoned entrepreneur and investor behind multiple high-growth consumer brands, explains that success comes down to disciplined focus and starting with a deeply defined niche. He emphasizes that most companies spread themselves too thin too early, while winning brands double down on what works and build loyal followings before expanding. This approach strengthens product-market fit and creates momentum that fuels scalable growth. He also underscores the importance of self-awareness and adaptability in founders, noting that understanding one’s strengths and limitations is critical to long-term success.
In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, Dr. Jeremy Weisz sits down with Mark Rampolla, Co-founder and Managing Partner of GroundForce Capital, to discuss why most brands fail and how to build one that wins. They explore the power of niche market entry, the importance of product discipline, and how to identify winning consumer brands. Mark also shares advice on redefining success beyond financial outcomes.
Mark Rampolla is the Co-founder and Managing Partner of GroundForce Capital, a private equity firm that invests in and supports purpose-driven consumer brands focused on health, wellness, and sustainability. He is a visionary entrepreneur and investor who works closely with founders to scale impactful businesses and build enduring companies. Mark is also the Founder and former CEO of ZICO Coconut Water, having pioneered the global coconut water category and led the company through its acquisition by The Coca-Cola Company. He later reacquired ZICO and continues to play a leadership role in shaping its growth and strategy.
In this episode… Why do so many promising brands fail while a select few break through and dominate their category? Is it luck, timing, or something far more intentional behind the scenes? What separates fleeting trends from enduring, billion-dollar brands?
Mark Rampolla, a seasoned entrepreneur and investor behind multiple high-growth consumer brands, explains that success comes down to disciplined focus and starting with a deeply defined niche. He emphasizes that most companies spread themselves too thin too early, while winning brands double down on what works and build loyal followings before expanding. This approach strengthens product-market fit and creates momentum that fuels scalable growth. He also underscores the importance of self-awareness and adaptability in founders, noting that understanding one’s strengths and limitations is critical to long-term success.
In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, Dr. Jeremy Weisz sits down with Mark Rampolla, Co-founder and Managing Partner of GroundForce Capital, to discuss why most brands fail and how to build one that wins. They explore the power of niche market entry, the importance of product discipline, and how to identify winning consumer brands. Mark also shares advice on redefining success beyond financial outcomes.
![[Top eCommerce Series] Inside the Future of Logistics Tech With Matt Hertz and Mark Hiddleson](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/pIpDjrqU64Q/mqdefault.jpg "[Top eCommerce Series] Inside the Future of Logistics Tech With Matt Hertz and Mark Hiddleson
[Top eCommerce Series] Inside the Future of Logistics Tech With Matt Hertz and Mark Hiddleson")
![[SaaS & AI Series] How AI Is Transforming Communication With Sharath Keshava Narayana](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/q7EBD3lPYxc/mqdefault.jpg "[SaaS & AI Series] How AI Is Transforming Communication With Sharath Keshava Narayana
Sharath Keshava Narayana is the CEO and Co-founder of Sanas, a company pioneering real-time speech AI that helps create clearer and more natural conversations. A serial entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in AI and enterprise software, he previously co-founded Observe.AI and is also a founder and GP at Carya Venture Partners. Sharath, an engineering graduate and Y Combinator alum, has a strong track record of scaling AI-driven products in global markets while fostering inclusive, high-impact technology.
In this episode… Communication barriers can happen anywhere — from language differences to background noise and unclear speech. As AI voice technology evolves, businesses have more ways to improve conversations at scale. But which innovations truly make communication clearer and more effective worldwide?
For Sharath Keshava Narayana, a serial entrepreneur and AI innovator, the biggest breakthroughs in speech technology come from focusing on clarity and real-world usability. He highlights how AI-powered speech enhancement and accent harmonization can help sales, support, and healthcare teams communicate more effectively across different environments and languages. By listening closely to enterprise customers and iterating based on feedback, his team refined their technology into scalable solutions that improve communication in real time. He also shares how Sanas’ consumer language app quickly gained traction across dozens of countries and why partnerships with telecom providers could dramatically expand access to speech AI worldwide.
In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, host Dr. Jeremy Weisz sits down with Sharath Keshava Narayana to discuss AI-powered speech clarity and global communication. They talk about real-time accent harmonization, building products through customer feedback, and scaling voice technology for enterprise and consumer use. Sharath also shares lessons on mentorship, hiring mission-driven teams, and creating technology that breaks communication barriers.")
![[Health Series] The Future of Personalized Sleep Apnea Treatment With David Walton](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/qLxYCFcFqGM/mqdefault.jpg "[Health Series] The Future of Personalized Sleep Apnea Treatment With David Walton
Book a Complimentary B2B Podcast Strategy Call:
https://rise25.com/bookcall
Download our B2B Podcast Strategy & Tools List PDF:
https://rise25.com/podcastcheatsheetyt
David Walton is the Founder and CEO of Vayu Sleep, a sleep technology company developing custom-fit CPAP masks for people with sleep apnea. A sleep medicine entrepreneur, he previously co-founded and led Respire Medical, an FDA-cleared oral appliance company, for 14 years before its acquisition. At Vayu Sleep, David brings deep experience in medical devices, patient comfort, and practical innovation to a personalized mask platform that uses smartphone facial scanning and AI-enabled design. His work focuses on making sleep apnea therapy comfortable, accessible, and easier for patients to use consistently.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
• [0:00] Intro
• [3:38] David Walton explains how at-home sleep testing helps patients get diagnosed
• [6:14] Why quality sleep can be a superpower for physical and mental recovery
• [11:15] How Vayu Sleep creates custom-fit CPAP masks using facial scanning
• [14:35] The custom swim goggle technology that inspired Vayu Sleep’s CPAP mask
• [17:44] Lessons from building Respire Medical and learning the sleep medicine industry
• [23:17] How prior FDA experience shapes Vayu Sleep’s approval process
In this episode…
Sleep apnea treatment is only effective when patients can actually stick with it. Traditional CPAP masks are often uncomfortable, leaky, or too tight, which can lead many people to abandon therapy altogether. What would change if CPAP masks were custom-fit to each patient’s face? He highlights how Vayu Sleep utilizes smartphone facial scanning, AI-enabled mapping, and 3D printing to create masks tailored to each person’s unique facial profile.
David Walton, a sleep medicine entrepreneur with years of experience building medical device companies, explains that personalized CPAP masks can make therapy more comfortable, reduce leakage, and help patients stay consistent with treatment.
Sponsor for this episode
At https://rise25.com, we help B2B businesses give to and connect to your Dream 200 relationships and partnerships.
We help you cultivate amazing relationships in 2 ways:
#1 Podcasting
#2 Strategic Gifting
#1 Our Predictable Podcast ROI Program
We’re committed to helping you connect with your Dream 200 referral partners, clients, and strategic partners through our done-for-you podcast solution.
We’re a professional podcast production agency that makes creating a podcast effortless. Since 2009, our proven system has helped thousands of B2B businesses build strong relationships with referral partners, clients, and audiences without doing the hard work.
What do you need to start a podcast?
When you use our proven system, all you need is an idea and a voice. We handle the strategy, production, and distribution — you just need to show up and talk.
The Rise25 podcasting solution is designed to help you build a profitable podcast. This requires a specific strategy, and we’ve got that down pat. We focus on making sure you have a direct path to ROI — plus, our podcast production company takes any heavy lifting of production and distribution off your plate.
We make distribution easy.
We’ll distribute each episode across more than 11 unique channels, including iTunes, Spotify, and Amazon Podcasts. We’ll also create copy for each episode and promote your show across social media.
Cofounders Dr. Jeremy Weisz and John Corcoran credit podcasting as being the best thing they have ever done for their businesses. Podcasting connected them with the founders/CEOs of P90x, Atari, Einstein Bagels, Mattel, Rx Bars, YPO, EO, Lending Tree, Freshdesk, and many more.
The relationships you form through podcasting run deep. Jeremy and John became business partners through podcasting. They have even gone on family vacations and attended weddings of guests who have been on the podcast.
#2 Our Comprehensive Corporate Gifting Program
Elevate business relationships with customers, partners, staff, and prospects through gifting.
At Rise25, thoughtful and consistent gifting is a key component of staying top of mind and helps build lasting business relationships. Our done-for-you corporate gifting service ensures that your referral partners, prospects, and clients receive personalized touchpoints that enhance your business gifting efforts and provide a refined executive gifting experience.
Whether you’re looking to impress key stakeholders or boost client loyalty, our comprehensive approach makes it easy and affordable to create lasting impressions. Get started today and experience the difference a strategic gifting approach can make.
You can learn more and watch a video on how it works here: https://rise25.com/giftprogram
Contact us now at support@rise25.com or message us here: https://rise25.com/contact
Powered by Rise25 Podcast Production Company - https://rise25.com")
![[SaaS Series] Product Demos That Accelerate Sales Onboarding and Adoption With Joseph Lee](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/qj4aM3swcoA/mqdefault.jpg "[SaaS Series] Product Demos That Accelerate Sales Onboarding and Adoption With Joseph Lee
Joseph Lee is the Co-founder and CEO of Supademo, an AI-powered platform that helps teams create interactive product demos and guides for sales, marketing, onboarding, and customer education. He leads Supademo’s product vision and growth, building intuitive, self-guided experiences that enable companies to simplify product education and drive engagement. Previously, Joseph co-founded Freshline, a B2B e-commerce platform for food distributors, where he served as CPO and led product strategy and execution from customer insight through product development.
In this episode… Product demos are no longer just a sales tool — they can shape how prospects understand a product, how customers learn to use it, and how teams drive adoption at scale. But what makes a demo effective enough to move users from curiosity to real product value?
Joseph Lee, a two-time startup founder and product builder, says the most effective demos help customers understand value faster by letting them experience a product rather than passively watch it. He highlights the power of interactive, self-serve experiences that can support sales, onboarding, training, enablement, and product education. Supademo’s product-led approach also allows users to experience advanced features through reverse trials, while AI helps teams personalize, translate, maintain, and scale demos more efficiently. As these experiences become more intelligent and agentic, companies can guide users through workflows with less friction and help them reach meaningful outcomes sooner.
In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, Dr. Jeremy Weisz speaks with Joseph Lee, Co-founder and CEO of Supademo, about using product demos to accelerate sales, onboarding, and adoption. They discuss interactive self-serve demos, AI-powered personalization, and in-app product education. Joseph also shares how Supademo evolved from SaaS into an agentic demo platform.")
![[Top Author Series] The Science of Belief and Lasting Behavior Change With Nir Eyal](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/rHebj0EjjOk/mqdefault.jpg "[Top Author Series] The Science of Belief and Lasting Behavior Change With Nir Eyal
Nir Eyal is a bestselling author, behavioral science expert, and keynote speaker who helps individuals and organizations understand how psychology and technology shape human behavior. He is the author of the bestselling books Hooked, Indistractable, and Beyond Belief, which have sold over one million copies, been translated into over 30 languages, and earned recognition from The New York Times, Amazon, Audible, and The Globe and Mail.
A former Stanford Graduate School of Business lecturer, Nir has worked with organizations, including JPMorgan Chase and the US Air Force and invested in companies including Canva and Kahoot. He helps people build better habits, improve focus, and reach their full potential.
In this episode… Why do some people turn knowledge into lasting change while others remain stuck in the same patterns? We have access to more books, podcasts, and expert advice than ever before, yet lasting transformation often feels out of reach. If information isnt the problem, what is the missing piece that drives real change?
Nir Eyal, bestselling author and behavioral science expert, says lasting change begins by examining the beliefs behind our actions. He explains that sustained motivation depends not only on knowing what to do and understanding the benefits, but also on having beliefs that support persistence. Rather than treating beliefs as fixed truths, Nir encourages viewing them as tools that can be tested and reshaped. He illustrates this through examples ranging from Serena Williams’ coach using “belief hacking” to build confidence to Amazon’s “Day One” philosophy of continual innovation. He also shares practical methods, including inquiry-based stress reduction, to help people challenge limiting beliefs, improve relationships, and unlock greater personal and professional potential.
In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, host Dr. Jeremy Weisz sits down with Nir Eyal to discuss how beliefs shape performance, leadership, and personal growth. They explore why persistence matters more than talent, how leaders cultivate empowering beliefs, and practical ways to reframe limiting mindsets. Nir also shares why questioning common psychological assumptions can lead to better decisions and lasting change.")
