This week on The Liquid Lunch Project, Stephen Marinaro (known online as TheSalonGuy) joins Matt and Luigi to talk about going from working in the business to working on the brand. From starting as a stylist to growing a seven-figure product line and content empire, Stephen shares what it really takes to pivot from practitioner to entrepreneur. This isn’t just a salon story: it’s a business masterclass in disguise.

What if the couch you buy today becomes Grandma’s favorite 25 years from now? That’s the audacious, sticky magic of Lovesac. In this episode, we break down how Shawn D. Nelson built Lovesac from a rogue college bean bag experiment into a publicly traded furniture beast…powered by patented modular “Sactionals” and a stubborn “Designed for Life” ethos that refuses to compromise.

Missy Mastel (CPA, CGMA), founder of Mastel Consulting. They unpack how nonprofits (and even for-profits) can streamline operations, leverage AI, and build purpose-driven cultures. Highlights include administrative hacks, fundraising wisdom, and how social-good strategies attract both donors and top talent.

Matt and Lou sit down with intellectual property attorney Austin Bonderer to break down what entrepreneurs really need to know about protecting their inventions, branding, and secret sauce. From patents and trademarks to trade secrets and the risks of AI, this one’s a legal crash course every founder should hear.