Start-up life sounds glamorous. The thrill of chasing an idea that could land you some coin, securing serious dollars from venture capitalists, and that's before you get to the office ping-pong tables and free candy.

But behind the scenes, it's both thrilling and gut-wrenchingly scary. Entrepreneur Michael Fox took his first digital fashion start-up Shoes of Prey from humble beginnings in a lounge room to international acclaim. But when the company started tanking and it was burning through cash faster than it could scale, Michael and his business partner found themselves both dissolving their marriage and a global company at the same time.

Michael Fox tells Curveball how his initial failure with Shoes of Prey gave him the resilience he needed to shepherd his new plant-based meat company, Fable Foods, through some choppy waters amid a global pandemic. For this founder, COVID-19 wouldn't detract from this mission to create a vegetarian meat substitute. And with celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal on board, anything's possible.

On Curveball, leaders take you inside a company at a pivotal moment and share their tips on how to thrive in difficult times. It's honest, raw, real, and full of wisdom from the boldest and brightest leaders. 

We’d love to hear how you’ve adapted on the fly. Use your phone to record a voice memo and email your curveball moment to hello@deadsetstudios.com

Keep up to date with Curveball by following @_deadsetstudios on Twitter and @deadsetstudios on instagram. Find out more about the show, and even suggest a guest by going to www.curveballshow.com

Sound design on this episode courtesy of Kyle Hopkins, of Canberra Podcast and Voice.

We acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands on which this show was made. 



Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Start-up life sounds glamorous. The thrill of chasing an idea that could land you some coin, securing serious dollars from venture capitalists, and that's before you get to the office ping-pong tables and free candy.But behind the scenes, it's both thrilling and gut-wrenchingly scary. Entrepreneur Michael Fox took his first digital fashion start-up Shoes of Prey from humble beginnings in a lounge room to international acclaim. But when the company started tanking and it was burning through cash faster than it could scale, Michael and his business partner found themselves both dissolving their marriage and a global company at the same time.Michael Fox tells Curveball how his initial failure with Shoes of Prey gave him the resilience he needed to shepherd his new plant-based meat company, Fable Foods, through some choppy waters amid a global pandemic. For this founder, COVID-19 wouldn't detract from this mission to create a vegetarian meat substitute. And with celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal on board, anything's possible.On Curveball, leaders take you inside a company at a pivotal moment and share their tips on how to thrive in difficult times. It's honest, raw, real, and full of wisdom from the boldest and brightest leaders. We’d love to hear how you’ve adapted on the fly. Use your phone to record a voice memo and email your curveball moment to <a href="mailto:hello@deadsetstudios.com">hello@deadsetstudios.com</a>   Keep up to date with Curveball by following @_deadsetstudios on <a href="https://twitter.com/_deadsetstudios">Twitter</a> and @deadsetstudios on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/deadsetstudios/">instagram</a>. Find out more about the show, and even suggest a guest by going to <a href="http://www.curveballshow.com/">www.curveballshow.com</a>   Sound design on this episode courtesy of Kyle Hopkins, of Canberra Podcast and Voice.We acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands on which this show was made.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The human experience is all about adapting. Whether it’s a CEO trying to ride out an international travel crisis, a surfer struggling against a monster wave while his floatation vest fails, or a media star whose whole life changes in an instant, rarely do you get to glimpse what’s really going on during a someone's darkest hour.

In these revealing, personal conversations with a range of successful people, Curveball host Kellie Riordan gets the lowdown on how people grow in extraordinary times. 

Keep up to date with Curveball by following @_deadsetstudios.com on Twitter and @deadsetsetstudios on Instagram. Find out more about the show or suggest a guest by going to www.curveballshow.com

Curveball is also now a LinkedIn newsletter! It's a weekly top-up of the best advice our guests have to help set you on the right path. Subscribing is totally free.

Curveball

Start-up rollercoaster — Michael Fox on winning and then failing with women’s shoes, and re-emerging with a vegetarian VC success story

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