​Hitting your first $1 million in revenue feels impossible until you do it—but the path there is rarely pretty.

​Join a no-fluff panel of three successful founders (spanning both B2B and B2C) as they unpack the raw, unfiltered reality of scaling to seven figures. They are skipping the generic advice and sharing exactly what worked, what failed miserably, and how they navigated the hardest parts of early growth.

​Expect real talk and actionable strategies, including:

• ​The Tipping Points: The specific growth hacks and strategies that finally pushed them past their biggest plateaus.

• ​The "Do-Overs": Costly mistakes they made along the way and what they would do differently if they started over today.

• ​Your Starting Line: Tailored advice on exactly where you should focus your energy right now, based on what you are selling.

​Who should attend: Early-stage founders, co-founders, and growth leads who want to skip the rookie mistakes and learn what actually moves the needle to get to $1MM+.

​Speakers

​Kathryn Shah

​Kathryn Shah is the co-founder and CEO of Spring & Mulberry, a line of date-sweetened dark chocolate exploring sweetness beyond sugar. Spring & Mulberry transforms nature’s sweetest ingredients into something decadent, beautiful, and genuinely good for you, creating a sensorial experience that goes to the heart of why we love sweets: pleasure.

​Since launching in March 2022, the brand has expanded to 1,000+ stores nationwide, including Whole Foods, Nordstrom, Anthropologie, Erewhon, and more. Kathryn was inspired to start the company after a cancer diagnosis in her early 30s led her to eliminate refined sugar and reimagine indulgence through whole foods.

​Previously, Kathryn led global marketing at Pantone and held brand roles at Veuve Clicquot (LVMH) and Unilever. She earned her undergraduate degree in economics from the University of Michigan and her MBA from Harvard Business School. She lives in Cary, North Carolina with her husband and two small children.

​Ted Baxa

​Ted is the Co-Founder and CEO of JustWin, an AI startup that makes it easy to win government contracts. Founded in 2024, JustWin serves hundreds of customers--from small teams to Fortune 500 enterprises--helping them discover the right opportunities, make smarter bid decisions, and respond to RFPs faster.

​Prior to founding JustWin, Ted worked in private equity as a Partner at WSC & Company and a Director at Dorilton Capital. He's also a second-time founder, starting his first company at 23 and bootstrapping it through 6 years of profitable growth. Ted graduated from the University of North Carolina as a Morehead-Cain Scholar.

​David Baron

​David studied biology and environmental science at UNC. Then set out to design a better futon in 2012, picturing something more comfortable, portable, versatile, easy-to-put-together, and durable; less throw-away-able. Prototype in hand, he realized it was a set of building blocks that could be a fort, an obstacle course, and a puppet theater: an actual toy. Play furniture — real furniture that’s really playwithable™ — was born. He co-founded Nugget® in 2014, and later introduced Chunk™, The World’s First Play Ottoman™. The Nugget and Chunk fulfill David’s guiding belief that toy minimalism leads to play maximalism — encouraging imagination, creativity, courage, and discovery. Now, twelve years after David and his team launched the brand, there are millions of pieces of Nugget play furniture out in the world, growing imaginations in homes across the U.S. and Canada. Play on™.

​Moderated by Homayoon Ershadi

​Homayoon Ershadi is the Founder and CEO of Jabin Beverage Company, a functional beverage startup bringing proven ancient Persian recipes to fuel and hydrate modern-day adventurers.

​Prior to starting Jabin, Homayoon worked at NetApp, a global leader in data infrastructure. He is an avid cyclist and outdoor enthusiast, drawing inspiration from endurance sports and his Persian heritage.

​Location

​Raleigh Founded North Street — Cafe

​509 W North Street, Raleigh NC 27603

​Questions?

​This session is part of Raleigh-Durham Startup Week. Click here to learn more about the event, plus get answers to your FAQs.

​Track Supporter

​​Thank you to Bank of America for supporting the Revenue Track at #RDSW26!