Inc. Magazine

Founded in 1979 and acquired in 2005 by Mansueto Ventures LLC, Inc. is the only major brand dedicated exclusively to owners and managers of growing private companies, with the aim to deliver real solutions for today’s innovative company builders.

A TALE THAT MUST BE TOLD

Inc.

WHAT’S IN A @#?#!?

WELL COACHED, WELL PLAYED

HOW I GOT THE IDEA

MY MENTOR TOLD ME THE ROOT OF MY PROBLEMS • VICKY TSAI, FOUNDER OF SKIN CARE BRAND TATCHA

NEVER DO THIS: STOP CHANGING

CHASING THE ILLUSION OF “SUCCESS”

THE BEST PARTS THE POWER OF LOVE

Perfumery Specializes in Niche and Discontinued Fragrances • Eau De Luxe Ltd. had humble beginnings, but a passion for perfume has landed the company on the Inc. 5000 Honor Roll

MY PORTABLE OFFICE

ALL THOSE MEETINGS YOU HATE • Tope Awotona launched meeting scheduling service Calendly in 2013 because, well, scheduling is hard. He wasn’t the only one who felt that way; by 2021, Calendly had achieved a $3 billion valuation. Now, armed with data from Calendly’s more than 10 million users, Awotona shares how he thinks meetings will change in the future—and how entrepreneurs can stand to benefit.

HOW PUBLIC GOODS ALMOST WENT BAD • “We are not crazy. This is the future,” Public Goods CEO Morgan Hirsh said to his co-founder, Michael Ferchak, in the fall of 2016. They had just raised $100,000 to launch Morgans—a direct-to-consumer subscription service for high-quality, minimalist-designed personal care products, sold at cost, with minimal name-brand markup. At the time, there was nothing quite like it on the market. Little did they know, that was about to change.

HR Tech Helps SMBs Navigate the “Great Resignation” • As the employer-employee paradigm goes through a period of turbulent change, HR technology provides a lifeline for small and midsize businesses

WHEN CHEAP HAS A PRICE • Do the solutions to your company’s problems reside across the sea-or is that merely a siren song?

DO YOUR (OWN) DIRTY WORK • When my most reviled customer made my best employee cry, I learned a lesson that all founders would be wise to learn sooner rather than later.

HOW FOUNDERS BECOME LEADERS • Don’t believe the old saw that a founder can’t be a growth CEO-but do shift your focus from products to people.

CAN’T MAKE ’EM STAY, BUT YOU CAN TRY • Providing team members with peer-to-peer career support will build cohesion—and help reduce turnover.

Building on a Legacy of Innovation • American Specialty Health embodies what it takes to rank on the Inc. 5000, again and again: leadership, innovation, and perseverance

FIELDS OF SCHEMES • When naming rights go wrong, they put a startup’s calamities in bright lights and an entrepreneur’s legacy in the hall of shame.

And Her Mentor Knows How It’s Done. • Emma Grede, co-founder of fashion brands Skims and Good American, shares business advice with KIN Apparel founder Philomina Kane.

THE FASTEST-GROWING COMPANIES COAST TO COAST • THESE HOMEGROWN POWERHOUSES ARE RACKING UP THE REVENUE, AND POISED TO MAKE THIS YEAR’S INC. 5000. THEY’RE ALSO RICH WITH HARD-EARNED LOCAL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT HOW TO GENERATE— AND MANAGE—GROWTH THAT’S OFF THE CHARTS.

TOUCHLAND • How I Turned a Hygiene Commodity Into a Luxury Brand

LOVEVERY • How I Turned Tissue Boxes and Sawed-Off PVC Pipe Into a Multimillion-Dollar Toy-Subscription Business

SOAPBOX • How Cleaning Up the Packaging of Our Vegan Soap Brand Amplified Our Core Mission to Improve Children’s Health Globally

LIFEBOOST COFFEE • The Do-or-Die Moment That Revived My Coffee Business

THE VERTICAL COLLECTIVE • How I Kept America’s DTC-Buying Spree on Track

QWICK • How I Rebuilt After Having to Covid-Fire Most of My...