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About the Show

Behind the Business is a new video show and podcast grounded in the belief that business is in fact personal, providing the backstory of founders, corporate leaders and creators and how they strive to make the most of both work and life each day.

Founded, hosted and self-produced by award-winning business journalist and CNN alum Michelle Toh, the show gives audiences a chance to get to know the people behind top consumer brands, category creators and emerging disruptors.

The show aims to be journalistically rigorous, thoughtfully produced and visually compelling. In three months since launch, it has been:

  • Featured by Apple Podcasts (US & UK)

  • Named a 2025 “Instant Hit Show” & "Most Shared Show" by Spotify

  • Highlighted on CNN’s Reliable Sources

  • Crossed 4.5M views on YouTube and reached millions monthly on social

  • Charted as a top business podcast in 20 markets, including the US, UK, China and Germany, reaching top 5-20 in the UK, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, the Philippines and Ireland

Guests currently include:

  • Warby Parker co-founder & CEO on breaking the eyewear duopoly to become a poster child of the direct-to-consumer movement

  • Coffee Meets Bagel co-founder & CEO on building the “anti-Tinder” and turning down Mark Cuban

  • “Your Rich BFF” co-founder & CEO Vivian Tu on her top money tips and making $7M a year by 31

  • LARQ co-founder & CEO Justin Wang on reinventing the water bottle and being acquired by BRITA

  • JetZero co-founder & CEO Tom O’Leary on taking on Airbus & Boeing with a new commercial plane backed by the US Air Force, United and Delta

  • Touchland co-founder & CEO on turning hand sanitizer, an overlooked essential, into an $880M brand and Sephora hit

This is not a fawning interview show. We pair deep research with thorough interviews — asking the real questions and avoiding fluff and performative praise, while also keeping it fun! Each episode also connects guests with young founders who send in a question.

Born as an independent project during Toh’s first-ever break between newsrooms, the program launched as a limited series in fall 2025, with new episodes released Thursdays.