RUNNA FOUNDER, BEN PARKER ON BUILDING ONE OF THE WORLD'S BIGGEST FITNESS APPS IN JUST 4 YEARS

Video Description

You might not have heard of Ben Parker, but you’ve almost definitely heard of Runna — the incredible running app that just sold to Strava for millions. For me, this one’s probably my biggest regret but also one of my biggest lessons. A few years ago, a young entrepreneur came up to me after an event to tell me about his business. It sounded brilliant, but honestly… I couldn’t see it: “Why would a running app take off?” I thought. Well, that business was Runna, the app that’s now one of the biggest fitness apps in the world. And that young entrepreneur was Ben Parker. Missing the chance to invest in Ben’s vision taught me a powerful lesson: always look for the opportunity in someone else’s passion. Fast-forward four years and Ben’s built — and sold — a business that most would call “impossible.” But behind that success is a story of sacrifice, pressure, and what ambition really costs. In today’s episode, Ben opens up like never before about the realities of building something extraordinary — the highs, the lows, and the lessons he’s learned along the way. We cover: - How to turn your purpose into a thriving business - The personal sacrifices behind success - What makes a truly great founder - How to build a culture that wins - What it really takes to make it to the top As much as I’m still a little gutted I didn’t invest, I’m blown away by what Ben’s achieved — and I can’t wait to see what’s next for him. This is one of those rare, raw conversations you don’t want to miss. 0:00 Trailer 00:47 Introducing Ben Parker 00:52 What is Runna 02:46 Regrets about not investing in Runna 06:09 Not having the capability 10:31 Touching the lives of our customers 10:51 Sacrifices made to make Runna successful 12:11 Being grateful 13:27 Life has to be hard, or life would be too easy 15:14 Having a business partner 15:42 Do you enjoy pain? 16:41 Difference between fun and happiness 18:25 What’s your drive? 20:17 Not being driven by money 21:48 Being better and helping people 23:38 Looking up to my tennis coach and not my father 25:34 Being cut off financially by my mother 27:24 Being 18 and following my dreams 29:18 Things that make me happy can’t be unlocked by money 31:47 Family struggles 32:05 Getting money externally and not from family 34:14 Going against your parents 36:13 Why can’t parents just be proud? 37:37 All parents want their kids to be stable 41:27 Building a happy culture 46:10 Words of encouragement 50:20 What’s next 53:51 Final eight questions 56:36 Jamie’s rundown And I've got a new book coming out, Boys Don't Cry which you can pre-order here: boysdontcry.co.uk If you enjoyed the show, you can also follow us: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/greatcompanypodcast/ TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@greatcompanypodcast And if you've got thoughts, questions and comments, you can email us at: [email protected] THE CREDITS Exec Producer: Jemima Rathbone Producer: Helen Burke Editor: Dan King Assistant Producer: Rhoda Abrokwa Video: Jake Ji & Josh Bennett Audio: Rafi Amsili Social Media: Laura Coughlan - Great Company is an original podcast from JamPot