Grant Sabatier never worked in retail, never worked in a bookstore, and had no idea what he was doing when he opened Clintonville Books in Columbus, Ohio.
But that’s exactly the point.
The experiment required 1,200 hours of solo work — measuring spaces, moving 40,000 books, and navigating city regulations.
But it taught him something crucial: even experienced entrepreneurs face steep learning curves when they try something new.
The serial entrepreneur and author of “Inner Entrepreneur” joins us to share his unconventional journey from online businesses to brick-and-mortar retail.
He also explains why he believes everyone will become an entrepreneur within the next decade — whether they want to or not.
We dive deep into Sabatier’s framework for the four stages of entrepreneurship.
The first stage is experimental — you’re figuring out how entrepreneurship feels and testing ideas with minimal risk. Most people skip the crucial research phase and invest too much money too quickly.
The second stage focuses on building sustainable systems as a solopreneur. Thanks to AI and modern tools, Sabatier launched a new website in 10 minutes recently — something that would have taken two weeks just five years ago.
Stage three involves intentional growth. Sabatier warns against the common trap of scaling rapidly without considering how you want entrepreneurship to fit into your life.
The final stage is empire entrepreneurship — using cash flow from successful businesses to acquire other companies rather than investing in traditional assets like stocks or real estate.
Throughout our conversation, we explore the most common reasons businesses fail, how to avoid fragmented attention, and why Sabatier believes your story is your competitive advantage in an AI-driven world.
Timestamps:
Note: Timestamps will vary on individual listening devices based on dynamic advertising run times. The provided timestamps are approximate and may be several minutes off due to changing ad lengths.
(0:00) Introduction
(1:15) Grant opens bookstore with zero retail experience
(3:45) Four stages of entrepreneurship framework
(5:20) Creative lease negotiation and getting the space
(8:30) Why entrepreneurs invest too much money too early
(10:45) Stage two solopreneur and building systems
(13:20) Stage three growth and avoiding scaling traps
(17:15) Three main reasons businesses die
(21:45) Stage four empire building and holding companies
(28:30) Four types of holding company structures
(32:15) Managing multiple businesses without losing focus
(48:20) Why everyone should try entrepreneurship
(59:30) Three business types products services productized services
(1:04:45) Sell to people with money
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