# Advice Line with Chris Ruder of Spikeball

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2024-11-21
- Length: 48m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-11-21-advice-line-with-chris-ruder-of-spikeball

## Summary

Spikeball founder and CEO Chris Ruder joins Guy Raz on the Advice Line to answer questions from three early-stage founders. Ruder shares how he discovered his core customer base by emailing 100% of his early direct-to-consumer buyers, revealing unexpected communities like PE teachers and Christian youth groups rather than volleyball players. He advises a parkour gym founder on scaling talent using Chick-fil-A’s internal development model, a running brand founder on leveraging retail validation, and a failed surf shop owner on rebuilding through community stakeholder engagement.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-11-21-advice-line-with-chris-ruder-of-spikeball#t=0) Introduction: Chris Ruder and Spikeball
- [5:48](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-11-21-advice-line-with-chris-ruder-of-spikeball#t=348) Jimmy Davidson: Scaling Parkour Gyms and Hiring
- [20:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-11-21-advice-line-with-chris-ruder-of-spikeball#t=1202) Cindy Chin Smith: Expanding a Niche Running Brand
- [32:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-11-21-advice-line-with-chris-ruder-of-spikeball#t=1943) Nigel Lewis: Recovering from Surf Shop Failure
- [48:17](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-11-21-advice-line-with-chris-ruder-of-spikeball#t=2897) Chris Ruder's Advice on Early-Stage Mistakes

## Topics

- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Hiring & workforce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/hiring-and-workforce)
- [Retail, wholesale & distribution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/retail-and-distribution)
- [Fundraising & investors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/fundraising)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up, early-stage companies, founders before launch

## Mentioned

- Spikeball (product)
- Freedom in Motion (company)
- Pen and Paces (company)
- Station Surf Shop (company)
- Chick-fil-A (company)
- In-N-Out Burger (company)
- Peloton (company)
- Paragon Sports (company)
- Dick Sporting Goods (company)
- Walmart (company)
- Target (company)
- Google (company)
- Kickstarter (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [159: Build a Community to Sell Your New Product Invention](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-01-18-159-build-a-community-to-sell-your-new-product-invention) (Product Startup)
- [Rooting for the Home Team with Paul Freedman and Bryan Carmel](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2026-05-27-rooting-for-the-home-team-with-paul-freedman-and-bryan-carmel) (Oxide and Friends)
- [Founder Feature: Bar Bruhis of Boostcous](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-07-24-founder-feature-bar-bruhis-of-boostcous) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [Bonus - THE BIG RELEASE of Startup CPG’s Retail Sales Tracker](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2024-01-25-bonus-the-big-release-of-startup-cpgs-retail-sales-tracker) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [012: Testing product ideas. 7 inventors & small business owners share advice](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2016-07-12-012-testing-product-ideas-7-inventors-small-business-owners-share-advice) (Product Startup)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-11-21-advice-line-with-chris-ruder-of-spikeball. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to How I Built This.