Hardware Podcasts

Gymboree: Joan Barnes. How Building a Beloved Brand Nearly Destroyed Its Founder

How I Built This · 19 Jan 2026 · 1h 20m

What this episode covers

Joan Barnes, founder of Gymboree, explains how a lonely new mom's playgroup evolved into a national franchise and retail brand, detailing the fatal flaws of the early franchise model and the pivot to brick-and-mortar stores. She recounts the humiliation of a collapsed acquisition deal with Hasbro and the subsequent launch of Gymboree clothing, which saved the company financially but led to her own physical and mental collapse. Barnes describes stepping away to undergo treatment for severe eating disorders and addiction, eventually selling her stake to her lead investor, Stuart Muldaugh, and later building a chain of yoga studios before finding peace in recovery and wellness.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies and companies scaling up

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Hasbro, Yoga Works, The Children's Place, Gap
Products
Gymboree, Kinder Gym
Also
Stuart Muldaugh, Toys R Us

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