The Entrepreneur Experiment EE471 - Live Podcast Special: Aine Kennedy, Nadia Adan, and Jack Pierse: Building Brands in Public
Recorded live at The Sugar Club, this special edition of The Entrepreneur Experiment brings three standout Irish founders on stage for an honest, high-energy conversation about building modern businesses in public.
Aine Kennedy, founder of The Smooth Company and newly crowned EY Entrepreneur of the Year, shares how she launched her first product with no budget, built everything herself, with the help of her family, and turned documenting the journey on TikTok into 150 million organic views, now shipping to 70 countries worldwide.
Nadia Adan, founder of Ashford Motors, breaks down how she went from a small yard and a handful of cars to creating one of Ireland’s most recognisable automotive brands - by obsessing over customer experience, moving faster than traditional dealers, and using social media to build trust at scale.
Rounding out the panel, Jack Pierse, co-founder of Wayflyer and now Bold Golf and Happy Stack, reflects on launching a fintech at the start of COVID, scaling to €100 million per month in lending, the realities of hypergrowth, and what he’s doing differently this time.
From viral content and community-led growth to staying lean, moving fast, and learning the hard lessons of scale, this live episode is packed with real-world insight, plenty of humour, and unfiltered founder stories. An entertaining and insightful listen for you!
Show Notes
Hosted by Gary Fox, with Aine Kennedy, Nadia Adan, and Jack Pierse
Recorded live at The Sugar Club, Dublin
How Aine Kennedy launched The Smooth Company from scratch and built a global brand by documenting the journey online
Turning TikTok into a growth engine: 150 million organic views and customers in 70 countries
Why building in public — without gatekeeping — is changing who feels able to start a business
Nadia Adan’s rise from a small car yard to one of Ireland’s most recognisable automotive brands
Using customer service, flexibility, and speed to outperform traditional main dealers
Dealing with online trolls when reputation and real-world sales are on the line
The Wayflyer origin story: launching during COVID and scaling to €100M per month in lending
The realities of hypergrowth, rapid hiring, and the lessons learned the hard way
Why Jack Pierse is building his second company, Happy Stack, slower and leaner
A candid, entertaining live discussion on growth, community, and staying adaptable in modern business
Links & Resources
The Smooth Company – https://www.thesmoothcompany.com/
Ashford Motors - https://www.ashfordmotors.ie/
Happy Stack – https://www.happystack.com/
Bold Golf - https://bold-golf.com/
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Music Credit: “Nobody Knows” by Andrew Applepie — used under royalty-free license.