Nikonomics - The Economics of Small Business

135 - I Lost $20K Gambling… Then Became Vegas & Built a $1M/yr Vending Empire with Ethan Kohan

Mar 19, 2025

50:38

🚨MY NEWSLETTER https://nikolas-newsletter-241a64.beehiiv.com/subscribe 🚨

Join me, Nik (https://x.com/CoFoundersNik), as I interview Ethan Kohan (https://x.com/ethan_kohan). Get ready for a wild ride as Ethan shares the incredible story of his entrepreneurial journey, starting with a simple idea for a vending machine in his fraternity house selling Juul pods.

We dive into the highs and lows, from making serious money quickly to losing it all in sports betting, and how that unexpected experience led him to become "Vegas" himself by starting a sports book!

We then explore the evolution of his business, Podplug, as it scaled from college campuses to bars, the challenges he faced with COVID-19, and his current focus on building a strong foundation for franchising his smart nightlife vending machine business, now offering a diverse range of convenience items.

Questions This Episode Answers:

Tell me about your business?

Did you have to pay rent for this machine?

Have you always been a hustler?

What was patentable?

Why did you go away from individuals selling the dual pods and go all in on, let's just place vending machines at these locations?

Enjoy the conversation!

__________________________

Love it or hate it, I'd love your feedback.

Please fill out this brief survey with your opinion or email me at nik@cofounders.com with your thoughts.

__________________________

MY NEWSLETTER: https://nikolas-newsletter-241a64.beehiiv.com/subscribe