Rob Merlino: Blogger, Writer, Entrepreneur & Foodie

Francheska “Frankie” Yamsuan is The Coconut Girl. It’s hard to separate her from her brand because she is so immersed in the making and marketing of her product which goes by the same name. Coconut Girl is the name of her Paleo Ice Cream sandwiches. She started making them as a snack for herself, then […]

Lindsay McCormick first started making Bite Toothpaste Bits in her apartment for her own personal use. Lindsay is an environmentally conscious person who hated seeing the waste in her world travels as a TV producer. The thing that bothered her the most was toothpaste tubes. They’re plastic and not recyclable, plus most toothpastes contain some […]

Baby Quip is kind of an Uber or AirBnB for baby gear. Think of the last time you traveled with a baby and try to envision all the stuff you needed to tote along. A travel crib, car seat, stroller and more can make it seem like you’re going on a safari rather than a […]

Before creating Shake-It-Pup, AJ Crook and Brett Maiolfi were no strangers to the dog food business. In 2016, they launched Snap Wag, a successful craft dog food business. They make and sell high quality dog food in small batches. Shake It Pup morphed out of that business. Shake-It-Pup is a line of dog food seasonings […]

Max Kislevitz and Natalie Holloway, husband and wife yoga enthusiasts and instructors, created Bala Bangles to put a better aesthetic on wrist and ankle weights. Adding weight to your wrists and ankles while doing yoga (or any exercise) has advantages: you get a little bit more muscle workout. Wrist and ankle weights are nothing new […]

Fur Oil is the creation of life long friends Laura Schubert and Lillian Tung. Laura initially came up with the idea in 2014 while chatting with her sister about grooming pubic hair. She sensed a need in the marketplace and, after doing some research, convinced herself there was. After a lot of phone calls, she […]

The Jung brothers – Eugene and Michael – started Pips & Bounce out of their life-long love of ping pong. They grew up playing in their basement with family and friends, but after they left home to start careers, their access to ping pong dwindled, but their love of the game was still strong. As […]

Alex Bayer started Genius Juice back in 2014 to eat healthier. He became a “smoothie-holic” to avoid unhealthy junk food. When he tried his first coconut smoothie, he thought it was “GENIUS,” hence the name of the company. and Kickstarted it forward in May, 2015 with $15,375. His smoothies were very popular and he had […]

Dustin Finkel invented Ka-Pop chips because he’s a fitness nut who loves to eat. Eating right isn’t always easy, especially when you’re craving chips, but what if the chips were healthy? Dustin asked himself the same question and started experimenting with ancient grain sorghum to make his Ka Pop Chips. At first he just made […]

Doctors Katie Marks-Cogan and Andrew Leitner founded Ready, Set, Food after they had their own experiences with food allergy prevention with their own kids. Dr. Marks-Cogan was very attentive about introducing allergenic foods (milk, eggs, peanuts) to her child, but she didn’t like the hassle of measuring and hoping the kid would eat everything. Dr. […]

Geanie and Chris Rogers invented RapidRope to make hauling rope around more convenient. When you go out hiking, hunting, fishing, boating or any other outdoor activity, you might want to bring some rope along. You never know what you’re going to need it for, but rest assured if you don’t bring any with you, you […]

When Yve-Car Momperousse was a little girl, her mother would put Haitian Black Castor Oil in her hair when it got damaged. Whether her hair tore, got frizzed out or even got damaged by harsh chemicals or heat, a little bit of mom’s “magic oil” would fix up her hair. When Yve-Car was all grown […]

Wise Pockets inventor and founder Sofia Overton isn’t like most 13 year olds. Most 13 year olds don’t start a business and pitch it on Shark Tank! Sofia is a young lady with a lot of drive and a heart. She started making Wise Pocket Products – socks with pockets – after watching her cousin […]

Chico Guerra and Mason Buechler started Zuum Technologies to “reinvent the way people think about traveling.” They decided to make hover shoes for zipping around on short commutes. Most people take trips of five miles or less when running errands or commuting. If you live in an urban area, those short trips are more efficient […]

Lou Childs and her daughter Katy Mallory came up with the idea for the Slumber Pod after Katy, her husband and their baby visited Lou’s house for a Christmas break. The “break” wasn’t a restful one. Katy’s baby, normally a good sleeper at home, was up all night causing massive sleep deprivation for all involved. […]

Dale Lewis created his patented Fortress Clothing line to stay warm in extreme cold weather. Originally designed for paragliders at high altitudes, Dale’s found that skiers, snowboarders, outdoor workers and others want the same protection from cold. The secret sauce is Fortress Clothing’s patented technology that keeps you warm whether you’re wet or dry. Anyone […]

Flex Screen inventor Joe Altieri spent 15 years in the window business. People loved his windows, but he heard a lot of complaints about screens. Screens are a necessity if you want to get fresh air while keeping out bugs and animals, but they tend to rip or otherwise become ineffective. Replacing screens or repairing […]

Easy Treesy creator Kurt Stange started designing and installing large-scale Christmas displays right out of college. His company, Miami Christmas Lights, puts up hundreds of Christmas displays for corporate clients every year. Watching the installation of these displays became somewhat of an event in the greater Miami area and one day a spectator asked why […]

Jason McOmber started making beard ornaments as a side hustle to have a little holiday fun and earn some extra cash. He runs his company, Beardaments, when he’s not working as a trainer for AT&T and Direct TV dealers. He may actually have to leave his day job behind soon, especially if he gets a […]

Bryan Perla invented and patented the Little ELF while he was still in high school, but it didn’t become a business until he got to college. The current Stanford junior brought his prototype with him and enlisted the help of his college buddies to bring the ELF (Easy, Lightweight, Fast) to life. Some guys helped […]

Forrest Shinners created KitLender to solve a problem. He grew up skiing in Stowe, Vermont but when he moved to new York after college, his friends didn’t want to go skiing for a weekend. The reason: they didn’t have the gear. Ski gear is expensive. You have to get googles, good gloves, ski pants, a […]

Before creating TerraCore, Greg Nigro was in the fitness industry for nearly twenty years. Most of that time was spent as a consultant to gym owners where he trained people on new gym equipment technologies. Over that period, he was paying attention to what people wanted and needed in personal gym equipment. When he decided […]