Road of Life sponsored last years season of Teacher Talk hosted by Sue Misiak. She graciously did this interview to remind teachers in Columbus and beyond the Road of Life curriculum is available to download for free at our new and improved website: www.roadoflife.org Listen to the show as Matt Youngner and I keep it [...]

Finding Meaning Beyond Profits
Seeds 4 Social Change from Bill Babeaux on Vimeo. This Wednesday January 12th, at 7PM. I will be leading a workshop entitled “Finding Meaning Beyond Profits” for Seeds 4 Social Change at the Ohio Staters Traditions room of the Ohio Union. I will be discussing my experiences founding Road of Life. You can find more [...]
Alumni Fireside Chat: Rob Emrich – Topic: Social Entrepreneurship
Alumni Fireside Chat: Rob Emrich Sponsor: University Honors & Scholars Center Nov 5 2009 6:00PM – Nov 5 2009 7:15PM RSVP Required! Location: Kuhn Honors & Scholars House Rm 201 Contact: Cheria V. Dial Contact Email: dial.3@osu.edu Contact Phone: (614)292-3135 Description: Learn about social entrepreneurship and how you might consider starting your own nonprofit organization [...]

Nonprofit Congress Delegate Selection
Rob Emrich, founder of Road of Life: Cancer Prevention for Kids, was selected to represent Ohio at the Nonprofit Congress National Meeting, to be held October 16 – 17 in Washington, DC. Over 400 individuals from 48 states and the District of Columbia applied to be delegates for this unprecedented initiative to unite nonprofits and [...]

“26-year-old has long list of accomplishments” Columbus Dispatch
He was a prep cook in an Israeli kitchen, a construction worker and a campaign manager for a woman running for a seat in the Ohio House. Rob Emrich was a congressional page, a political and business consultant and an emergency medical technician who ran for the Columbus City Council. He’s been a molecular-genetics researcher, [...]
About Rob Emrich
Rob Emrich is a serial entrepreneur, currently involved in his latest venture as the Founder & CEO of PaeDae.
He has founded and served as chief executive of six startups and social ventures, including Road of Life (distributed $70M+ curriculum), BULX (acquired by DealYard.com 2011), Boundaryless Brands (acquired 2011) and SpeakerSite.
Rob has spoken about his work at Startup Weekend, Ohio State University, Kenyon College, The John Glenn School of Public Affairs and others.
He is a mentor at the startup accelerators Hub Ventures & Founders Factory, and sits on a number of nonprofit boards.
Rob and his work have been featured on NPR, Inc.com, PBS, American City Business Journals, major dailies, and countless blogs, as well as the book 21 Questions for 21 Millionaires.
He lives in Santa Monica with his fiancée, the fashion stylist Kara Kaufman.
Recent Tweets
Follow @RobEmrich on Twitter
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SpeakerSite to Demo at IT Martini 17
May 20, 2011
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SpeakerSite is Hiring: Inside Sales
July 18, 2011
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BULX acquired by Dealyard
August 12, 2011
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FastFireplaces.com Acquired
September 1, 2011
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Bali Bound
September 12, 2011
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Internet Retailer Covers Sale of BULX
April 10, 2012
- The PaeDae Core Values April 6, 2012
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Lessons Learned: Just Launch.
March 25, 2012
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PaeDae is Hiring (again)
March 22, 2012
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Are College Degrees Necessary for Start-Ups? Free Course Bonus!
February 22, 2012
My Startup Path
Startup 6: PaeDae (pronounced Pay Day)
(Internet Advertising Technology)
Status: Private Beta
Funding: Investor Backed
Startup 5: BULX
(Flash Sales E-commerce for Durable Goods)
Action & Result: Signed exclusive online distribution agreement with Angie’s List (Nasdaq: ANGI), in less than 1 year BULX became the worlds first & largest private sales company for home improvement products. It was acquired by DealYard.com in 2011
Funding: Bootstrapped
Lessons: The right team is critical, ownership structure matters
Startup 4: Boundaryless Brands
(Enterprise E-commerce, Logistics, and Marketing Technology Platform)
Action & Result: Built e-commerce and marketing technology for medium sized ($20MM to $120MM) distributors of durable goods. Acquired in 2011
Funding: Bootstrapped
Lesson: Focus on the opportunity, not on control
Startup 3: SpeakerSite
(Online Marketplace of Public Speakers)
Action & Result: Built technology, scaled to large adoption but little revenue, three years of 'ramen profitability', ceased operation
Funding: Bootstrapped
Lesson: Take on a big market with a burning problem, focus on one company at a time
Startup 2: B.A. Mensch Consulting
(Digital Marketing and Technology Consulting)
Action & Result: Scaled to seven figure revenue, evolved into next three ventures
Funding: Bootstrapped
Lesson: Be a good person, treat people right
Startup 1: Road of Life | The Keren Emrich Foundation
(Nonprofit, Social Enterprise)
Action & Result: Sold car and stocks, built the first online health curriculum in wiki format, scaled to $70M in distribution to over 250,000 children internationally
Funding: Stage 1, Bootstrapped; Stage 2, Grew to Government, Corporate, Foundation Grants & Major Gifts
Lesson: Meaning trumps everything, do something you care about





