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TECHEDTV Podcast with Dr. Edwin HernandezAuthor: Dr. Edwin A. Hernandez
Dr. Edwin Hernandez host for TECHEDTV podcast brings you the latest in technology, fintech, Expert Witness, Patents, Investments, crypto, cloud, AI, startups. We interview many startup founders and bring an audio-only outlet for techedtv show in Youtube and Facebook. This is podcast is brought to you from our EGLAVATOR Tech Incubator at our studios. I work with startups and incubate ventures in Boca Raton, FL. Language: en Genres: Education, Technology Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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From Coal Trading to a $300M Exit: Why Tech Founders Must Build Moats — Lessons from Ryan Gnessing
Tuesday, 24 March, 2026
Good morning, good evening, good afternoon — wherever you’re watching from. In the latest episode of TechedTV, I sat down with Ryan GNessin, a serial entrepreneur, former Glencore commodities trader, and angel investor who turned a blank-canvas move to New York into a massive e-commerce roll-up and exit. Ryan’s journey is proof that bold career pivots can pay off — but only if you build real competitive advantages along the way. From Life Insurance to Glencore’s $500M Trading Desk Ryan started his career as a life insurance advisor in Australia but quickly realized it wasn’t for him. A mentor connected him with Glencore, one of the world’s largest commodity trading firms. He joined the head office in Switzerland as a traffic analyst, then moved to Jakarta, Indonesia, on just four days’ notice. Over eight intense years, he rose to head the regional office and managed a $500 million physical coal trading desk. It was high-stakes, high-travel work: meeting miners, partying with customers, flying 250–300 times a year, and riding the boom-and-bust cycles of the 2008 financial crisis. The lifestyle was exciting in his late 20s and early 30s, but eventually the constant travel and lack of work-life balance caught up. In 2016, at age 33, Ryan walked away with no job, no girlfriend, and no plan — just a blank canvas in New York City. The Blank Canvas That Became a $300M Exit Instead of looking for another corporate role, Ryan started small: retail arbitrage — buying branded footwear (Nike, Adidas, Hoka) from stores and reselling on Amazon. He quickly moved into private labeling and spotted an opportunity: thousands of small Amazon sellers generating solid revenue but lacking scale. Many could be acquired cheaply (2–3x EBITDA). That insight became Elevator Brands — an e-commerce roll-up platform. Started with tiny acquisitions ($200K–$400K revenue businesses) as experiments. Raised $8M in 2020, then much larger rounds as COVID accelerated e-commerce. In 2021 alone, the team grew from 15 to 220 people and acquired 20 businesses (total of 32 across the journey). One standout: Rhino USA (motorsport accessories), acquired at ~$20M revenue and scaled to over $100M. The result? A successful exit in 2023 after building a portfolio that proved the power of disciplined acquisition and operational scaling. Key Lessons for Tech Founders & Entrepreneurs 1. Start Where You Stand — Then Iterate Ruthlessly Ryan didn’t have a perfect 10-year master plan. He started with what was in front of him (Amazon arbitrage) and iterated until it worked. “Start small, test, and if it works, double down — if not, move on.” 2. Build a Real Moat — or Get Commoditized This was Ryan’s strongest message for today’s founders, especially on platforms like Amazon: Patents matter — Utility patents create real barriers; design patents are weak. Brand recognition wins — Rhino USA customers happily pay more because they trust the brand. Supply chain advantages or unique customer relationships also work. Without a moat, you’re just another copycat competing on price. Margins erode fast when 1,000 sellers can source the same product from Alibaba. Ryan’s advice: Ask yourself — Why would a customer choose my product over the 10 identical ones next to it? 3. Retail Arbitrage Is a Great Starter, Not a Destination Going to Costco or Nike outlets, flipping products on Amazon or eBay is an excellent low-risk way to learn e-commerce and generate cash. But it’s rarely a high-quality, high-exit business. Use those early profits to fund bigger experiments with better moats. 4. Timing + Tailwinds Matter — But So Does Grit COVID created massive e-commerce tailwinds, but Ryan was already testing the model before the pandemic. When opportunity struck, he was ready to raise capital and scale aggressively. 5. Career Changes Every ~10 Years Can Create an Exciting Life Ryan left a highly paid, specialized role in coal trading because it no longer felt right. His mentors thought he was crazy. He believes changing direction roughly every decade keeps life interesting — especially when you’re young and without heavy family commitments. What Ryan Looks for as an Angel Investor Today Sector first: He’s especially excited about humanoid robotics (which he believes could become the largest industry in the world within 10–15 years) and AI. Strong teams and big-name investors on the cap table (for resilience during tough times). Clear competitive landscape analysis. On the AI bubble question: Ryan sees high valuations and bubble-like P/E ratios, but also insatiable demand for GPUs (NVIDIA’s recent numbers prove it). His approach? Hold some dry powder for corrections, but avoid panic selling — the market could still run higher. Final Takeaway for Founders Whether you’re trading physical commodities, flipping shoes on Amazon, or building the next AI/robotics startup — sustainable success comes from creating a defensible moat. Don’t compete in a sea of commodities. Build something customers recognize, protect it intelligently, and scale when the wind is at your back. Big thanks to Ryan Gnessin for joining TechedTV and sharing his unfiltered journey. Watch the full episode here: [Link to YouTube/TechedTV video] What’s your biggest moat-building challenge right now? Drop a comment below — I’d love to hear from fellow founders. ' Ready to publish? SEO Title suggestion: From Coal Trading to $300M Exit: Moat-Building Lessons Every Tech Founder Needs Meta description: Ryan Nessing went from Glencore coal trader to a $300M e-commerce exit. Here are his hard-earned lessons on building moats, scaling on Amazon, and why most founders fail without real competitive advantage. Categories/Tags: Entrepreneurship, Startups, E-commerce, Fintech/Tech, Leadership, Investing TRANSCRIPT [00:00:03] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: Good morning, good evening, good afternoon. [00:00:13] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: You guys are watching TechedTV with Dr. [00:00:15] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: Edwin Hernandez. [00:00:16] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: And today we have a new guest, a friend that we met a couple a month ago. [00:00:20] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: Ryan Nessing from, where are you based today, Ryan? [00:00:23] Ryan Nessing: Well, I'm at home, in my office, Austin, Texas. [00:00:25] Ryan Nessing: Great. [00:00:25] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: And you are Australian, is that right? [00:00:28] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: is that right? [00:00:28] Ryan Nessing: Well, yes. [00:00:29] Ryan Nessing: well, I spent 10 year… [00:00:30] Ryan Nessing: I'm actually a dual citizen, half I've got Australian citizenship and also American, as of six months ago. [00:00:36] Ryan Nessing: Congratulations. [00:00:36] Ryan Nessing: But I grew up, I actually grew up South African, so… [00:00:38] Ryan Nessing: (laughs) Oh, okay. [00:00:40] Ryan Nessing: So I have a bit of a mongrel mixed accent, grew up South African, lived there till I was 14, and then I spent the next 10 years in Sydney. [00:00:47] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: Okay, so you're familiar with Trevor Noah then? [00:00:49] Ryan Nessing: Oh, yes, for sure. [00:00:50] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: (laughs) Great. [00:00:50] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: Yeah, so yeah, so we have a very interesting conversation with Ryan, because he's an expert in all kinds of stuff, especially when it comes to investment, and is an entrepreneur, CEO for several of his ventures, $300 million deals, and I can go on and on and on. [00:01:06] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: But I would like to, Ryan to tell us more about, his background a little bit. [00:01:10] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: you went to college in Australia, so how is that different from the United States? [00:01:14] Ryan Nessing: Yeah, you in the US, college seems to be like a very impactful period of someone's life, and which college you go to matters tremendously. [00:01:23] Ryan Nessing: in the US… [00:01:24] Ryan Nessing: Sorry, that's in the US. [00:01:25] Ryan Nessing: In Australia, you college was not as big a deal, I have to say. [00:01:29] Ryan Nessing: I did a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of New South Wales. [00:01:32] Ryan Nessing: if you're gonna do business in Sydney, then that and the University of Sydney are kind of the two places you would want to go to. [00:01:38] Ryan Nessing: And, frankly, my college experience was just okay. [00:01:42] Ryan Nessing: it was nothing special. [00:01:43] Ryan Nessing: Frankly, I was spending most of my time, doing odd jobs, working, trying to make money, and figure out next steps. [00:01:49] Ryan Nessing: So it just doesn't have the same kind of cachet as it does here in the US, which is a pity, because I think it's a really formative and important part of your life, and, probably there should be a little more emphasis on it. [00:01:59] Ryan Nessing: But, for me, that wasn't the case. [00:02:00] Ryan Nessing: (laughs) So you might ask someone else who has a different opinion, but for the most part, that's I think the general consensus. [00:02:05] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: So, how do you go from your time in college, let's say, that it was maybe not that eventful for our interest today- Yeah. [00:02:12] Ryan Nessing: … [00:02:12] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: but to Glencore, which I believe is one of your first main, let's say- Yeah. [00:02:18] Ryan Nessing: … [00:02:18] Dr. Edwin Hernandez: jobs? [00:02:19] Ryan Nessing: Yeah, so, I'll give you I'll try give you the 30,000-foot, brief summary of my last kind of 20 years, my career. [00:02:24] Ryan Nessing: actually, my very first job was a life insurance advisor. [00:02:27] Ryan Nessing: I became a financial planner, an insurance advisor, and I got a scholarship with one of the insurance companies in the US, in Australia, I beg your pardon. [00:02:34] Ryan Nessing: And, I just really did not like the industry. [00:02:36] Ryan Nessing: I found that to be successful,...
