The Business of Influence
Ep. 12 The Architecture of the Live Experience Economy #FoundersDesk
ANYONE CAN PLAN AN EVENT. VERY FEW PEOPLE CAN MAKE YOU FEEL SOMETHING.In this episode of Founder's Desk, hosted by Tami Ruschin, Greg Walsh, founder of G&G, the Goosebumps Company, sits down for a conversation about what it actually takes to build one of South Africa's most respected experiential marketing firms from a university side hustle into a premium live experience business with a global vision.The story starts where most great business stories do, with someone who refused to ignore what was working. Greg began his career in events while still at university, graduated, spent eighteen months as an investment banker in the UK, and eventually made the decision that most people in his position would not have had the courage to make. He walked away from a stable financial career to pursue the thing that was already making him money and, more importantly, making him feel alive. His advice to students considering the same move is worth noting. Finish the degree first; the discipline and strategic foundation it builds is an advantage that reveals itself later in ways you cannot predict at the time.What Greg brought to the events industry was not just ambition; it was structure. A sector historically dominated by organisers without formal business training met someone who understood strategy, process and the architecture of scale, and the gap he stepped into was significant.The pandemic conversation is one of the most honest parts of this episode. The events industry did not slow down in 2020. It stopped entirely. Greg speaks candidly about the collapse of his business and the decision he made on the other side of that devastation: to rebuild deliberately, to move into the luxury and premium market, and to work only on projects that genuinely excite him. That pivot was not just a survival strategy. It was a clarity that most founders only find after a crisis forces it.The episode goes deep into what scaling actually looks like in practice, moving from a founder-led hustle to a structured organisation with formal processes, clear departmental objectives and role accountability. Greg credits mentorship as the critical ingredient that made that transition possible and is honest about what he could not have figured out alone.The ROI conversation challenges how brands measure the value of live experiences, moving beyond traditional metrics toward the soft but significant impact of deep emotional engagement, and Greg's team is actively building models to quantify what the industry has always known but struggled to prove.The episode closes with a vision that is as ambitious as it is specific. South African festivals on the global stage. The country is a destination for international audiences and a legacy built on the belief that on the other side of great fear lie great rewards.If you work in events, experiential marketing, brand strategy or entrepreneurship, this episode will change how you think about the business of creating moments that matter.Founder's Desk is brought to you by Style ID Africa.—Enjoyed the podcast? Join the conversation using #FoundersDesk Listen and Follow UsApple: https://tr.ee/7S9Qw2RYaBSpotify: https://tr.ee/8yFVYiInstagram: https://tr.ee/9MFBqITikTok: https://tr.ee/F5wHS1LinkedIn: https://tr.ee/72U7z0Follow Our Host and GuestTami: https://www.instagram.com/tami_blend_ruschin/Greg Walsh: https://www.instagram.com/gregwalsh/ Email: info@styleid.africaMusic Produced by Emcee: https://www.instagram.com/emceeiii/#ExperientialMarketing #EntrepreneurshipAfrica #LiveExperienceEconomy
