The Twin Cities Business Show

Real conversations with the builders and leaders shaping Minnesota’s economy, from legacy industries to the frontiers of innovation. The Twin Cities Business Show is produced by the team at Twin Cities Business.

The Twin Cities Business Show is a business podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 25 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Unknown Host hosts The Twin Cities Business Show, a business show with 25 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Episode #25

  How Minnetonka Turned Moccasins Into an 80-Year Family Business

  Sep 16, 202656 minS1

  The Miller family has run Minnesota-based footwear company Minnetonka for decades. We sat down with the 3rd and 4th generation of the company's leaders in the latest episode of The Twin Cities Business Show. What is it like to work with your dad? David Miller, the company's CEO, and Chief Commercial Officer Jori Miller Sherer talked about their relationship with each other, both as family and co-workers. In this episode, they discuss what it was like when Jori finally told her dad she wanted to come work for the company. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLtGaFb-61A Fashion moves a lot faster than it used to. For companies like Minnetonka, that's made it harder to keep up with the "micro bursts" that rip through the internet. Trends that used to last three to four years now happen in three to four months. That can make it impossible when a new shoe takes 18 months from concepting to the storeroom floor. Tariffs have made the lives of retailers harder by making everything they use more expensive and creating an uncertain environment for retailers everywhere. They share shares how the company has tried to plan for and adjust to an ever-changing reality. A few years ago, Minnetonka made headlines around the world when they acknowledged and apologized for appropriating Native American culture and design. In 2025, the company launched The Reclamation Collaborative, an initiative to uplift Native artistry and redefine Indigenous representation in fashion. The episode includes: 00:00 — Meet the 3rd & 4th Generation of Minnetonka 02:23 — What It's Like Working With Your Dad 05:00 — How Minnetonka Became a Cultural Icon 08:48 — Is Minnetonka Actually in the Fashion Business? 11:57 — Why Fashion Trends Now Last Just Months 13:03 — Why It Takes 18 Months to Create a New Shoe 16:28 — How Minnetonka's History Prepared It for E-Commerce 19:31 — The Family Business: Why David Initially Rejected Jory 24:36 — What Jory Has Changed About the Business 32:27 — How Tariffs Have Disrupted Minnetonka 34:06 — Minnetonka's 80-Year Journey Through Business Cycles 34:53 — Confronting the Company's History of Cultural Appropriation 39:02 — Working With Native Artists to Redesign Minnetonka Products 45:39 — What's Next for Minnetonka Through 2030 46:19 — How Minnetonka Is Using AI 48:18 — Why 80 Years Doesn't Guarantee the Next 80

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #25

  How Do You Keep a Newspaper Alive for 92 Years? Tracey Williams-Dillard Knows

  Sep 9, 202647 minS1

  How do you keep a newspaper alive for 92 years?Tracey Williams-Dillard is the CEO and publisher of Minnesota's oldest Black-owned newspaper, the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder. The family-owned publication was founded by her grandfather, Cecil Newman, in 1934.In this episode of the Twin Cities Business Show, Tracey takes us inside her family's business, which has served African-Americans across Minnesota for decades. She tells us about how they've kept the paper going in a challenging media landscape that has seen many similar organizations go under.She also shares her personal story of what it took to keep the paper going through some of the hardest years of her life, including losing her husband during the COVID pandemic, when George Floyd was murdered a few blocks from the MSR's headquarters, and when she lost her mother only years later.We talk about her grandfather's unusual strategy for building the newspaper, her grandmother taking over after his death, the legendary journalists and talent who came through the newsroom like Larry Fitzgerald Sr., Gordon Parks, and Charles Hallman, and why Tracey believes the MSR plays such an essential role in recording the history of the community.This episode includes:00:00 — Meet Tracey Williams-Dillard00:51 — How Cecil Newman started the newspaper in 193401:54 — Cecil Newman and Hubert Humphrey03:15 — Launa Newman takes over04:31 — Tracey is chosen to lead the family business05:30 — Why the newspaper became the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder06:40 — Growing up around the MSR08:12 — What happened to the neighborhood around 38th Street09:56 — How a 92-year-old newspaper survives10:28 — Why the Black press still matters12:51 — What mainstream media misses about Black Minnesota13:57 — The people and stories the MSR has preserved16:49 — Gordon Parks, Carl Rowan and the MSR talent pipeline19:01 — Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and preserving Minnesota's history20:48 — How the newspaper makes money21:04 — Turning community problems into new businesses23:50 — How Sister Spokesman was created27:01 — The newspaper's changing revenue model27:45 — Tracey's approach to finding new ideas30:23 — The struggle to find media salespeople32:52 — How Minnesota's Black community is changing35:43 — The hardest years of Tracey's life36:16 — Losing her husband while keeping the paper alive38:29 — George Floyd and boarding up the MSR39:20 — "It was like a war zone"40:19 — How Tracey kept going41:23 — Where she finds her strength42:26 — What her grandparents would think today43:06 — Taking the MSR digital—and into AI43:37 — The future of community newspapers45:11 — Supporting the Black press46:07 — Why Tracey keeps going

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #24

  Why Flickr Chose Minneapolis for the World’s Biggest Photography Festival

  Aug 26, 20262 minS1

  Minneapolis will soon be the home of an event that aims to be the world's biggest photography festival. The MODE Photography Festival, a three-day festival from the team behind Flickr and SmugMug, will take over downtown Minneapolis from September 18 – 20. On this episode of the Twin Cities Business Show, Ben MacAskill, president and COO of SmugMug and Flickr, talks about why his team picked Minneapolis, why he believes photography is having a renaissance in the age of AI, and how his family-owned company rescued Flickr from the brink of collapse. MacAskill also explains why Flickr doesn't need a billion users, how staying private has allowed the company to focus on passionate photographers, advice for other family businesses, and why he hopes MODE can do for Minneapolis what South by Southwest did for Austin and Sundance did for Park City. This episode includes: 00:00 — Minneapolis Is Getting the World's Biggest Photography Festival 02:21 — Why Flickr Picked Minneapolis for MODE 04:16 — What to Expect at MODE Photography Festival 08:22 — Why Photography Is Having a Renaissance in the Age of AI 13:05 — Why Flickr Is More Than a Social Network 15:21 — How SmugMug Got Started in 2002 17:18 — How a Family-Owned Business Built a Subscription Model 20:27 — The Time Barack Obama Called SmugMug 21:17 — What Happened to Flickr After Yahoo Bought It23:09 — How Flickr Nearly Disappeared 24:13 — Why SmugMug Bought Flickr 26:03 — The Company Had Less Than a Year of Runway 26:29 — How They Turned Flickr Around 29:56 — Why People Will Still Pay for a Good Product 32:37 — How Flickr Differentiates From Instagram 34:59 — Why Flickr Doesn't Need a Billion Users 35:34 — How Being Family-Owned Changed the Business 37:45 — Why He Wouldn't Sell the Company for $1 Billion 39:01 — The Challenge of Passing a Family Business to the Next Generation 44:49 — What Ben Learned From South by Southwest and Sundance 46:20 — How MODE Is Borrowing From SXSW 47:02 — Can Minneapolis Become the Photography Capital of the World? The MODE Photography Festival takes place September 18–20 in downtown Minneapolis.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #23

  The Future of Fertilizer: How Pivot Bio Is Revolutionizing Ag Tech in Minnesota and Beyond

  Aug 19, 202627 minS1

  Pivot Bio is transforming the fertilizer industry with innovative microbe technology that attaches directly to plant roots to continuously deliver nitrogen to the plant. This approach allows farmers to replace synthetic fertilizers, lowering their costs while reducing chemical runoff and carbon emissions. The company recently relocated its headquarters to Minnesota from California. On this episode of the Twin Cities Business Show, the company's CEO, Chris Abbott, talks about where the fertilizer industry is headed and why Pivot Bio is well positioned. We joined their company's tractor tour live from the steps of the Minnesota State Capitol to learn more. They discuss the company's 1 Million Thanks tour, how supply chain disruptions impact farm margins and food costs, and why Minnesota is becoming a premier hub for the next era of crop nutrition innovation.In this episode: 0:00 – Welcome to the Twin Cities Business Show (Live from a tractor!) 0:31 – The "1 Million Thanks" Tour: Highlighting farmer mental health and rural viability 2:05 – How Pivot Bio’s gene-edited microbes replace synthetic nitrogen 3:45 – Cutting runoff and emissions: Addressing the limits of 100-year-old fertilizer tech 5:38 – How scaling microbial nitrogen can lower farmer costs and impact global food prices 7:28 – Chris Abbott’s journey: Investing in 2018 to stepping in as CEO to scale the technology 9:30 – Navigating the founder-CEO dynamic and driving innovation with AI 11:53 – Scaling up: Expanding supply chain capacity to reach 150 million acres 14:40 – On-the-ground sentiment: How global conflicts continue to squeeze farmer margins 17:10 – Why Pivot Bio moved its headquarters from Berkeley to Minnetonka 18:20 – Minnesota's ag tech ecosystem: Capital, talent, and regional momentum 20:18 – Policy at the Capitol: Creating a statewide crop nutrition platform in Minnesota 24:14 – Future-proofing the Farm Bill: Supporting new technology, precision ag, and biologics

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #22

  The $77 Million Business Behind the Minnesota State Fair

  Aug 12, 20261h 3mS1

  Every wondered how the Minnesota State Fair actually works? It's so much more than corn dogs, Sweet Martha’s cookies, and rides. It’s a $77 million operation that becomes Minnesota’s third-largest city for a magical 12 days every summer – with hundreds of vendors, thousands of workers, major concerts, livestock, overnight logistics that include hundreds of people spending the night, and millions of visitors. On this episode of the Twin Cities Business Show, we sat down with Renee Alexander, CEO of the Minnesota State Fair, to go behind the scenes of The Great Minnesota Get Together. Renee explains how the fair makes money, why Sweet Martha’s has become such a phenomenon, how the Grandstand lineup gets booked, what happens after the gates close at 11 p.m., how vendors are selected, and what it takes to run an organization that operates year-round for an event that lasts just 12 days. She also shares the story of how she went from her first State Fair internship (a job that she originally lost out on) to becoming CEO. In this episode: 00:00 Intro: The $77 million business behind the State Fair 00:51 Why Sweet Martha’s is so successful 06:09 How the State Fair makes money 06:38 The State Fair gets 15% of food sales and 18% of beer & wine sales 07:56 The State Fair is a $77 million operation 08:10 For 12 days, the fair becomes Minnesota’s third-largest city 08:28 How Renee measures a successful State Fair 09:45 State Fair ticket prices and affordability 11:00 How to experience the fair for less money 11:50 Renee’s guide to a great day at the State Fair 15:27 Who books the State Fair concerts? 16:40 How Rod Stewart, Salt-N-Pepa and other acts end up on the lineup 18:54 The story behind the TLC/Shaggy/Bone Thugs-N-Harmony lineup 19:54 Renee’s journey from State Fair intern to CEO 29:04 The business of the State Fair Midway 29:22 Why Minnesota has an independent Midway 30:46 The Great Big Wheel is getting even bigger 33:32 The business lessons of 4-H 35:18 Why Renee says 4-H looks good on a résumé 36:07 The “whole other fair” that happens overnight 38:46 What it takes to become a State Fair food vendor 40:46 How many people work year-round to make the fair happen 57:39 What makes a good CEO—and why leadership can feel lonely 58:14 How the Minnesota State Fair stays on top 59:34 The State Fair’s new recipe book

  ListenShow Notes

Recent guests on The Twin Cities Business Show. Study who booked and why before you pitch.

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.