Riding the Wave: Helaine Knapp with Pau Sabria

Riding the Wave: Helaine Knapp with Pau Sabria

February 10, 2026 · 25 min · Season 1 · Episode 106

About this episode

Helaine Knapp discusses her journey from tech startups to founding a fitness franchise and the lessons learned along the way.

In episode 106 of Venture Everywhere, Pau Sabria , co-founder of Remotely.works —a platform helping companies hire software engineers in Latin America—talks with Helaine Knapp , founder and former CEO of CityRow , a rowing fitness franchise that was acquired. Helaine reflects on how her career in tech startups at Buddy Media and Olapic gave her the foundation to build a brick-and-mortar fitness business. She discusses writing Making Waves , using brutal honesty to tell the entrepreneurial story most founders won’t share, and navigating the in-between as host of Step Into Next , a podcast about walking together from what was to what’s next . In this episode, you will hear: Adapting startup playbooks to the physical fitness business model Insights into the rise and fall of Connected Fitness, and lessons learned The power of honest storytelling during a company’s challenging exit The real challenges of entrepreneurship: navigating legal battles and team dynamics Reimagining success and personal growth while transitioning between ventures Learn more about Helaine Knapp | CITYROW LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helaine-knapp Website: www.helaineknapp.com Learn more about Pau…

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