Hard Knocks Business

The Hard Knocks Business YouTube channel was opened on February 4, 2026. Its description says it takes viewers behind the scenes with “the world's most successful business owners” and states that it is powered by the School of Hard Knocks; the description links to the School of Mentors community page. As of November 2026 the channel had about 35,900 subscribers, 116 videos and about 5.15 million total views.⁠[1]

On March 10, 2026, the channel published its first video, Day in the Life of Miami’s Richest Real Estate Mogul (Todd NepolaTodd NepolaTodd Nepola, also credited as Todd T. Nepola, is an American commercial real estate investor, property operator and author who founded Current Capital Group. His work encompasses commercial-property investment, leasing and management in South Florida, alongside books, podcast appearances and online business commentary.Open the full entry), following the Miami commercial real estate investor Todd Nepola through a working day, covering how he runs his company, property management, his recommended books and real estate investing advice. The channel went on to follow other business owners in the same format and to cut the long videos into short clips.⁠[2]

On April 16, 2026, the channel published Day in the Life of a Billionaire Interviewer! (The School of Hard Knocks), following the School of Hard Knocks host James DumoulinJames DumoulinJames Dumoulin is a cofounder, interviewer and speaker at School of Hard Knocks, a media brand focused on entrepreneurship and business experience. He works with his brother Jack Dumoulin and cofounder Joshua Smith.Open the full entry from Austin, Texas, to Miami to film interviews. In the video he interviews the lawyer John RuizJohn RuizJohn Ruiz (John H. Ruiz) is a Miami lawyer and entrepreneur who in 2014 co-founded, with Frank Quesada, MSP Recovery, a company that pursues recoveries of Medicare and Medicaid claims, and serves as its chief executive officer. The company went public in 2022 through a merger with the SPAC Lionheart Acquisition Corp. II at a pro forma enterprise value of about $32.6 billion when the deal was announced; its stock then collapsed, it went through financial restatements and regulatory investigations, and in late 2025 it was delisted from Nasdaq and fell into a liquidity crisis. He is also known for spending heavily on name, image and likeness (NIL) endorsements of University of Miami student athletes.Open the full entry, the entrepreneur Erica GroussmanErica GroussmanErica Groussman is the founder and chief executive of the plant-based protein bar brand TRUBAR. In February 2026, TRUBAR was acquired by the Turkish snack company ETİ Gıda for $173 million in cash, and she remained chief executive.Open the full entry and Jordan BelfortJordan BelfortJordan Belfort (Jordan Ross Belfort) is an American former stockbroker, author and sales trainer. Stratton Oakmont, the brokerage he founded on Long Island, New York, in 1989, profited from telephone sales and the manipulation of small-cap stocks and was expelled by the National Association of Securities Dealers in 1996; in 1999 he pleaded guilty to securities fraud, money laundering and related charges and cooperated with federal investigators, and in 2003 he was sentenced to 42 months in prison and ordered to pay about $110 million in restitution. After prison he published the memoir The Wolf of Wall Street, which Martin Scorsese adapted into the 2013 film of the same name, and he has since worked as a speaker, trainer and consultant built around his Straight Line sales system.Open the full entry, and explains how the interview questions are designed, how the team divides its work and how the company makes money.⁠[3]

Asking Millionaires for Their Best Business Advice!, published on June 25, 2026, combined four interviews filmed in Austin and Scottsdale, Arizona, including the communication expert Michael BernoffMichael BernoffMichael Bernoff is a personal development coach and communication expert, the founder and president of the Human Communications Institute in Scottsdale, Arizona, and the author of the book Average Sucks.Open the full entry. At the start the host said she had interviewed more than 100 millionaires on the channel.⁠[4]

From July 2026 the channel released a series of street interview compilations titled along the lines of “How To Make Your First $1,000,000”: on July 16 it interviewed business owners from several countries on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, CaliforniaBeverly HillsBeverly Hills is an incorporated city in Los Angeles County, California, known for its film-industry residents, Rodeo Drive shopping district and hotels. Incorporated on January 28, 1914, it covers about 5.71 square miles and recorded 32,701 residents in the 2020 census. It operates under a council–manager system. The Metro D Line extension reached Wilshire/La Cienega in May 2026.Open the full entry; on August 26 it interviewed attendees at a women’s business conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; on September 10 it interviewed owners at a supercar event in Austin; on September 23 it interviewed founders who had appeared on Shark Tank; on October 13 it interviewed young business owners who had dropped out of college; and on October 26 it followed a luxury car rental company in Detroit.⁠[5][6][7][8][9][10]

The description of the September 23 video promoted a “Shark Tank Day” held by the School of Mentors community: three live online question-and-answer calls with Kevin O’LearyKevin O’LearyKevin O’Leary is a Canadian entrepreneur, investor and television personality, publicly known as Mr. Wonderful. He founded software business SoftKey and became widely known through Dragons’ Den and Shark Tank. His activities span venture investment, financial products and consumer brands.Open the full entry, Jamie Siminoff and Mike WystrachMike WystrachMike Wystrach, also known as Michael Wystrach, is an American entrepreneur, investor and podcast host. He co-founded prepared-meal company Freshly, later co-founded veterinary-care company Petfolk and consumer investment firm Cutting Horse, and hosts The Advantage. Nestlé acquired Freshly in 2020. He has appeared on School of Hard Knocks Podcast.Open the full entry.⁠[8]

The channel’s interviewer introduces herself as being with the School of Hard Knocks, says the main channel has more than 21 million followers, and describes Hard Knocks Business as the channel that asks interviewees more tactical and strategic questions. Long videos mostly follow a business owner through a working day (“Day in the Life”), while short videos are cut from street interviews or from the long videos; most video descriptions link to the School of Mentors community.⁠[11][1]

Some videos carry sponsorships: the description of the July 30, 2026 video following Onyi OdunukweOnyi OdunukweOnyi Odunukwe is the founder and chief executive of Glo Tanning, an entrepreneur and investor. He developed supplement retail and tanning salons into a franchise network and expanded into commercial property, Earth Nail Spa, Nūr Coffee Bar and trade publishing. He coauthored Winning the Deal with Jim Schleckser.Open the full entry links to a list of start-up ideas compiled with Bizee, the October 13 video promotes the HighLevelHighLevelHighLevel is a sales and marketing software platform for agencies, entrepreneurs and small businesses. It combines customer relationship management, website building, automation and communications. Agencies can offer its software to clients under their own brands.Open the full entry business software, and the October 26 Detroit video promotes The Ride Platform, a system for running vehicle rental businesses.⁠[12][9][10]

The tables list 47 interviewees whose identities have been verified and who appear in Hard Knocks Business videos, in alphabetical order of their English names; the list does not cover every interviewee on the channel.⁠[1]

YouTube: Public channel: https://www.youtube.com/@HardKnocksBusiness (opens in a new window).⁠[1]

School of Mentors: Official website: https://www.skool.com/schoolofmentors/about (opens in a new window).⁠[1]