In this episode of Personal IPO, Nathan sits down with Isaac French — the designer, builder, and creator behind Live Oak Lake, a stunning micro-resort in Texas that he turned into a $7 million business. Isaac shares the full story: how he started with just $19,000 in savings, went $500K over budget, got banned by Airbnb two weeks after launch, and still built a brand that generated $500K+ in its first year with 55% margins. It’s a conversation about risk, design, belief, and what it means to build something truly beautiful, both online and in the real world.
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Isaac French
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Nathan May
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Timestamps
00:00 Introducing Isaac
02:05 The story of Live Oak Lake
11:16 Building value direct to customer
16:27 From rock bottom to thriving business
22:35 Creating with passion and care
33:20 A unique upbringing
36:33 Building a personal brand
40:32 Helping others build value driven businesses
47:00 The value of connecting with communities
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Personal IPO Podcast is where top creators, founders, and operators share how they build businesses that thrive on owned platforms.
Each episode, we dig into:
→ How they started and scaled their audience
→ Tactics that drive their growth and revenue
→ Stories from their biggest wins and toughest failures
→ Ideas and philosophies shaping what they built