She opened a custom hat shop in Nashville… while eight months pregnant. In this episode of The Way Up, Guy Raz sits down with Alex Samuels, founder of Rustler Hat Co., to talk about how a disappointing shopping experience turned into a thriving business rooted in storytelling, craft, and community. Alex shares how she went from real estate deals to designing custom hats, balancing motherhood, managing explosive growth, and creating unforgettable experiences, one hat at a time. Watch more episodes of The Way Up here: squ.re/thewayupplaylist Subscribe for the full series. New episodes dropping soon. 0:00 Meet Alex Samuels, founder of Rustler Hat Co. 1:33 The inspiration behind a DIY hat bar 2:54 Launching a retail business with no experience 4:15 Validating a retail business idea 5:21 Rustler Hat Co’s opening day 7:16 Managing inventory with Square 8:01 Juggling a new baby and a new business 9:57 Inside the Rustler Hat Co. experience 12:41 The importance of Nashville to Rustler’s s...