Want to know what it takes to build, scale, and sell your agency?
Retained Trust is a weekly podcast where host Karl Hughes goes deep with digital service business owners to uncover the habits, tactics, and strategies they’ve learned to grow successful companies. Along the way, you’ll hear about Karl’s journey running and acquiring niche digital agencies as he learns from guests with a variety of backgrounds and experience levels.
Recent Episodes
Sept. 9, 2025
EP.46 – From Acquisition to Agency CEO: Derek Delost’s DotYeti Journey
In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Derek Delost, who shares his path from digital marketing burnout to agency ownership through the acquisition of DotYeti. Derek explains why starting from scratch...
Sept. 2, 2025
EP.45 – Building Relationships, Not Just Pipelines: Christian Banach on Agency Growth
In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Christian Banach, a growth consultant for marketing agencies with a background that spans concert promotions, celebrity events, and enterprise sales. Christian s...
Aug. 26, 2025
EP.44 – Scaling Without Sacrifice: Jesse Gilmore on Redefining Agency Success
In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Jesse Gilmore, founder of Niche in Control and author of The Agency Owner’s Guide to Freedom . Jesse shares his journey from hustle-heavy entrepreneurship to cre...
Aug. 19, 2025
EP.43 - Freelancer to Multi-Brand Agency Leader with Greg Henry
In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes talks with Greg Henry, founder of Push10, about his evolution from solo freelancer to leading multiple specialized agency brands. Greg shares how a focus on higher-quality c...
Aug. 12, 2025
EP.42 – The Service Ladder: Greg Hickman on Productization and Building Lean Agencies
In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Greg Hickman, founder of Alt Agency. Greg shares his journey from running a full-service marketing automation agency to building a lean education and consulting ...
Aug. 5, 2025
EP.41 – From Stuck to Scaling: Ross Brown on Helping Agencies Break Through
In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Ross Brown, founder of Flex Ops and former managing director of a fast-scaling influencer marketing agency. Ross shares lessons from helping agencies scale past ...
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