Ingo Engelhardt has held many roles, but one principle runs through all of them: say yes to every idea first. A WOK World Cup activation for Fisherman's Friend became the StrongmanRun. A failed stage race in Italy became the Tour de Friends. This same attitude also gave rise to RAD RACE, a brand founded by a few friends, in which Manuel Neuer is now a shareholder. It is the world's largest Canyon reseller, with its own shops in Hamburg and Berlin.
Ingo is just as consistent when it comes to saying no: to sponsors who don't fit the brand, to requests where he senses his community is simply being used. Keeping that balance between reach and credibility in view is, for him, the real job of building a brand.
And then there's Manuel Neuer, who ended up at RAD RACE via the team doctor and a FaceTime call, and today holds a 65 percent stake. Ingo explains exactly how that connection came about and what's next: 99 Laps, a new elimination-style running format.
In this conversation we discuss:
- how a WOK World Cup activation turned into the StrongmanRun
- why "always say yes" is RAD RACE's credo, and when he says no anyway
- how RAD RACE learned early on to turn down the wrong sponsors
- how Manuel Neuer became a shareholder at RAD RACE
- why brands can't simply buy a community
- what's behind the new running format 99 Laps
- how Ingo balances a radical niche with a broad audience
Timestamps:
00:00 — Intro
01:06 — The podcast studio in a camper van: why smaller is always better
02:47 — Instagram beginnings in 2012 and the founding days of RAD RACE
03:26 — The Fisherman's Friend story: how a WOK World Cup activation became the StrongmanRun
07:26 — From a shared flat to a company: the first months of RAD RACE
08:03 — The Ben & Jerry's ice cream truck and the lesson of starting things yourself
10:35 — Nine years without a salary: RAD RACE as a full-time hobby
11:07 — The first race in 2014: Last Man Standing on a go-kart track in Neukölln
13:28 — How RAD RACE helped shape influencer marketing before the term even existed
14:03 — From running to cycling: why cycling is the better team sport
19:08 — Community over commercialisation: when did the money come in?
20:10 — Tour de Friends: how a failed stage race in Italy became a new format
25:06 — "We say yes to everything" – RAD RACE's credo
26:56 — Why RAD RACE never took the wrong sponsor: the Red Bull story
32:10 — The Ben & Jerry's moment: why he criticised the founders over chicken
36:05 — From niche to mainstream: the RAD RACE shops in Hamburg and Berlin
43:59 — Why brands can't simply buy a community
48:20 — When did RAD RACE get too big?
49:31 — How Manuel Neuer became a shareholder at RAD RACE
51:43 — 99 Laps: the new elimination-style running format
58:24 — Rapid fire: control freak, worst songs and misjudged bets
1:04:17 — Saying yes and no: the most important advice for listeners
