The Knowledge Project: A Farnam Street Podcast

Imagine leaving a six‐figure Wall Street salary behind to chase a single, daring idea. In this episode, David Heacock shows you how he turned a basic product into a $250M empire. At 29, he left Wall Street to bet on air filters. That bet transformed into Filterbuy, now a $250 million direct-to-consumer manufacturer serving more than 7 million customers through a ruthlessly efficient operation. Today we talk about what actually matters when building a business, balancing obsession with family life, selling on Amazon, what he’d do differently if starting over, and the freight decision he calls his biggest mistake. Whether you’re starting a business, scaling one, or simply looking for insights on hiring, managing, or making bold decisions, David shares the lessons that helped him build his empire.    David Heacock is the founder and CEO of Filterbuy. Before revolutionizing the air filter industry, he traded options at Goldman Sachs from 2005-2012.  If you’re driven by bold decisions and value hard-won lessons,