"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms."
Entrepreneur. Philanthropist. Builder.
Most corporate success stories start with a safety net, venture capital, or a silver spoon. Mine started miles behind the starting line. Over the last decade, I have built a mid-nine-figure portfolio of healthcare, telehealth, and wellness companies, including Amble, MinuteMD, Vaxxen Labs, and MedLab. We have generated over a billion dollars in revenue, created hundreds of jobs, and ranked at the very top of the Inc. 5000 list for explosive growth.
But to understand the businesses I build today, and the uncompromising ethical standards we operate with, you have to understand the monumental mistake that redefined my life.
The Crucible
When I was 18 years old, a full-time college student living with my parents in Ohio, I suffered a severe double-tear in my shoulder from lifting weights. Faced with a diagnosis that meant either invasive surgery or 12 months of rehab, I went online and ordered healing peptides.
They worked.
In my young, naive, and highly entrepreneurial mind, I saw an underground, unregulated industry that was doing things terribly wrong, and I thought I could do it better. I introduced strict operational standards, like batch-testing and Certificates of Analysis (COAs), to a space that had never seen them
People who were already looking for these gray-market items online now had a way to check the validity and testing of the products I shipped out. Transparency in this market was revolutionary. I ran the operation with the quality control of a legitimate business, but the reality was, it was an illicit industry.
When I was shut down and the bill came due, I lost everything. I was handed a federal indictment and a felony conviction. And while the court records reflect that there were zero victims and no financial harm caused to anyone, the reality is that I broke the law. I paid a heavy price, and it took me the better part of a decade to clear the wreckage.
When you make a mistake that big, that young, the world puts you in a box and expects you to stay there. Banks wouldn't touch me. Institutions flagged me. I was left with a choice: let my past define me, or spend the rest of my life proving I was better than my worst decision.
I Chose to Build
The $8,000 Comeback I started my first legal business with a single $8,000 credit card. That paid for my website and my first batch of inventory, leaving me unable to pay my rent unless I delivered on the promise I made to my customers.
I didn’t take a cent from a bank (no bank would touch me!), and I didn’t raise millions in "funny money" from venture capitalists. For a decade, I slept three hours a night. I packed the boxes in the warehouse myself. I climbed the warehouse racks to load boxes because we couldn’t afford a forklift. I drove packages to the post office at 3:00 AM on Saturdays so my customers would get their deliveries on time.
Slowly, 600 square feet turned into 1,100 square feet, which turned into 160,000 square feet. Because of the shadow of my past, I knew that being "good enough" was never an option. My legitimate businesses had to be bulletproof.
Today, I’ve spent over 12 years operating with a pristine compliance record in the highly scrutinized medical and telehealth space. We hold elite certifications, operate without a single warning letter, and actively provide safe, accessible healthcare to hundreds of thousands of patients. We do things strictly by the book,
Because I know exactly what it costs to cut corners.
Faith, people, and purpose
By the time I hit my early 30s, I had achieved massive financial success, but I felt empty. It was then that my perspective shifted, and I found conviction through Christ. I realized that this ability to build companies isn’t just a way to make money; it is a gift I am meant to steward responsibly. Stepping into my role as a father redefined my "why." Everything I build today is done with the goal of being a living example to my son of what it looks like to lead a life driven by faith and true purpose.
My core philosophy today is simple: There is no good business with a bad person, and there is no bad business with a good person.
I take my role as a leader personally. I employ hundreds of people across my companies, and I carry the weight of their families and their livelihoods on my shoulders. I believe in giving second chances, finding the right seat on the bus for good people rather than firing them, and treating my team with the loyalty they deserve.
That stewardship extends beyond the boardroom. Today, living in Puerto Rico, I established The Joey Stiver Foundation to formalize my commitment to giving back. Through the foundation, I am a proud, long-time sponsor of Inspiring Minds, an organization dedicated to empowering socioeconomically disadvantaged inner-city youth in Ohio through education and career placement.
But I wanted to go further and offer others the exact same radical second chance I fought so hard to earn. That is why we launched our flagship initiative, The St. Dismas Accelerator. Named after the patron saint of penitent sinners, history's ultimate proof that it is never too late for redemption, this initiative shifts the paradigm of reentry. Instead of funneling people into traditional, low-wage jobs, we empower recently incarcerated adults and at-risk youth through high-impact tech entrepreneurship. With pilot programs launching in both Ohio and Puerto Rico, we provide cutting-edge AI training, executive mentorship, and seed capital to prove that with the right stewardship, raw hustle can build legitimate, transformative enterprises.
For the love of the game
Twelve years and a billion dollars in revenue later, I'm still up and excited to work at 2:00 AM. When my companies peaked in the top 30 of the Inc. 5000 list for explosive growth, I didn't throw a party. I put the plaques in a closet and went back to work. I’m not doing this for public accolades; it is, and always has been, me versus me. I love the competition. I love the grind. I love proving the doubters wrong. I love creating something where nothing existed before. If you look me up, you might see the 20-year-old kid who made a mistake. But if you look at my body of work since, you'll see a man who spent the next decade doing everything right. I’m doing this for the love of the game. I’m here to stay, and I’ll still be building 30 years from now.
Check the receipts.