The Grindhouse Radio is a champion in small business

The Grindhouse Radio is a contender in SCORE’s American Small Business Championship. The multimedia platform is the only business from New York to earn the honor, which included a weekend of networking and training in Reno, Nevada from April 23 through 26. The contest continues, however, and in September three winners will be announced, each receiving $15,000 to help expand their business.

Entertainment entrepreneur Brimstone, or William Kucmierowski, 43, of Levittown created the Grindhouse Radio with Kim Adragna, 23, of Merrick, and Stephen Zambito, 27, of Stonybrook. Since it’s inception, the crew has expanded, garnered a huge following and secured a number of awards and achievements. Their next local appearance will be at the East Meadow Library’s “EMCon” from May 19-20.

Last February, the cast was recording their show in a crowded Albertson studio when they found out they had been voted best radio station in Bethpage Federal Credit Union’s annual contest. “I cried,” Adragna said. “I was so excited, I cried.”

Fast-forward another year and not only did the radio station earned the honor again, but Brimstone also earned Best Long Island Personality over Billy Joel, who has earned it for the past several years. He and Adragna spoke to the Herald from their new location in Levittown, sharing what they learned from the SCORE training session in Reno and what is expected down the road.

“It was very humbling to meet these huge business leaders,” Adragna said, adding that the weekend included an array of workshops and networking opportunities. She noted that she was specifically inspired by marketing experts Ron Cates and Betsy Dougert, both of whom agreed to be mentors to the Grindhouse Radio.

Adragna said that some of the business leaders she met were intrigued by them as well, enthused to see a podcast as a new contender in the modern business landscape. “To them, we’re something very different and something very fresh,” she said.

The Grindhouse Radio, which reaches up to 620,000 listeners in the Long Island area, has scored sixth on the charts for the Top 20 Best Comedic Podcasts Worldwide on Itunes and continues to hover on the list’s Top 20. The podcast also landed a spot on the Top 100 Best Podcasts, hitting 16th on the charts, right behind Oprah’s podcast.