2 Feb 2026
Driving Performance Season S3E13: Featuring Noah Friedman, Cofounder of Top Shelf Ventures
In this episode of Driving Performance, Noah Friedman joins the show to talk about building at the intersection of community, capital, and consumer brands.
A familiar name in the CPG world, Noah is the cofounder of Top Shelf Ventures, a venture and private equity fund backing standout opportunities across beverage alcohol and other “vice” categories, from spirits and beer to nicotine.He’s an investor in brands like SUNBOY (featured earlier this season with founder Yair), The Long Drink (the celebrity-backed brand cofounded by Miles Teller), and Gratsi Wine.
Before launching Top Shelf, Noah built his career by leaning into the mentorship of legendary entrepreneur Michael Loeb. The two first met when Noah was still in college, attending an intensive bootcamp for founders. Noah was the youngest person by at least 10 years and made a point to introduce himself to Michael who saw something in him and took him under his wing.
That relationship led Noah to help scale Loeb-backed company 3x3, where he spearheaded go-to-market strategy and built one of the fastest-growing retail networks in the beverage alcohol industry, expanding to more than 2,000 liquor retailers. He ultimately became COO, gaining deep, ground-level expertise in how the alcohol business really works.
But Noah’s drive started long before business. Growing up in New York City with a voiceover-artist father (whose work you’ve likely heard in national commercials like Honey Nut Cheerios, Chase, and A.1. Steak Sauce) and a therapist mother, he developed both performance instincts and emotional intelligence early. A competitive hockey player from childhood, he built the discipline that still defines him today — including a daily push-up streak he’s only broken a handful of times in his life. Add in early acting experience, and you get someone who knows how to show up, communicate clearly, and sell a vision.
That ability to bring people together became the foundation for Uncharted, the media and events company Noah cofounded with Michael Loeb. What began as a single curated dinner in 2021 — an intimate gathering of high-performing founders and operators — evolved into a national community and marquee events business. Today, thousands of entrepreneurs have come through Uncharted gatherings, including its flagship summer summit in the Hamptons. Noah shares how intentional community-building leads to real relationships — and real deals.
We also dive into the power of mentorship and earned opportunity, including how Michael Loeb and longtime business partner Richard Vogel pushed Noah to raise outside capital for Top Shelf instead of handing him an easy check. That experience helped shape his investment philosophy and the thesis behind Top Shelf Ventures, where he now backs founders from seed to Series A in resilient, culturally relevant categories.
Finally, Noah talks about the future of consumer growth through Outersignal, a customer intelligence platform he’s an early investor in that helps brands unify data and deliver true 1:1 personalization at scale.
This episode is a masterclass in sales mentality, mentorship, community as strategy, and how long-term relationships compound into real opportunity.
Listen now to hear how Noah Friedman is driving performance across industries — and building ecosystems, not just companies.
