Entrepreneurship and Leadership Richard Lucas

In this episode Richard interviews not an entrepreneur but a business journalist with detailed knowledge of the Polish and British business landscape from the perspective of someone who has helped facilitate business between Poland and the United Kingdom in both directions. Listeners will learn of examples of Polish entrepreneurs acquiring British companies post-Brexit, and hear a discussion of whether the next generation of Poles will be as hungry for success as the first generation of post communist entrepreneurs.

Michael Dembinski, born in London to Polish émigré parents, studied at Warwick University and The City University London; worked at the CBI, for nine years as editor of monthly magazine CBI News, before moving to Poland with his young family in 1997. In Poland he worked on several publishing projects before setting down with the British Polish Chamber of Commerce, where he’s been for over 20 years. Since 2007, Michael has been blogging about Poland and matters metaphysical on his blog, W-wa Jeziorki.
Linkedin 
British Polish Chamber of Commerce
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Richard and Kimon speak with Faisal Kanji, co-founder of hungerhub, an innovative catering company. Based in Canada, hungerhub combines the quality of traditional catering with the convenience of a delivery service like UberEats. 
With typical business or party catering, companies and planners will order communal trays from a single restaurant. This is often unsanitary and inconvenient, especially for those with dietary restrictions and allergies. With hungerhub, each attendee receives a log-in ahead of time where they can select customized meals from restaurants of their choice. Hungerhub compiles these orders together and handles delivery and logistics. 
Founded in 2018, hungerhub has grown considerably, generating over $10 million CAD in revenue this past year with 30 employees. Part of what makes hungerhub different than UberEats or other delivery services, is the ability to plan ahead to minimize the number of drivers required to complete a delivery. Instead of needing 100 drivers for 100 different meals, hungerhub is able to serve 100 meals with just a few drivers. 
Currently available only in the English-speaking parts of Canada, hungerhub is looking to expand internationally. Faisal discusses the challenges of international expansion, especially into the United States. He highlights the competitive nature of American market and the significant amount of research required to launch there.
Faisal speaks on balancing growth versus stability. He wants hungerhub to grow, but most importantly, he wants it to grow in a way that maintains quality. 
Also in the interview, Faisal describes how he met his co-founder, Sari Abdo, on Angel List. Sari already had the idea and was looking for a partner to help implement. Part of the idea arose from seeing the common practice of free lunches offered by tech companies. In Toronto, most tech companies did not offer this perk, so Faisal and Sari saw an opportunity to find an affordable solution. 
Faisal also talks about the importance of their first client. This client provided significant and “tough” feedback, which helped them improve their methods and rethink issues quickly. Great clients that are willing to constructively criticize can be essential for businesses as they try to grow and solve issues that might not be obvious.
To find their first clients, Faisal and Sari went about cold-calling and showing up in person to pitch their product to companies. Once they started getting clients to agree to trial periods, they ensured that they were generating efficiencies beyond how companies were already going about lunch catering. 
Faisal’s journey to running hungerhub was years in the making. At an early age, he worked in restaurants. When he turned 18, he got his real estate license and began selling. He then opened and ran a coffee distribution business, which taught him many of the lessons he would need to run hungerhub.
Towards the end of the conversation, Faisal talks about his competitive nature and how he stays motivated. He’s a true entrepreneur in both spirit and deed.

Faisal Kanji is co-founder of hungerhub, a Canadian-based catering solutions business.
Richard Lucas is a business and social entrepreneur who founded, led and/or invested in more than 30 businesses.
Kimon Fountoukidis is the founder of both Argos Multilingual and PMR. Both companies were founded in the mid 90s with zero capital and both have gone on to become market leaders in their respective sectors. Kimon was born in New York and moved to Krakow, Poland in 1993. Listen to his story here.
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Richard and Kimon recently interviewed Gonçalo Consiglieri, the co-founder of Visor.ai, a company specializing in AI and automation solutions for customer service teams. Initially focused on chatbots customized for specific industries, Visor.ai has evolved into a prominent player in the field.
Before venturing into entrepreneurship, Gonçalo worked as a consultant, adapting to the corporate structure. However, driven by a desire for a new path, he left Deloitte to establish his first company in Portugal. Facing a less robust entrepreneurial community initially, Gonçalo witnessed its growth over time.
Notably, Gonçalo and his co-founders faced the setback of a failed first company. Undeterred, they chose to persevere as business partners, leveraging the lessons learned for a second attempt. Gonçalo attributes part of their success to a shared passion for the same soccer team and the resilience gained from previous defeats.
Mostly boot-strapped, Visor.ai also secured small rounds of investment from public sources in the EU and various startup incubators. The company, now with around 30 business clients, serves major entities such as the largest private bank in Portugal and a significant insurance company. Visor.ai specializes in creating automated chat tools, both utilizing existing market tools and developing proprietary ones.
While currently focused on the Portuguese market, Visor.ai aims to expand into the Spanish market in the coming year, emphasizing growth and investing in operational expansion.
In the interview, Gonçalo shares insights into his childhood, highlighting his entrepreneurial grandfather as a major inspiration. Despite success in consulting, Gonçalo felt the importance of carving his own path.
As an executive of a company with approximately 60 employees, Gonçalo emphasizes the challenges of ensuring alignment. Delegating responsibility and offering stock options to high-performing employees are crucial aspects of his management strategy. He discusses the enjoyable and challenging aspects of executive roles.
Offering advice on finding investors, Gonçalo suggests avoiding "make or break" funding situations. He values investors who contribute not just financially but also help connect Visor.ai with new customers and experienced business professionals. Knowledgeable investors play a crucial role, especially when expanding into new markets like Brazil.
Gonçalo advocates for embracing failure, viewing it as a valuable lesson. He stresses that solving problems is the key to entrepreneurial success, emphasizing the importance of humility in the face of challenges.
Gonçalo Consiglieri is the COO and co-founder of Visor.ai, bringing over a decade of expertise to the team. Holding an MBA from Universitat de Barcelona, Spain, he previously worked as a Management Consultant at Deloitte and KPMG, specializing in Banking and Insurance where he also had an active role in launching two new banks in Africa. For the past six years, he has been overseeing the financial and operational aspects of the venture initiated with co-founders Gianluca Pereyra and Bruno Matias.
Richard Lucas is a business and social entrepreneur who founded, led and/or invested in more than 30 businesses.
Kimon Fountoukidis is the founder of both Argos Multilingual and PMR. Both companies were founded in the mid 90s with zero capital and both have gone on to become market leaders in their respective sectors. Kimon was born in New York and moved to Krakow, Poland in 1993. Listen to his story here.
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Richard and Kimon talk to Peter Cowley, angel investor and author of the book, Public Success, Private Grief. Peter started his career as a software engineer, moving to Germany after graduating from college. He returned to the United Kingdom in 1984, where he embarked on a career as an entrepreneur. He’s started over a dozen companies, worked closely with 7 different charities, and angel-invested in over 70 companies. Peter also has late-stage cancer, launching Project Cancer to document his experience and increase awareness.
Now 68, Peter was recently diagnosed with a type of lung cancer that affects non-smokers and is difficult to detect. Peter does not expect that current treatment will be effective, and is dedicating much of his remaining time to passing on the life lessons he’s learned. Peter’s bravery in the face of terrible illness is most visible in vulnerability talking about the challenges he’s faced in life. 
Too often in the world of entrepreneurship and business, people downplay their struggles. Peter is an example of a business person with a holistic worldview, recognizing that there is more to life than mere monetary rewards. 
Through Project Cancer, Peter documents his own experience with cancer. He’s featured interviews with researchers, and his personal oncologist, and examined the UK’s healthcare system, the NHS. 
In Public Success, Private Grief, Peter opens up about more than just his ongoing struggle with cancer. He also discusses his family life, including bravely sharing his experience of losing two children. Peter is also a recovering alcoholic, having a family history of addiction. 
Along with his wife, Peter wrote Public Success, Private Grief to show how people can process experiences of extreme tragedy and still maintain love and a sense of optimism about the positive aspects of life. 
Peter has created a 350-day plan of the things he wants to do while he is still able. Public Success, Private Grief is slated for publication on April 17, 2024. Much of his time will serve in the release and promotion of this deeply personal self-help memoir. 
In addition, Peter is planning a trip to Antarctica and has begun arranging short one-on-ones with various close friends. Some of his plans include taking a stand-up comedy course and eating at Michelin-star restaurants. 
Peter describes the medical regimes he’s undertaken, highlighting how through his treatment, he’s remained active. Peter has run and half marathon and gotten married in the Galapagos. While many people suffering from a terminal illness might become less active, Peter credits his entrepreneurial taste for measured risk as an inspiration to keep living life fully. 
Truly a one of a kind, Peter is unlike any guest Richard and Kimon have ever had on the Entrepreneurship and Leadership podcast. He has managed to turn his adversities into strengths, portraying the messy realities of life to contribute more value to others. 
Preorder Public Success, Private Grief
About Peter Cowley
Invested Investor
Invested Investor on the New Books Network
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In this episode, Kimon and Richard speak with Philipp Legner, founder of educational software Mathigon. After graduating from the University of Cambridge with a degree in Mathematics, Philipp worked as a software engineer and developer at Bloomberg.
 In 2017, Philipp founded Mathigon, which was acquired by Amplify in 2021. Philipp continues to run Mathigon under the aegis of Amplify. 
Mathigon has developed several educational products. The overarching experience that ties them together is an interactive one. As students engage with different problems, they are prompted to explore different avenues. The courses are intended to be fun and interesting, and to engage students as much as possible. 
All of the content on Mathigon is completely free to use. One of the main throughlines is to make math exploration visual and creatively engaging. In addition to Philipp’s insights into education, he has worked with educators to develop different aspects of the curriculum offered by Mathigon. Mathigon seeks to educate based on students’ interests. So, if a student is interested in sports, questions will use sports examples. 
Because Mathigon is free to use, its primary source of revenue comes from licensing content to other educational companies. IBM, for example, licensed Mathigon. Part of the business plan, which Philipp successively executed, was to build the product as an acquisition target for a larger educational company. 
While Philipp loves education, technology, and building products, he does not love running a business. This was part of the main motivation for selling his company to Amplify. His only condition for the sale was Mathigon, as it existed at the time of signing, would remain free forever. 
Philipp Legner is VP at Amplify and Founder of Mathigon.
Richard Lucas is a business and social entrepreneur who founded, led and/or invested in more than 30 businesses.
Kimon Fountoukidis is the founder of both Argos Multilingual and PMR. Both companies were founded in the mid 90s with zero capital and both have gone on to become market leaders in their respective sectors. Kimon was born in New York and moved to Krakow, Poland in 1993. Listen to his story here.
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Richard and Kimon speak with Oliver Webb-Carter, co-founder and editor of Aspects of History, a magazine and website that showcases great writing and research in history and historical fiction. 
Prior to starting Aspects of History, Oliver had a varied career as an archaeologist and a banker. As a young man, Oliver worked at a dig site in Belize for six months, which helped shape his interest in the past. 
In 2002, just after graduate school, Oliver got a job working in IT at JP Morgan. He loved IT and worked in this department until 2010. He moved into change management, helping intra-company contract negotiations. After, he worked in controls management, an important compliance department. He never worked in trading, but had significant experience in many parts of banking world. 
In 2010, he started taking night classes, learning Ancient Greek. Oliver found himself growing disinterested in his day job, regularly waking up at 3am unable to get back to sleep. After a few more years, Oliver began to explore other ideas for work. 
As a fan of history, Oliver saw that authors had difficulty promoting their works beyond initial book launches. He points out that publishers are increasingly less interested in promoting their authors. To help with this problem, Oliver co-founded Aspects of History.
Aspects of History is subscription-based, and the main purpose is to introduce readers to great historians and their new books. Every year, Aspects of History publishes 6 issues with articles, interviews, and reviews. 
Oliver also discusses the challenges that came with quitting a stable, well-paying job to pursue his passion. He discusses his wife’s support, and how this was integral to making the entrepreneurial leap.
At the end of the interview, Oliver talks about the future for Aspects of History and plans for growth.
Oliver Webb-Carter is co-founder and editor of Aspects of History.
Richard Lucas is a business and social entrepreneur who founded, led and/or invested in more than 30 businesses.
Kimon Fountoukidis is the founder of both Argos Multilingual and PMR. Both companies were founded in the mid 90s with zero capital and both have gone on to become market leaders in their respective sectors. Kimon was born in New York and moved to Krakow, Poland in 1993. Listen to his story here.
Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/entrepreneurship-and-leadership