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🎧 Today on the DTC pod, we’re featuring the fireside chat we had with Andrew Wilkinson, co-founder and CEO of Tiny Capital, at our last live event, C-Suite Mastermind: Victoria.
Andrew, who the Hustle dubbed "The Warren Buffet of Startups," is one of the most successful and well-known young entrepreneurs in the world, having built a portfolio of 40 businesses that operate in and around the DTC space including Metalab, AeroPress, Dribbble, Girl Boss and more.
Attendees at C-Suite got to spend the day with Andrew, asking him specific questions, with more than one attendee getting to chat about investment/partnership with Tiny. Wild!
Don't miss your opportunity to join the next C-Suite Mastermind in Las Vegas, March 23-24!
This talk is wide-ranging and covers Andrew's entire career, ranging from starting one of the top design firms in the world, Metalab, to starting Tiny, taking companies public, hiring and firing CEOs, and everything in between — so tune in to hear the full podcast.
The takeaways 👇
🤔 To buy or not to buy
Andrew's approach to company acquisition centers around the opportunity to build long-term value.
His recent acquisition of AeroPress provided a perfect example: a family-owned brand with minimal marketing spend that has international brand recognition in the same way Kleenex or Jacuzzi do.
Where consumers might refer to any pour-over coffee accessory as an “AeroPress,” Andrew knew that a brand with this much value could be massively enhanced with his and his partners’ digital marketing know-how.
Additionally, he mentions that a huge factor in determining what to invest in is the relationship between the founder and the team.
“I think the number one filter I use is if I go in to meet the founder and I wouldn't let them babysit my kids, then that's a bad sign.” 🧒
Andrew discusses how his philosophy has evolved throughout his career, but here are seven key values that he currently looks for when acquiring companies:
- Alignment with Tiny Capital's mission and values
- Strong brand and customer base
- Potential for further growth and scaling
- A good relationship with the founder and the team
- Cultural fit and alignment
- Avoiding companies with red flags
- Prioritizing long-term value over short term gains
♻️ Network, connect, leverage, repeat
From the beginning, Andrew’s business journey was comparable to a steeplechase: littered with hurdles and barriers to success. In addition to being a 19-year-old web designer working from his parent's basement, he faced challenges like being an unknown freelancer and one that had yet to be taken seriously by big players in the industry.
After finding success with his company MetaLab, he began to attribute that success (and more!) to networking. From then on, he started leveraging his network and connections to grow his business.
“I just started asking every single client that I had, ‘Hey can you introduce me to one more person?’ and over time, I went from working with these… small startups to working my way up to working with bigger startups and getting to know venture capitalists. Before I knew it, I knew partners at all the top venture capital firms, so I was constantly getting introductions to new work.”
(And see you in Las Vegas, where you can join in on the next conversations like this!) �
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