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Waldemar Pilch spent two decades pricing derivatives at Morgan Stanley, Citi and Standard Chartered, seven of those years out of Singapore, before moving back to Poland to run his aunt's lighting business. He grew it from 50 to 100 million euros, sold it one month before COVID, then launched a search fund and bought Formeds, a Polish vitamins and supplements company, six months later. He tripled revenue in three years and reached a liquidity event while staying on as CEO and co-owner. This episode covers his chicken nugget framework for breaking down risk, why he bet below standard search fund size thresholds on a single subcategory, and his honest answer on being a micromanager.

Chapters

• Growing Up in Krakow and the Family Lighting Business (2:19)
• Moving to New York with Little English (6:08)
• A Career Pricing Risk (7:23)
• Seven Years in Asia (8:57)
• Choosing Operator Over Adviser (12:11)
• Taking ES System from 50 to 100 Million Euros (15:48)
• Why an Outsider Can Run Any Business (17:33)
• Selling One Month Before COVID (19:20)
• From a Hydration Startup to a Search Fund (22:00)
• The Six-Month Search for Formeds (24:08)
• The Founder Transition (26:29)
• Tripling Revenue in Three Years (28:00)
• The Telescope: On Being a Micromanager (31:19)
• A Liquidity Event in Three Years (32:59)
• The True Cost of Running One of These (35:19)
• The Chicken Nugget Framework for Risk (37:51)
• Advice for Searchers (39:30)

SOME ADVICE FROM VAL

"This might be 9:00 to 4:00 AM sometimes, but also at the same time, the most rewarding thing ever, if you get it right."

"If you're thinking about it, losing your sleep over making a decision whether to go down the entrepreneurial path, you'll never know the answer to that question until you do it. And it doesn't matter what stage of your life or career you are. Five years from now you could be an entrepreneur if you make that decision. So just make sure that you're driven, because it's a lot of hard work."