An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
I wish I would have worked on someone else’s entrepreneurial project before I started my own. You can learn a lot watching the process of others. Even a terrible entrepreneur can be the very best lesson of what not to do.
As a part of our series called “Making Something From Nothing”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Brian Pirrip.
Brian Pirrip is the face of today’s modern sports card collector. Redefining the hobby, Brian has driven 15,000 miles in the last three months from Los Angeles to New York in pursuit of building relationships with others passionate about collecting. Opening iconic packs while sharing sports memories with card shop owners, avid fans, little league coaches, and pro ball players, Brian’s adventures manifest nostalgia and his diverse connections form the heart of America’s century-old hobby. Brian isn’t new to collecting. Frequently moving as an army brat, he fell in love with baseball in stadiums across the country and recognized trading as a great way to make friends. Even as he attended Cornell University and worked at Disney and Nike, Brian never lost his interest in the past time, visiting card shops all over the country to open a few packs to unwind and connect with locals and strangers. As the hobby continues to evolve into unprecedented arenas including trading cards as financial instruments, investments, and NFT’s, Brian’s TikTok personality is playing a pivotal role in keeping the pastime grounded, personal, nostalgic and fun.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a bit about your “childhood backstory”?
I was born in San Clemente, California — my dad was a US Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton. Then, when I was two, our family moved to Okinawa, Japan so my earliest childhood memories are all from there! Years later, our family then moved to Oregon so my Dad could go to grad school, then medical school, to become a physician. It was in Beaverton that I fell in love with sportscards, outdoor adventures, writing music, roadtripping, Nike shoes, and even entrepreneurship; all of which remain my core interests even today!
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“The Main Thing is to keep the Main Thing the Main Thing.” I have lived by this for 20 years. Essentially, don’t get distracted by things that don’t matter or that don’t align with your core values and dreams. Focus on the Main Things, even if they currently feel unreachable!
Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
Shoe Dog by Phil Knight — wow, what a book! I grew up around Nike World Headquarters, worked at Nike, and even spent time with Phil Knight, and his story and my own have a shocking number of very specific parallels. His story is remarkable by the luck, timing, and hard work of he and his team. There would be no Phil Knight without Bill Bowerman, Steve Prefontaine, Michael Jordan and many others. Similarly, I believe the only way to create a strong foundation for any business is by surrounding yourself with people of integrity that all pull together in a positive way.
Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. There is no shortage of good ideas out there. Many people have good ideas all the time. But people seem to struggle in taking a good idea and translating it into an actual business. Can you share a few ideas from your experience about how to overcome this challenge?
Yes, everyone has a great idea. But you need far more than that. A great idea needs execution which requires capital, time, expertise, and tenacity all working together in the same direction. Without each of those, an idea doesn’t stand a chance. The way to overcome the challenge is to dive into the deep end and go for it. It is important to understand you will fail, waste time, and lose money, but like any other skill set it takes time and patience. Entrepreneurship is very much like learning to ride a bike — you have to be willing to take the hits and bruises, and to expect the unexpected. Sooner or later, it becomes second nature and that tenacity kicks in.
Often when people think of a new idea, they dismiss it saying someone else must have thought of it before. How would you recommend that someone go about researching whether or not their idea has already been created?
I love it when someone says, “hasn’t someone else already done that?” That’s another way of saying: “Yes, that will work.” Because the idea is believed to be achievable. How to research? Google is your friend. Search high and low, and see if anyone, anywhere is doing what you plan. Besides, even if you find someone else has already done it, perhaps you can do it better!
For the benefit of our readers, can you outline the steps one has to go through, from when they think of the idea, until it finally lands in a customer’s hands? In particular, we’d love to hear about how to file a patent, how to source a good manufacturer, and how to find a retailer to distribute it.
Wow. I could write a book about that second question! The best way is to outsource as much as you can to trusted people and entities. Finding a good patent law firm, having them run a patent search, and aiding you in securing your patent is crucial. Honestly, it’s easier than it sounds, it just takes time and money. If you are making a product, you are going to have to make appointments with a lot of industrial design firms to find one that can not only help you design your product, but be a one-stop shop that can take your product all the way from idea to product in customer’s hands.
It just takes the courage to take that step and set up an interview to see if they are a good fit and understand your vision, making sure they stick to their promises, and the money to see it through from beginning to end. Networking through this entire process will likely result in going from idea to retailer. Every step along the way — the people you meet — will be able to introduce you to the next link in the process! Networking, time, a great idea, great people, courage, and money are the essential ingredients to going to market!
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Started Leading My Company” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)
- I wish I would have worked on someone else’s entrepreneurial project before I started my own. You can learn a lot watching the process of others. Even a terrible entrepreneur can be the very best lesson of what not to do. (Example: I left business school and immediately launched my own company. I was too naive and inexperienced to have taken on so much, so soon.)
- I wish I would have worked for a few years to have made my own money to be a bit more stable before fundraising and taking risk on very challenging goals. Investors can smell when you are just raising money to survive. (Example: After my initial company fell apart, I was so broke but determined to remain an entrepreneur rather than building a career so I spent many nights in very bad places — overstaying on friend’s couches, in the car, in dodgy motels, hostels, etc. trying to survive. It was painful, and the lack of confidence would show in meetings.)
- I wish I would not have raised money through ‘friends and family’ until I had cut my teeth on a few failures before risking burning my network early on. (Example: I raised all my initial startup funds from MBA classmates — I wasn’t able to deliver on my goals, and I still feel awkward around many of them. Once you take money from any friend, the relationship is never ever the same — even if you are successful.)
- I wish I had started smaller. (Example: My first real entrepreneurship was a project where I bit off more than I could chew. I was creating the first TV show made in the United States for China, while raising money, and while trying to support a cast and crew team of 100 people. I was also trying to secure international sponsorships, with no savings.)
- I wish I had not hired friends and trusted employees so quickly and easily. I am a very trusting person and wanted to involve people I cared about so a ‘virtue became a vice’, and wrecked my ambitions for nearly a decade. Trust is earned over a long time. (Example: A ‘friend’ I had known for 3 years embezzled all my cash and I had to shutter my dream company.)
Let’s imagine that a reader reading this interview has an idea for a product that they would like to invent. What are the first few steps that you would recommend that they take?
I recommend that someone with an idea ask themselves this: 5 years from now, you are sitting next to someone who asks, ‘Why didn’t that idea you have back in the day work?’ Then, write your reasoning down — this information tends to be the roadblocks that have been holding you back from succeeding. This is now your list of things you have to overcome. Just like writing an essay, creating an outline of the steps that are required to make your business a success is vital. Do not be afraid to ask others for help, or just walk them through what your plan of action is. Lastly, you get to work — make sure you are honest with yourself so you can stay on track with your goals. There is always a chance you may have to sell investors and employees to get people to help you. The important thing is to never sell yourself short; don’t be overly loyal to a mediocre idea. Give that great idea all that you’ve got!
There are many invention development consultants. Would you recommend that a person with a new idea hire such a consultant, or should they try to strike out on their own?
I would never ever hire an invention development consultant. This is 99% of the time a trap to waste your time and money with promises of insights, networking possibilities, and access to cash. If anyone is offering these kinds of ‘services’ as a new entrepreneur, you are most likely gonna be taken advantage of. I mean, if they were so good at it, wouldn’t they be rich on their own project? Be skeptical of anyone selling ‘expertise’ who isn’t themselves a truly notable successful person. Beware the ‘services’/coaches/mentor con people! They are everywhere, and would be very happy to take your money.
What are your thoughts about bootstrapping vs looking for venture capital? What is the best way to decide if you should do either one?
Bootstrap as much as possible on your cash for as long as you can. Going to Venture Capital is a waste of time, and energy, if you don’t already have an established record of success or a revenue generating product/service already. The last thing you need is some Venture Capital person giving you condescending comments, and then turning you down for cash while giving you a laundry list of new deliverables to create false hope. Odds are — if you are at the point that Venture Capital is the right time — you’ll already be making money and are ready to grow and scale. Use your own money for as long as possible before you go any other route. Besides, you’ll respect every dollar you spend more if it is your own.
Ok. We are nearly done. Here are our final questions. How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
One of my goals as a leader is to prove that you don’t have to be a bad person to be successful. You can have morals and ethics, and make the world a better place by being a good example of integrity. Aside from donations and such, I love to host college teams and provide internships and free mentorships to good people. Also, I will only ever work on projects and companies that I believe will make a positive impact on society. I believe making the world a better palace is most often done by small and simple acts of kindness, all without hypocrisy or virtue signaling.
You are an inspiration to a great many people. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
I care about clean oceans, clean drinking water, improving eyecare, getting adolescent youth out of poverty with better health habits and education developed early on, all worldwide. These are all the larger movements that I am fixed on, and I have actionable plans for each of these.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
For sure! I believe the greatest athlete in the world is Nimsdai Purja. To achieve what he has is nothing short of miraculous. He has altered what it means to be a dedicated athlete, entirely redefining what is humanly possible.
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
Thank you!!
Making Something From Nothing: Brian Pirrip On How To Go From Idea To Launch was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
