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Founder & CEO at Kingpin | Bringing Simplicity and Scale to Wholesale | Empowering Distributors - the Kingpins of Emerging Markets
I was dead nervous. And the investor’s first words stunned me, “What’s your favourite childhood memory?” Me: “F**k, what?” I remember thinking “I better crack this” – because this wasn’t just an investor pitch, there was no plan B, I had to get this right. And he walks in and throws this curveball. I told him. The next hour was a blur –– Amir Farha and I didn’t talk business at all; instead, we talked about me and my childhood. Before I knew it, an hour had passed. Me: “Our hour’s over. You probably need to leave.” Amir: “No I have time. Now tell me about Kingpin, how’s the business doing?” Me: “Do you want the truth or do you want me to respond in the way a founder would to a VC?” Amir: “The truth.” I told him everything. And he grilled me; the questions were tough, deep, and intricate. But by the end, we trusted each other. He then got up, gave me a high five, leaned in for a hug, and said: “I’ll be your lead investor. We’ll discuss the valuation terms later. But I’m backing you.” All I could think now was, “I trust this guy completely.” Since then, we’ve built layers upon layers of trust on top of that first meeting – back then, Kingpin was just a dream, today, we have onboarded 200+ brands, and 4000 buyers across 75 countries…. and we’re just getting started. There’s a long way to go still. So much more to do. But through the years, the ups and downs, the one constant has been our relationship. And it all started with that initial conversation. That’s all it takes sometimes…. to build a strong partnership. For two people to lead with trust: me, a scrappy but imperfect 20-something-year-old with nothing to lose. Him, to see beyond just the numbers, and see not who I was then. But who I could become. Thanks Amir, COTU Ventures is exactly the kind of investor every founder needs in their corner. 👊🏾