How To Hustle Your Way Onto The Pitch
Dan Hershberg's Story
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Watch Dan’s pitch on YouTube or listen to the full episode Amateur Golf Society: Venture Capital vs. Private Equity
The day was Cinco de Mayo.
Josh and I chose to celebrate in the most random place: The Villages, Florida.
photo credit: thevillages.com
As we drove to the town square where thousands of retirees would converge for an evening of mariachis and margaritas, I checked Instagram DMs for @thepitchshow. And that’s how I met Dan Hershberg, the world's greatest hustler.
Dan Hershberg, founder of Amateur Golf Society
Applications had closed the week prior, but that didn’t deter Dan. He pitched anyway.
Dan was building Amateur Golf Society (AGS) - a platform to play tournament-style golf on a flexible schedule.
His short pitch was interesting - even more so as I stood dead center in the Land of Golf.
I was still thinking about it the next morning as I sipped my coffee overlooking the golf course. I told Dan to send us his deck, and I approved him for a first round interview.
But Dan didn’t make it past the first round before he got denied. There were concerns that AGS would not be a venture-scale business.
Hustlers never stop hustlin’.
Dan replied to his rejection email with another persuasive pitch for his company and himself.
It's nice to hear that the team deems our floor as a healthy business, but I believe they're not fully taking into account the lean nature of the model, or the direct line to likely acquisition partners allowing for a solid multiple at exit.
I wrote to the team… I feel like I need to talk to this guy.
I got on a call with Dan that day, and he sold me.
There is no doubt in my mind that Dan actually closes 85% of golf courses.
He closed The Pitch despite applications being closed and a rejection email.
Jillian said it best… “You could be selling me toilet brushes and I’d invest in it.”
But… hustle isn’t always enough.
You also need good ‘ol fashioned business savvy. And sometimes not having that piece could result in unnecessary hardship. How do you become a savvy founder? Experience.
For example… if Dan had known that a PE firm holding 3 of his 5 board seats would be such a red flag to new investors, he may not have set his company up that way. He may have negotiated differently at the beginning.
Dan put it this way.
Some of that is naiveté from an entrepreneurial standpoint. I've always been more of a hustler or a scrappy guy. I don't have a business background. I didn't go to business school. So I've learned everything by doing… Maybe it only hurts me in the sense that I can't raise from VCs who believe that I don't own enough [of the business].
So how do you become business savvy without going through the school of hard knocks?
You could listen to The Pitch. 😉
Josh Muccio, Dan Hershberg, Lisa Muccio
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