If becoming a successful entrepreneur was easy, we’d all have successful businesses and be lounging by a pool all day.
Who doesn’t want to thrive in their industry while managing your own time and being your own boss, right?
The fact is, flourishing in the business world takes much more than just money. It also takes a lot of time, patience, and most importantly, skills and know-how. Fortunately, for aspiring entrepreneurs regardless of age, there are so many experts in the field who have gone down the hard road already and are more than willing to share their knowledge and experiences that can help budding entrepreneurs.
Fred Cary and The Early Days
Fred Cary, CEO of IdeaPros, began his road to entrepreneurship when he was 22 and started his first business. Within the first ten years he went from establishing a large chain of successful restaurants, to producing some of the largest groups in the music industry, to talent management. And, virtually, on a whim, decided to become an attorney.
“All my friends had decided on careers early on, and mostly stuck with them”, recounts Fred. “Yet, for me, that model never satisfied my thirst to create – I was never happy unless I was experiencing the growth of amazing, new ideas.” Young and brave, he set off on a journey that would never end.
Turning Setbacks into Goldmines
Fred and his entrepreneurial spirit started many new businesses and, as CEO and Chairman, created many successes and learned thousands of lessons. BoxLot was pitted against eBay during its early stage. However, eBay was already six months ahead of him, and the business did not pick up as expected. He took this experience as a huge learning curve. He realized that in business when an idea does not work, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is a bad idea. You could still pivot your way to success by looking into other areas of the business.
The BoxLot company may not have flourished as an auction house, but the software that they developed helped them systemize their operation and was flush with advanced protocols perfect for the growing demands of e-commrce. A company named Infospace took notice. They offered to buy BoxLot for $120 million 18 months after it was launched. The said technology was utilized by big companies later on such as Amazon, eBay, and Yahoo.
Related reading: Somebody Beat Me To Market… Should I Still Pursue My Idea?
Seeing Holes in the Sector and Finding Solutions
Fred had the opportunity to work with what he called “crazy scientists” from the University of California. They had out of the box ideas about the Internet and how powerful it would become. The idea that the internet could be a superb vehicle for live “back hauling” of high-density sports broadcasting was developed into a revolutionary solution.. He started presenting it to different potential partners. Most prospects discounted the idea that the internet could provide a reliable solution for the urgent demands of the major broadcasters. But finally, Scientific Atlanta became a believer in Path 1. In just a year, live, high definition professional sports events were being shown in households all over America – all enabled by the technology Fred and his team had created.
Another company that Fred Cary founded with two talented Israeli engineers, exploited a major problem in the cable TV industry. His company. Imagine Communications, thought they could solve this problem. You see, high definition was finding its way into households around the world, yet cable companies were severely limited by the throughput restraints of their physical cables. Imagine Communications developed a technology that immediately QUADRUPLED that throughput, giving all the outer that the cable industry needed. It’s no wonder that the company’s products became an immediate success and, today, the company has employees in every habited continent, has close to a billion dollars in revenue, and its technology is used in delivering video content seen in 75% of households around the world, generating over $55 Billion in annual revenue for its media customers. And, during this process, Fred decided to get an international MBA from the prestigious University of Liverpool in the UK, graduating with high honors.
“Never Satisfied” Describes Him Best
Enough is enough, one would think, but Fred went on to become an investment banker where, as a managing director, his company raised over $2 Billion for their clients in just two years. And then, back to entrepreneurial ventures, when he took a small, Los Angeles finance company and quickly grew it into a Nationwide Brand. Finally, as CEO, Fred built Home Bistro into a brand that delivers fresh, fully prepared meals to homes in all 48 contiguous states. Possessed by the continuing need to create, My. Cary eventually brought in a new CEO to head the company’s growth, and set about pondering what type of business could keep him continually challenged and satisfied.
And so, IdeaPros was born.
Fred Cary and IdeaPros
With his vast experience in business and his desire to give back to a community of like-minded eccentrics, Fred created IdeaPros, the world’s first super venture partner – a company that could roll up its experienced sleeves and make certain that every entrepreneur had the chance to see his or her vision turn into a real company with a real product to sell.
I interviewed Fred in his southern California oceanside villa. We begin, while 15 of the company’s most trusted staff members are buzzing around us nonstop, asking questions, barking commands, and passionately working towards the collective dreams of somepartners. As we start, he offers this, “I really don’t need to be working this hard right now. But, with IdeaPros, I can really give back in gratitude for a wonderful professional journey. Plus, with all of our amazing partners, I’ve finally found the perfect career – one in which creation never stops and the journey never ends.” While Fred is clear in stating that the ultimate success of any partner will rest solely on that entrepreneur and the passion he or she carries within, he ends the interview with the statement, “with each project we set out to build the perfect race car. And we train you for over a year so that when we launch and you get behind the wheel, you will have everything it takes to win that race. Ultimately, it is you who decides while we’re out in the pits, offering continuing guidance. Your fuel is the passion you carry within you. If you have enough of it, you will be perfectly portioned to win that race. Are you ready to win? Then let’s go!”
And with that, he’s off.
IdeaPros is a Super Venture Partner™, guiding entrepreneurs with great ideas through the complexities and pitfalls of the startup world. Set on elevating the success rate of new innovative products and apps, their team leverages their collective experience to create demand among consumers and maximize upside potential for their partners.