The Progressive Property Podcast Pierre-Yves Gerbeau: How I Save Failing Businesses
If you’re looking to start a business or simply discover how to grow your existing venture today’s guest has some important insights from the former manager of the Millenium dome, Pierre-Yves. Kevin and Pierre-Yves discuss in detail the things you need to do and the traits you need to have for you to succeed in your business. You need to know your product, finances and the business model inside out and they go on to share with you the principles you need to learn to make your business profitable.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Does playing professional sports helps you in the transition to business? It helps daily. Managing pressure, manager of stress, manager of success, manager of failure, how you reinvent yourself, how you inspire people in crisis. Management of being able to handle and strive under pressure is quite crucial in the property business.
- If you ever want to be successful in business, look at the product and say, "Can I reinvent this product? Can I reposition it?" If it's yes, you do it.
- Then look at the finances, business model. Can I again raise equity, raise debt, can I reinvent the business model, improve the profitability of the business? If yes, then do it and you will be successful.
- And then last but not least, people, who are the people managing the business? Can I inspire them to do differently as a kind of followers with our credit management style? If it's a yes, then go ahead and do the business because you will succeed.
- The principle of finance, the principle of good accounting, the principle of making sure you have the skills to do it and surrounding yourself with the right people, it's the same for a small business or major corporation. Do not be shaken by people who are handling multi-million businesses because they are using the same principles you are using in your small business. Keep focused and following those principles and one day you will be like them.
- When you're in trouble, if you don't bring stamina, energy and positive attitude, you're going to struggle and having a very strong sense of humour because you're going to have dark days, you're going to have days you want to give up and if you have a good laughs at days, you're going to be alright.
- Your best asset is the people in the business and the most important people, the frontline staff, the guys who are serving the food, who are cleaning the floor, if they’re not fitting an integral part in business, you're going to fail.
- A good entrepreneur is a matchbox. And the matches come in scratch and then shine, and then they go away somewhere else. I think that the responsibility to entrepreneur is not only legacy and building replacement, but it's also allowing others to be able to shine and to develop, and then goes somewhere else and find themselves in other places, being CEO’s, Chairman position and they're going to help you and proudly invest in your business saying that this is the guy that allowed me to be here.
- The golden rule in any business. If the business plan or the business model is not right and the people are not right, just don’t get involved.
- For you to succeed in business, you need to be very adaptable and be reactive because preferences are changing regularly as the generations change. The role of a good leader is to be able to predict, to be able to anticipate.
- Advice to people who are starting a business, small is beautiful, it's not about getting big, is again, it's being successful on your own, and then few if you want to grow, make sure you surround yourself with the right people and it's all about going big, step by step and make sure you got around you people who are going to support you, embrace you and drive this thing forward with you and take them with you for a long time.
- It is crucial for anybody starting a business to find one or two mentors. Somebody you can trust, somebody who believes in you, somebody who embraces you, somebody, that kick your ass when it's needed for you to grow.
BEST MOMENTS
- “You’re as good as your last one.”
- “Principles are the same for a small business or major corporation.”
- "If you're going to carry responsibilities, and you're going to be the captain of the team, you got to lead by example, it's not doing what I say not what I do, it doesn't work that way.”
- “Property is not about buying houses, the property is about people.”
- “As a property owner, if you’re not able to attract the right attitude towards the entire network of your tenants or your business partner, you're just going to fail. “
- “The more I practice, the luckier I get.”
- “Key values, loyalty, honesty, ethics, that's all we ask from people.”
- “When you are at the helm of something big, you got all the fair-weather friends that come out.”
- “Entrepreneurs or leaders are never on the job, they’re on a mission.”
- “It’s fine to have an ego because you need that confidence because if you're shaky, people won't follow you.”
VALUABLE RESOURCES
ABOUT THE GUEST
The charismatic Frenchman, Pierre-Yves Gerbeau certainly has a highly successful CV and the ability to bring a little sparkle to any boardroom, with an approach which made him a mini-celebrity during his time in charge of the Millennium Dome, now better known as the O2 Arena, with the tabloid press nicknaming him 'The Gerbil'. He was also a hockey player for about eight years.
ABOUT THE HOST
Kevin McDonnell is a Speaker, Author, Mentor & Professional Property Investor. He is an expert when it comes to creative property investment strategies. His book No Money Down: Property Invest talks about how to control and cash flow other people’s property to create financial freedom.
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