Top Advice from International Entrepreneurs
Thinking of starting your business in the US? See what these successful international entrepreneurs have to say about focus, encouragement, and why you should choose NYC.
PLANNING AHEAD
If there’s one thing an entrepreneur should learn early, it’s to plan ahead. Whether you are planning a small local business, or are creating an app that you expect to grow to millions of users, you should always be looking forward and planning for how you will overcome your weak spots and take advantage of your strengths.
“I think an entrepreneur should always know their strengths and weaknesses. For instance, I knew I was weak in finance, but I thought as long as I make my products expensive enough, I would never go bankrupt. Big mistake. This is a lesson I learned over the years. I wouldn’t have had to go through big hits if I had just hired the person necessary to fill my weakness in finance.” – Maribel Lieberman, MarieBelle“In New York, the costs are very high and you can burn through your capital quickly. Plan very carefully to keep your costs low. One of the things we did was when our business started growing we moved into a big office in the Flatiron district and a lot of our money went toward rent. When the recession came we had to move. So don’t spend a lot of money setting up an office in a big space. At the end of the day your clients aren’t going to be impressed by your office, they’ll be impressed by what you can deliver.” – Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit“Start early when looking for opportunities to prove yourself – internships or additional projects, for example. This is the land of opportunity, professionalism is respected, merit goes over who you are, and equality and a fair share are given to everyone.” - Amar Sawhney, Ocular Theraputix
FOLLOWING YOUR PASSION
If there’s one theme we’ve seen among the many entrepreneurs we’ve interviewed, it’s that you should make sure you love what you’re doing. This will be reflected in your product and will be especially evident to potential customers and investors. It will also keep you going when times are tough.“At the end of the day what’s going to sell is if you have the passion and you’re selling a product that you really love. It’s passion that’s gonna get you there. There are many working hours, you might not get a salary for a long time, you might be broke for many months, but perseverance is really key. You have to love what you’re doing.” – Maribel Lieberman, MarieBelle“The industry in New York, in America, and in the world is as strong as you are. I think that if you’re good at what you do and put passion in every project you’ll always have customers.” - Oscar Polanco, MadridNYC
NEVER GIVE UP – FAILURE IS A LEARNING EXPERIENCE
A mantra among New York entrepreneurs is “fail fast, fail cheap“ – there is no shame in failing if it is a learning experience and if you learn to recognize failures quickly and move on.“Mistakes are never really mistakes, except if they’re a product of neglect. Whatever mistakes I made were absolutely core to a particular lesson that, had I not made whatever error of judgment then, I would have one less tool in my belt.” - Gary Levitt, MadMimi“Believe in the system and don’t get discouraged. It doesn’t always work the first attempt – but it will in the end. It’s cliché, but the American Dream is a thing, and you can make it in America with ideas and hard work.” - Massimo Baldini, Livio Connect
START IN NYC! – IF YOU CAN MAKE IT HERE…
New York City is a melting pot of cultures and a place where people from every background and country live and interact. It is a place ripe for innovation and pursuing your dreams and in many ways, is the pulse of the US. If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.“From what I know, I think there is no more open market than in New York. Everything in this country is possible if you have something good, something with good quality, there is a very high possibility you will be successful in what you do.” - Lolo Manso, Socarrat Paella Bar“New York is the center of the world - at least once a year I repeat to myself “if you can make it there, you´ll make anywhere,” and it’s true. […] If you really want something in this city, try to push the hardest because now the “American dream” is not only for Americans.” - Oscar Polanco, MadridNYC “The best thing about living in NYC is the constant change of people and the constant opportunities offered to you; the way people dare to try, never give up, and the optimistic spirit of this city.” - Pierre Mendy, Fashion Designer“There are lots of creative people in New York, and its diversity provides lots of freshness and polychrome. To me, technology is best built in a diverse environment where perspective and horizon are constantly expanded. I imagine others are also hip to that reality and thus NYC seems like a naturally fertile city for tech.” - Gary Levitt, MadMimi