No road to entrepreneurship is the same, that’s why Pivot Capital is on a mission to talk with as many founders as possible and spotlight their different experiences, journeys, and perspectives in hopes to inform and inspire others.
Allen Amun, Co-founder of Pivot Capital recently talked with Vasa Martinez, Founder and CEO of Drink Perfy for our inaugural episode of the Pivot Spotlight Vlog.
As many do, after entering the job market Vasa had big dreams of working on Wall Street making tons of money, but quickly realized that may not work out as expected. Sharing that he had to swallow his pride, he held a series of miscellaneous jobs from sales to working for a chiropractor to eventually entering an industry he’d grow to love – as a server and eventual bartender at TGIFridays. Working two to three jobs to make ends meet he transitioned into night life learning about marketing and promoting which made him a prime candidate for an internship with a then small Quest Nutrition.
As he was just getting his footing in the food and beverage industry, launching his own agency to support clients in this space, he suffered tremendous personal loss, losing over a dozen people close to him in about a five year span. He leaned into his work as a way to deal with the trauma, which led to great success but also health issues – it was time to make a change.
Always wanting to create a beverage brand, Vasa was now on a mission to create a soda-alternative with less sugar –inspired by a nickname for his mom, Perfy was born.
Vasa shared a slew of helpful insights for any entrepreneur or person considering starting a business which you can listen to below.
Until then here are a few key takeaways:
- Identify Your Weaknesses, and Hire The Best in Those Areas: Vasa shared that he had come to realize that he had two key weaknesses going into this business: 1. Research & Development (R&D) and 2. Operations. He hired the best in both of those areas and is confident that this saved him significant time and money, even protecting him from supply chain issues that other similar companies were vulnerable to due to Covid-19.
- Don’t Do It If You Aren’t Willing to Burn the Boats: He was ready to give it his all from day one of founding Perfy, including his time, energy, and money. He sold everything he owned to invest in his vision and a solution that he was confident could better impact the health of its consumers.
- Impact will Bring Profits: Money was not and is not the driver for Vasa. After facing his own health issues, he is on a mission to bring the most delicious, healthy soda tasting product to consumers and reduce their sugar intake. Perfy has been tested and actually has the same metabolic impact as water! With a relentless dedication to making a positive health impact, he is confident that it will bring profits and is projected to do so very soon!
He has big plans for Perfy and a solid business strategy to get there, and we’re looking forward to following his success.
About Vasa Martinez, Founder and CEO Drink Perfy: Vasa is the founder & CEO of Perfy, a low sugar soda enhanced with nootropics and adaptogens. With nearly a decade of CPG experience working with and consulting for some of America’s fastest-growing companies, Vasa is a proven strategic thinker and integrated marketer whose ingenuity, passion and tenacity make him an invaluable partner for emerging and established brands. Most recently, Vasa has played a significant role as the CMO for Outer Aisle, one of fastest-growing companies in America (Inc. 500, 2020, 2021). Concurrently, Vasa has established his agency, growthbuster, as a CPG marketing powerhouse (#15 Fastest-Growing, AdWeek, 2021 / #43 Overall Inc. 500 Pacific Regionals, 2022) with successful clients like Outer Aisle, Magic Spoon, Gigantic, and more.
About Allen Amun, Cofounder of Pivot Capital: Allen Amun is a founding member of Pivot Capital LLC and is a Managing Director with the Firm. As an experienced and successful entrepreneur, Mr. Amun brings 25 years of experience in every aspect of business. He is highly experienced in business development, operations, and program/project management. He has successfully led multiple enterprise buyside & sell side acquisition integrations. He is experienced and successful at working with Fortune 20 companies in Banking, Healthcare, Telecom and Energy sectors.
Website: www.drinkperfy.com
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vasamartinez/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/search?lang=en&q=%40perfy&t=1658785351022
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drinkperfy
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/drinkperfy/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/drinkperfy