Growthink’s 2nd Quarter 2022 Newsletter

Q2 newsletter

Welcome to the Growthink 2nd Quarter 2022 Newsletter. Below we will share:

  • My observations on the current business growth and financing outlook
  • Chief Client Officer Anna Vitale’s view on notable Q1 Growthink client engagements and lessons from them for entrepreneurs and executives seeking to grow and raise capital in the coming months.

  • Head of Growthink’s London Office Antonio Barzagli and his “view from the UK” as to how companies there and globally are positioning themselves to mitigate risk and propel growth in the current macroeconomic and geopolitical environment.

  • And finally, in the spirit of the new season, to the entrepreneurs and executives among us we would like to offer a springtime gift.

To all of our success!


Jay Turo on the 2nd Quarter Growth and Financing Environment

In my dual roles as CEO of Growthink, Inc, a 20-year-old management consulting and investment banking firm, and as Managing Partner of GT Securities, Inc. a FINRA broker-dealer investment banking platform, I have a unique seat from which to observe the full spectrum of growth and financing challenges for companies across industries and stages of development.

And while the core business success factors will always endure – sound strategy, consistent execution, ethical leadership – in this unique 2022 business climate I have observed 3 commonalities separating businesses that thrive from those that falter:

1.  They are led by very resilient optimists and opportunists.

More so than at any time in most of our business lives, the past 2 years have presented new forms of obstacles – personal, professional, psychological – for us to overcome.

And I refer not just to the Pandemic, but also to a level and type of negativity in the global economic conversation that sadly seems to plumb new lows each and every day.

What all of this doom and gloom crowds out is the hard and brilliant work the best business people among us do each every day to improve their companies – product-wise, people-wise, profitability-wise…

And as they do, we all benefit.

Through economic vitality in the midst of historic disruption.

Through technological innovation.

Through jobs.

And perhaps most importantly, through inspiration itself.

To achieve these great things – these “Entrepreneurial Action Heros” channel and embody an enduring optimism and resilience and never say die attitude each and every day.

No matter how loud the din of negativity in the world at large might get.

2.  They Operate Globally.

The “ah-ha” Pandemic moment that so many executives have had over is the number of workflows that could be accomplished virtually and at a distance were once always assumed had to be done in person

This revelation has opened up so many avenues of global business possibilities – ranging from accessing human capital to raising money from investors around the world and at a distance like never before.

So while personally many of us are rightfully excited to get back to how things were before, modern work will never go back and those that “push the envelope” as to marketing, selling, and fulfilling in completely new and fully global ways will have a distinct advantage.

3.  They Find the Right Balance between exploiting new opportunities and executing upon the ones they already have.

Yes, this virtualized, global business world of ours is filled with more and varied opportunities than ever before, but it also rewards those that can just “block out the noise” and get things done.

The enduring lesson of how the best business people do both – keep their heads up and eyes open for new opportunities while effectively executing on the projects and to-dos on their plates now remains as simple and timeless as ever.

They work, work, and then work some more.

And as they are doing so right now, they are accessing, exploiting and profiting from more opportunities the world over than ever before.

Let’s all strive to be like them in Q2 2022 and beyond!


Growthink Chief Client Officer Anna Vitale on Notable 1st Quarter Client Engagements

Businesses of all types and sizes continue to seek real-world feedback and help framing decision-making through strategic engagements with firms like Growthink.

Per the SPI Research 2022 Professional Services Maturity Benchmark Report, consultancies saw business growth of 10.1% in 2021, with the majority of this growth driven by companies seeking outside help with business improvement initiatives.

Notable Growthink engagements that illustrate projects like these include:

  • InsurTech Pricing Strategy.  An Insurtech firm engaged Growthink to help better understand how to price their case management software. Through a primary market research methodology, Growthink consultants spoke with 15 decision-makers to better understand the benefits they most valued and what they would be willing to pay to achieve those benefits. The result was a thoughtful set of pricing recommendations that married what customers want (per-case pricing) with what the VC community values most (recurring revenue).

  • LogisticsTech Growth Capital. A shipping and logistics technology firm closed a Growthink Capital introduced bridge financing round in advance of a larger Series A financing. The bridge will enable the firm to access the capital markets later this year with both net profitability and a larger, more compelling book of business – both contributing to a significantly higher valuation.

  • Collections Firm Technology Transition. A 90-year-old collections agency grounded in traditional workflows engaged Growthink to envision and define a tech-forward future for the firm. Growthink is working with the company on an ongoing basis to execute upon these recommendations in Q2 and beyond.


Growthink Head of London Office Antonio Barzagli on the “View from the UK”

Just as the pandemic was becoming a fading, background concern, the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February took the spotlight. Despite socio-economic concerns, global Founders and Managers continue to be laser-focused on enterprise value maximization, whether accomplished via organic growth initiatives, via acquisition of capabilities, and/or via raising outside growth capital.

In parallel, investment firms continue to be active and keen to deploy capital. From Sure Valley (closing a £95m software fund to invest in 25 early-stage start-ups beyond London and the golden triangle for software investment opportunities) to Hoxton Ventures (who closed a £164m fund to help European startups expand to US) the examples are numerous.

A number of Growthink clients have been extremely active in the UK and Europe in the first quarter of the year, hinting at a promising second Q, including:

  • Hospitality M&A: A luxury villa rental platform focused on the Greek market received an LOI for a full buyout from one of the European leaders in premium stays utilizing Growthink-prepared materials and leveraging our expertise and credibility in ongoing LOI negotiations.

  • Dental Practice Multi-Country Expansion: A fast-growing European dental surgery group has officially started expansion into the UK, with the Growthink Capital team facilitating acquisitions via interfacing with targets and lenders.

  • Pet Food Strategic Investment: A high-growth alternative clean protein pet food and treats client was just invited to pitch Digitalis Ventures (Mars), after tracking to 1,650%(!) growth in its second year of operations.


A Springtime Gift for Your Business.

Springtime is a natural time to take stock and pride in the accomplishments of the year-to-date while developing a steely resolve to build renewed momentum toward a strong finish to the year.

For the past 20+years, Growthink has helped companies like yours grow, catalyzing success for clients including:

  • Arganteal (software deployment automation) secured $611K in growth capital.
  • DNT Express (logistics) secured $2.2M in debt funding for facility expansion.
  • Get Candidly (HRTech+FinTech) successful  $1.6M financing round.
  • Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) acquired our client manufacturing process control company Ometric.
  • MPulse (SaaS), acquired by JDM Technology Group.
  • FocusWorks (software) acquired by strategic operator.
  • Permacity, completed the world’s largest solar rooftop project and increased revenue by over 35%.
  • PayCertify (fintech), raised $30M and was recently acquired by ProfitPay.
  • ViewQwest launched in Malaysia in Q3 2016 with Indonesia next in line.

What do all of these success stories have in common?

That the entrepreneurs and executives running these great companies understood that whether you’re looking to raise capital, sell your company, expand current market share, develop new products or enter new markets, having a great outside advisor and execution partner is indispensable.

So, in the spirit of springtime between now and April 30th, we would like to give your business the gift of a complimentary consultation with one of our growth advisors to help you identify your most valuable growth initiatives to pursue in 2022 and beyond.

To accept, simply click here to arrange a day and time via our online call scheduler.

Happy April to All!

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