How to meet a billionaire for the price of a coffee · Buy, Build, Sell ™ Businesses

How to meet a billionaire for the price of a coffee

When I visit a city I generally lookup three interesting people I’d like to meet and invite them for a meeting. In the last 12 months here are some interesting meetings I’ve had :

- Melbourne : CFO of an ASX listed company; leading corporate M&A lawyer; Principal of a large accounting firm for SMEs

- Sydney : Lawyer specialising in helping investors live and work in Sydney (investor visas)

- Geneva : Head of Family Office relationships for Europe for a top ten global bank

- Venice : Leading investor in SMEs

- Bangkok : Ex board director of one of the biggest banks in the UK

- Manchester : former Dragon , Dragons Den investor in SMEs

- Denver : Head of M&A for a Fortune 500 company

- Dubai : a Billionaire

So how do I meet them ?

- If I already know them I’ll just invite them for a coffee

- If I do not know them firstly I’ll ask someone I do know to make an introduction. If I don’t know anyone that can introduce me I’ll reach out directly.

If I’m reaching out directly then generally I will send a brief message usually via LinkedIn or email saying when I’m in the area, I’d love to buy them a coffee and give them a “reason” why the meeting may be useful for them and an introduction to me.

If I have a spare few hours I’ll also let my followers on social media know I’m in the area and happy to meet entrepreneurs and investors for a coffee. If I ever get a situation were I have more people wanting to meet than I have time for sometimes I’ll arrange a group networking event or workshop. I ended up filling a boardroom meeting room at Heathrow airport hotel a few years ago with 18 investors. So many deals came from the back of that workshop.

Here is what I said to the Billionaire :

I’ll be in Dubai from 5–10 January and would love to connect. By way of intro — I’m a global entrepreneur, investor, and bestselling author, with a focus on acquisitions and scaling companies internationally.

I noticed your recent acquisitions and thought it may be worthwhile to meet — I’m currently working on a few deals in the same space that could be of real interest to you.

If your schedule allows, I’d be delighted to buy you a quick coffee and share some insights and explore potential synergies while I’m in town.

How did I meet the Dragons Den Investor ?

My mutual contact sent this :

I’d like to introduce you to Paul a global entrepreneur, investor, and bestselling author. He has deep experience in acquisitions and scaling businesses internationally, and is currently working on several deals in sectors aligned with your recent investments.

Paul will be in Manchester from 11-15 February and thought it would be valuable to connect. I believe you’ll find the discussion worthwhile given the overlap in interests.

I always respect the time of the person I’m meeting so typically it’s less than 30 minutes and I always make sure I take something of value to them without an expectation of something in return. For example with the Sydney immigration lawyer I took him an introduction of a US based investor who wanted to emigrate to Australia and was willing to invest to get an investment visa. This was someone I’d known from my dealings in the US . They have since gone on to do business.

I also try and do something to make the meeting memorable - such as offering an insight into something specific they are doing that they may not have heard before or a personalised gift relevant to their interests. For example I knew someone I was meeting loved aviation and was learning to fly to get his pilots license. I gave him a copy of a book written by Mark Vanhoenacker a British Airways pilot.

Skyfaring: A Journey with a Pilot – beautifully captures the poetic side of flight from the cockpit’s perspective.

I wrote in the cover :

“As you take to the skies, I thought you’d enjoy this timeless perspective from someone who lived it. Wishing you clear skies and bold adventures ahead.”

I want then to remember me.

What did I get from some of these meetings :

Apart from meeting some very interesting people, learning from their experiences, listening to words of wisdom here are some tangible results :

Business

- Multiple potential SME acquisitions

- Several worthy introductions to other people

- A joint venture on an AI project

- An invite onto a 100 ft motor yacht and met a load of other investors and entrepreneurs

Not business related but all the same :

- A recommendation to the best Japanese restaurant I’ve ever been to in London

- A free “lift” on a private jet

So next time you are visiting a city, why not invite three interesting people for a coffee and see if you can find some deals.