The Profit or Pivot Podcast

From Startup to $660M Exit: The Wattpad Story | Allen Lau

Join host Matan Hazanov for an incredible discussion with Allen Lau, co-founder of Wattpad, the global storytelling platform that sold for an astounding $660M USD.

From his roots as a software engineer to scaling Wattpad to 100M users, Allen shares hard-earned lessons on finding product-market fit, navigating startup challenges, and the critical role of timing in building a powerhouse business. Now a venture capitalist at Two Small Fish Ventures, Allen reveals common mistakes founders make when raising capital, insider tips on hiring and leadership, and why he chose to build Wattpad in Canada instead of Silicon Valley.

Perfect for entrepreneurs, investors, and anyone curious about transforming an idea into a global phenomenon, this episode is packed with actionable insights and inspiring stories.

Highlights:

• How Wattpad grew from 1,000 users to 100M
• Why Canada gave Allen a competitive edge
• Debunking myths about venture capital’s value
• The “rule of three and ten” for scaling startups

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Connect with Allen

Read his blog: https://allensthoughts.com/

VC Fund: twosmallfish.com

Follow on X: @allenlau

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/notallenlau/

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ J

oin the Conversation: What’s your biggest takeaway from Allen’s journey? Share with us on X @matanhazanov or comment on YouTube! Like, subscribe, and follow The Profit or Pivot Podcast for more stories from game-changing founders.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

About Allen Lau

Allen is Co-founder and Operating Partner at Two Small Fish Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm focused on the next frontier in computing and its applications. The firm is renowned for writing the crucial ‘first cheque’ to promising startups that later became world-class companies, such as SkipTheDishes, BenchSci, Printify, Story Protocol, Ideogram, and Ada, among many others. He is also the co-founder and former CEO of Wattpad, the world’s leading social storytelling platform. Allen directed a global team to leverage AI and data to disrupt the entertainment industry. Under his leadership from 2006 to 2022, Wattpad grew into a community of 100 million users, raised US$120 million from top VCs around the world, and realized a successful exit in a transaction valued at more than US$660 million in 2021. Allen received his bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Toronto’s Electrical Engineering program. In 2020, he was inducted into the Engineering Alumni Hall of Distinction at the University of Toronto.

Why Israel is the "Startup Nation" | David Shore of OurCrowd

On October 7, 2023, Israel was brutally attacked by Hamas terrorists resulting in the worst single day massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust. With the country now at war, how does civil society cope with 10-15% of its labour force being called up to military reserve duty?

David Shore, a Partner at OurCrowd, the most active venture capital investor in Israel joins me to discuss the situation in Israel and how startups he invested in continue building and succeeding.

Israel is one of the largest startup ecosystems in the world, consistently punching above its weight given its small population and hostile neighbours. For context, in Q4 2023, VC investments in Israel were US$1.4 billion compared with Canada's ~$1.1 despite being in the middle of a war and having only 1/4 the population.

In this episode, we delve into David's journey from an equity analyst on Bay Street (the Canadian Wall Street) to venture capitalist. David has decades of experience analyzing, supporting, building and investing in startups. His insights into what is required for success is invaluable for any entrepreneur. We also discuss what Canadian entrepreneurs can learn from their Israeli peers. We address the war, learn how Israeli startups are managing, and discuss how those lessons can be applied in Canada and elsewhere.

Video version: https://youtu.be/DS-YpFb9h0M

How We Invest $800 Million on Behalf of Canada's Wealthiest Families | Neil Nisker

Neil Nisker is a legendary Canadian entrepreneur who built and sold three wealth management businesses. Now running "Our Family Office" managing $800M for Canada’s wealthiest families, Neil shares his incredible journey, from his early days as a “gopher” on the Toronto Stock Exchange to cold-calling Sir John Templeton, sparking a 35-year mentorship.

He dives into contrarian investing principles, his 75x venture capital return, and why he’s exploring VC again. Neil also discusses becoming a contrarian investor and upending our understanding of risk analysis throwing away the "Sharpe Ratio".

In this episode, Neil reveals:

• How a cold call to Sir John Templeton sparked a 35-year mentorship
• The art of contrarian investing
• His 75x venture capital win
• Why he started Our Family Office
• Key lessons for entrepreneurs and investors
• The problems and opportunities in Venture Capital today
• Book recommendations and life advice for building a successful business

Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, or startup founder, Neil’s insights on portfolio management, venture capital, building a business and investing are packed with wisdom. Don’t miss this deep dive into the mind of a financial titan!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

More About Neil Nisker

Our Family Office’s Co-Founder, Executive Chairman and CIO enjoys a well-deserved reputation as a trusted and respected figure in the Canadian financial services industry.

With 53 years of experience, Neil helped to build a few companies serving as President of Fiera Private Wealth and as the company’s Executive Vice Chairman and a member of its Board of Directors. He was also President of YMG Private Wealth, Chairman of Nisker Associates and was a driving force behind Brown Baldwin Nisker Ltd for more than 25 years before it was sold and became HSBC Securities in 1998.

Active in philanthropy, he’s acted as Co-Chair of the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto Annual Campaign, Co-Chair of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Campaign, Vice-Chair of Mount Sinai Hospital Foundation and Chair of its Investment Committee and Chair of the Jewish Foundation of Greater Toronto and Chair of its Investment Committee.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Connect with Neil:

Our Family Office Website

Personal LinkedIn

Our Family Office LinkedIn

Our Family Office Podcast

Social Media Expert: How to Effectively Use Social Media to Build Your Business

Tamar Lyons quit her "dream job" in media making $40k/year to build a social media marketing agency and is now doing over $500k in revenues in just a couple of years and growing rapidly.

By her mid 20s, Tamar was married, depressed, and living a life that she didn't want. She was not living authentically. After realizing how much money she was leaving on the table, and some tough love from her mentors, Tamar decided to quit, and rebuild her life into the life she wanted to live.

In this discussion, we discuss how Tamar built her business, her social media marketing philosophy, tips for getting started, and how she's helped her clients get hundreds of millions of organic views. If you are curious about building your social media presence, starting a business, or some inspiration about living authentically, check out this episode!

Our Revenues Went to $0 Overnight | How I Rebuilt My Startup Stronger

The stark reality for building a startup: the unexpected can happen at any moment.

Just 3 months after closing a $1M Seed round, COVID restrictions hit, resulting in a fast growing business reduced to $0 revenues. Eropa's strategic pivot with a very low cash burn while increasing the team & revenues was nothing short of a miracle.

It's a lesson in resilience and the power of quick, decisive action in times of crisis.