1. David Soskin
1.1 The Interviewer
1.2 Question from audience
1.3 Ex CEO Cheap Flights
2. The most distinguished British Internet entrepreneur
2.1 Past
2.1.1 CEO International Priceline.com
2.1.1.1 24 billion
2.1.2 Chairman toptable.co.uk
2.1.3 CEO and co-founder Active Hotels
2.2 Current
2.2.1 Chairman Reevoo
2.2.2 Chairman Green Traveller
2.2.3 Director Albion Ventures
2.2.4 Chairman i2o water
3. What before?
3.1 Engineer at BOC
3.2 MBA at INSEAD
3.3 Nearly started an Olive business
4. How did you enter the Internet market?
4.1 Via Travel
4.2 Chose a bust business model
5. Raising money?
5.1 Internally generated
5.2 Minimised use of cash
5.3 But then
5.3.1 Business Angel
5.3.2 And many others
6. Business Model?
6.1 Ran bookings for 760 hotels
6.1.1 Most without Internet access to start with
6.2 Alcatel deal
6.2.1 (Slow) Modem in every hotel
6.3 Sole Internet booking system
6.4 But no one buying via Internet
6.5 But we were top of the search results
6.6 Discovered need to dominate sectors
6.6.1 Blackpool
7. Big space for digital entrepreneurs but UK don’t do as well as US
7.1 The US guys were terrifying
7.2 But stretched the truth
7.3 Better at entrepreneurial attitude
7.4 They use the same language
8. Business Vision?
8.1 Fun
8.2 Ever changing mission
9. MBA result?
9.1 Saw how a whole business worked
9.2 Provided common language with venture capitalists
9.3 Realisation of global opportunity
10. Getting customers?
10.1 Find via Internet
10.2 Book appointments
10.3 Show how we were ranked
10.4 Show credibility
10.5 Recruited ex chairman ex largest hotel booking company
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11. Breaking the chains?
11.1 4 years for Hilton
11.2 Conservative
11.3 Worked up the ladder
11.4 Small
11.4.1 Medium
11.4.1.1 Large
12. VCs Involvement?
12.1 At key points
12.2 Hands off day to day
13. Guts v Analysis?
13.1 Guts
13.1.1 Try it
13.1.2 Get results
13.2 Analyse
13.2.1 Then optimise
13.2.2 Detailed adjustments
13.2.3 Measure
13.2.4 Kill quickly
13.3 What do you do now?
13.3.1 Learn from customers
14. Dilution?
14.1 Not my expertise
15. Testing 1st customer?
15.1 Take a risk
15.1.1 Promote to
15.1.1.1 Suppliers
15.1.1.2 Customers
15.1.2 With incomplete demos
15.2 Kept coding in house
15.2.1 Much better communication
15.2.2 Easy to manage change
16. Value of Business Plan?
16.1 It attracted money
16.2 But the model changed quickly
17. How did you get those valuations on exit?
17.1 Market leader premium
17.2 It’s what buyer is prepared to pay
17.3 Investment bankers
17.3.1 Process knowledge
17.3.2 Well connected
17.4 Accountants
18. International growth?
18.1 First target – France
18.2 All French employees
18.3 3rd year ahead of track
18.4 We should of sent our manager in at beginning
19. Difference between Top Table and Active?
19.1 Active
19.1.1 Not strong on brand
19.1.2 More functional
19.2 Top Table
19.2.1 Brand message
19.2.2 Customer related
20. Biggest challenge?
20.1 Running out of cash
20.2 Funding rounds most stressful
20.3 Untitled
20.4 Yellow Pages
20.4.1 Terminated contract
20.4.2 Contracts do not have guaranteed duration
21. Priceline was a step back in to large business. How was that?
21.1 Sarbanes Oxley shakes
21.2 Did not know everyone
22. What next?
22.1 Getting back to Exec role
22.2 See saw of entrepreneurship
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