Meet David Hancock
from Geeks2U
David Hancock is the founder and
General Manager of Geeks2U,
Officeworks’ exciting new
acquisition. To celebrate the new
addition, we thought we’d give you
a chance to get to know him.
Caption to come
How long have you been running
Geeks2U? Just over 13 years now.
I registered the business at the end of
2005 and launched in early 2006.
What inspired you to start G2U?
It was during a family holiday to the
US with my brother, Michael. We
saw Geek Squad (subsidiary of
Best Buys). I thought it was a clever
idea and liked the geeks angle. I was
at university at the time and keen
on starting my own business and no
one was doing anything like it
in Australia.
What have you enjoyed the most
about becoming a part Officeworks?
Throughout the talks I had with
various people at Officeworks in the
lead up to the acquisition, every
team member I came across led me
to believe it was a very similar culture
to ours at Geeks and I liked that we
had a good alignment. Also, I’m a
longstanding admirer of the business
and I always thought it would be
great to align with a suitable retailer.
Furthermore, I’m excited about the
potential. We have all the ingredients
necessary to support a much
larger business and by working with
Officeworks I think we can make
that happen and also add immense
value for Officeworks’ customers
and stores.
What is your best tip for embracing
change? Realising that all
improvement comes from change
and if you’re not willing to embrace
it, you will stagnate. Not all change
ends up being for the better but you
won’t know until you try. Either way,
you will have learned something
valuable in the process.
Who inspires you? Oh, there are lots
to choose from. Jeff Bezos (Founder
Chairman, CEO, and President of
Amazon) — from a business aspect
(not so much personal). You can
learn so much from his annual
shareholder letters. The same with
Warren Buffet (Chairman and CEO
of Berkshire Hathaway), his annual
shareholder letters are excellent.
Warren’s partner, Charlie Munger
(Vice CEO of Berkshire Hathaway)
is also incredibly wise and I have
learned a lot from him. I have also
learned a lot from Jack Welch
(former CEO of GE) and his books.
What are you most passionate
about? My family. I have two young
children and my wife, Kate plus
the broader family so, my brother
Michael and our parents. We’re a
very close-knit family.
What’s the first career you dreamed
of having as a kid? Probably being
an architect. I remember being very
young (single digits) and drawing up
plans for houses.
What’s the best piece of advice
you’ve ever been given? I’ve come
across a lot of good advice over
the years but right up there would
have to be from my father who
encouraged me to have a crack
at my own business straight out of
university before I had a mortgage,
family, etc. It’s only now that I have
those things that I appreciate how
difficult it would be to do the same
thing now.
What energizes you and brings you
excitement? Learning something
new from someone I feel knows a lot
more than me on a given topic.
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