Successful Startup 101: September 2014 Successful Startup 101: September 2014 | Page 33

9 Lessons from a 10-Time Startup Failure
By Eric T. Wagner

“

Nine out of ten businesses fail; so I came up with a foolproof plan — create ten
businesses.”— Robert Kiyosaki

Well spoken by Kiyosaki.
But what’s it like to live through 10 failed startups
and still come out with a 3 million dollar company?
Meet Kurt Theobald, Co-Founder and CEO of Classy
Llama.
Yes — Theobald started 10 businesses over the
span of 5 years. Each one a failed mess. But herein
lies the beauty from ashes — he nailed it on his
11th try.
Now ranked at #454 on Inc’s Top 500 Fastest

Growing Companies in the U.S. for 2013,
Theobald’s latest creation (with the help of cofounder Erik Hansen a nd a team of 23) is on target
to reach $3 million in revenue this year.
As luck would have it, Theobald and I were able
to sit down for a 60 minute rapid-fire chat where I
did everything I could to extract the secrets of his
success.
Pull up a chair and take notes, because Theobald
reveals 9 valuable lessons you can take to the bank
today, which I now gift to you: