This Entrepreneur Raised $150 Million To Transform The Workplace Experience Chase Garbarino has built, sold, and invested in startups since he was in fifth grade. Now he’s taking on the world’s largest asset class. On the Dealmakers Show Garbarino talked about flexing his entrepreneurial talents in school, selling companies, how investors think about funding startups, office culture, how to manage your board, and the future of smart cities. Entrepreneurial DNA Chase Garbarino was born in Connecticut. He had the great fortune to be born into an entrepreneurial family, and get to witness his father’s entrepreneurial exploits from a young age. His dad who had immigrated from Italy created a variety of businesses over the years. That included everything from importing fruit, to running local stores, vending machines, healthcare, and more. He even got into venture capital well before it was as it is today. One of those companies, a furniture business, ended up going public. Though their one manufacturer went bust in the savings and loan crisis. Through these years Chase was able to see all the ups and downs, how to start things from scratch, how to deal with investors, and more. Garbarino told the Dealmakers audience that he was never a big fan of school. Though he always loved selling things and making money. By the fifth grade he would have his mom take him to buy the toys that were the latest rage, and then resell them to the other kids at school. When he got into computer classes he figured out how to create doctors’ notes and sell them to other students. Fortunately, his mother was able to redirect his energy and entrepreneurial spirit into other things before he got into too much trouble. Although he went on to study economics in college, he was still focused on business ventures. In university this took the form of embracing user generated content, and publishing a college news site, with hundreds of students participating. They ran ads, and sold products. They…
