People do business with people they like, and Matt Johnson is one of the most likable people I have met in the last 10 years. He is a cocktail of curiosity, energy, reflectiveness, enthusiasm, and both left and right brains that come together in a genuinely compelling person. And his company is a reflection of him and his co-founder, Bibi - a phenomenally designed, user centric, cost effective solution for a pervasive problem, not only in water, but in real estate and all real assets as well. LAIIER have already secured leak detection contracts with two of the biggest companies in the world and have a good shot at becoming a new standard in building resilience. Their story is a fascinating study in entrepreneurship, and they're in a very interesting position indeed. Please enjoy my conversation with Matt Johnson.

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For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fundamental-molecule/id1714287205

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Matt shares his entrepreneurial journey from Colorado to London, emphasizing the cultural insights and strategic growth tactics he's adopted. He and Tom discuss LAIIER's innovative solutions for preventing damage in real estate and industrial settings, the challenges of negotiating with large entities, and the significance of understanding customer needs for business success. Their discussion here today takes a deep dive into the complexities of water technology that encapsulates the essence of overcoming adversity with a positive mindset, underscoring the critical role of humor and resilience in the entrepreneurial journey.

0:00 Start

0:49 Introduction

2:15 Matt’s journey to LAIIER

6:47 What LAIIER produces

8:36 Advantages and disadvantages of Matt’s training

11:28 The discovery process

14:47 Working with big name entities

18:15 The importance of sequencing

21:55 Alleviating some of the sales pressure on him

24:43 A fundamental founder sales problem

29:09 Replicating founder level sales quality in a sales organization

33:11 Negotiation lessons and resources

36:51 Cultural differences between Britain and the US

39:56 Reflections on becoming an entrepreneur

42:00 Matt’s single piece of advice for water entrepreneurs

Links:

Burnt Island Ventures: https://www.burntislandventures.com/

LAIIER: https://www.laiier.io/

Quotes:

“So it is really like different strips of tape that you can stick on, around, under pieces of equipment that do very precise measurement of different liquids on the surface, and then report that remotely.

"Culturally, it's now aspirational to be entrepreneurial in the UK."

"It's crucial to be methodical about consistency in communication during customer discovery."

"Great businesses are built through facilitating a connection, often reassembling existing things in a new context."

"The advantage of the founder is industry knowledge, charm, and willingness to take risks, but the advantage of a sales team is negotiation and execution."

“If you can maintain a sense of humor when it gets really tough, you're more likely to maintain the creative energy required to not just survive it, but to thrive in it.”