California Fruit Wine Links our Article

Thanks to Brian Haghighi '09 for posting a link to our article on the top of his thriving company's website. Check it out on the top of CaliforniaFruitWine.com.

Colgate Entrenpreneurs: Andy Greenfield '74 reflects on building a $500 million company and his run-in with the mafia

Greenfield (above) sported a 1.6 GPA his first two years
at Colgate and few believed he was
capable of building a $500 million company.

This was originally published in the Colgate Maroon-News.


"Courage is not defined by those who fought and did not fall, but by those who fought, fell and rose again." It's the type of line you might expect to find in a Kung Fu movie, but when uber-successful serial entrepreneur Andy Green­field '74 imparts this type of wis­dom, he does it with the utmost sincerity and with 40 years of expe­rience starting and running his own businesses. You listen.

One of his businesses was Greenfield Online, the world's lead­ing provider of online survey data. It was eventually sold to Microsoft for $486 million in 2008. Another was iGain.com, a web marketing company focused on helping e-businesses increase customer loy­alty. Yet another was Greenfield Consulting Group, which he built into North America's leading quali­tative marketing research firm be­fore it was sold to Millward Brown, one of the world's largest marketing firms. But Greenfield's path to be­coming the quintessential serial en­trepreneur began with failure, and an impressive failure at that.

"As an entrepreneur you will fail," Greenfield said. "It's not a question of if, but when."

In 1971, Greenfield had fin­ished his sophomore year at Col­gate when he realized that he was not ready for college.

"Let's just say, I took a leave of absence because of my impressive 1.6 GPA," Greenfield smiles. "I was ready for the social dimen­sion of college, but not the academic dimension."

When he returned home, Greenfield start­ed a small tennis court lighting business. In four months, Greenfield had turned a profit and his business was prospering.

Greenfield said, "That was my first lesson in business. Competitive ad­vantage did not have to be built on a product innova­tion, but can be built on a simple pricing advantage."

Despite the success of his business, Greenfield felt intellectually unful­filled. After a few months skiing in Colorado, he re­turned to Colgate to major in philosophy.

Sufficiently motivated, Greenfield finished his Colgate degree with straight A's before heading to Brown for a Ph.D. program in philosophy. He wanted to be a Philosophy pro­fessor but in his time at Brown, Greenfield says the job market for philosophy professors had disap­peared, especially for someone who had never taught before.

But Greenfield has no regrets be­cause philosophy prepared him well for the business world.

"Philosophy and liberal arts in general doesn't teach you what to think, but how to think," he said. "It teaches you to reason, formulate a position and make things happen."

After settling for an entry level job in advertising, Greenfield's en­trepreneurial stirrings were getting the best of him. His first major ven­ture was Essex Limousines Compa­ny, which he started with his friend, Peter Hausburg, in New York City in 1981. Just two years later, he was forced to close his business, which had $250,000 of debt. In its first fourteen months, Essex Limousines was seeing some success. Greenfield and Hausburg were building a com­pany with steadily growing revenue.

"Our market assessment indicat­ed that there was a large gap between the needs and wants of limousine customers, and the quality of service being provided."

But the trouble came in ways that could not be part of a business plan. One Fri­day night, Greenfield dis­covered that one of his lim­ousines had all its windows smashed in. Each Friday night for the next month, another limo would be out of commission because of a crowbar attack. "Clearly, someone was trying to send us a message."

Then New York Dis­trict Attorney, Robert Morgenthau, and a team of detectives determined that the string of incidents was an extortion attempt by a rather unpleasant branch of a New York City crime family.

"During the investiga­tion period, I was sleep­ing maybe an hour a night, getting escorted back and forth from my apartment to our office by detec­tives." Greenfield said. "That type of situation can only end in two ways: you either get into bed with bad guys or you can say ‘no mas.' I said no more."

Greenfield unloaded the com­pany on Pat Testa, who two years later was "gunned down in a fusil­lade of 9mm bullets," Greenfield said. Testa was the leading enforcer for the Luchese crime family. "I can laugh about it now, but back then it was ugly."

"When my business closed, I was in terrible shape financially and emotionally," Greenfield said. "We had failed. We had been forced out by the mafia. I was horribly in debt. I was in a world of hurt."

He escaped to Vermont for several months – humbled and $250,000 in debt – hoping to regain his composure. Greenfield explains, "I rebuilt myself emotionally and re­captured my drive and passion." He enthusiastically adds, "Passion is the fuel for action. That's all you need."

He emerged from his mafia nightmare and Vermont hiatus with plenty of drive and passion. In late 1983, the same year Greenfield was forced to close his limousine busi­ness, he started Greenfield Consult­ing Group, which he built into the largest qualitative marketing firm in North America.

"Being an entrepreneur is some­thing that someone simply is. It's an organic expression of who you are. It's in your blood." Greenfield pauses and adds, "Building some­thing from nothing. That's what it's all about."

This is the first part of a two part piece. Next week, read how Greenfield built and sold three companies in 10 years. The Colgate Entrepreneur is a new column that profiles Colgate alumni who have taken the road less traveled and started their own busi­nesses. If you know an innovator or entrepreneur you would like to nomi­nate, e-mail hraymond@colgate.edu. 

Life After Facebook: Forbes Profiles Peter Thiel

Check out Forbes cover story this week. Thiel is one of favorite entrepreneurs who is often overshadowed by well-known giants like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Although its a lengthy article, it is worth reading. 


He was founder and CEO of Paypal which he sold to Ebay for $1.5 billion.  He also was the first major investor in Facebook, giving $500,000 to the unproven social network in exchange for a seat on the board of the directors and 3% stake now worth $1.5 billion (his lucky number I guess). While his most recent venture capital firm has struggled lately, his other firm invested early in YouTube, Linkedin, Yelp, Kiva Microloans and Tesla Motors.

His new goal is to "take civilization to the next level" by investing in some wacky but fascinating projects. For example, Thiel has donated $900,000 so far to the Seasteading Institute which aims to build floating city-states that can compete with governments of the world.  In the article, Thiel says "Seasteading is the entrepreneurial way to fix government, by competing with governments rather than complaining." 


For further reading on Thiel, I recommend PayPal Wars, a quick and interesting book about Thiel's sturggles in building PayPal.  

10 Blogs Entrepreneurs Need to be Reading

Found a good list of 10 Blogs Entrepreneurs Need to be Reading compiled by "Grasslands Blog."

I especially like "Toilet Paper Entrepreneur" and "Duct Tape Marketing."

Club Sparks Interest in Entrepreneurship

Great article by Taylor Flemming on the front page of this week's Maroon-News.  Flemming talked with Entrepreneurs' Club founder Bharadwaj Obdula Reddy and discusses the growing impact of the fledgling Entrepreneurs' club. I've been to a few meetings and, thanks in part to the club, there is a lot of exciting entrepreneurial activity on this campus for the first time since I've been here.  

The article is copied below and here is the link. We hope to get Reddy writing for the blog soon. 

Colgate's liberal arts program generates well-rounded students with backgrounds in diverse dis­ciplines. Yet, at times, this broad focus can take away from im­portant specialization in certain areas of study or even rewarding career paths.

Specifically, Junior Bharad­waj Obula Reddy noticed that there was "nothing at Colgate for people who wanted to start their own business."

For Reddy, however, these were not just observations. He saw the op­portunity to create something and, during the last semester, Reddy or­ganized and began Colgate first-ever Entrepreneurs' Club.

Perhaps the most significant turning point for the club was when Reddy enlisted "Investing" Program Coordinator at the Cen­ter for Career Services Anne Clauss to take part in his creation. Clauss, who has a BSE from Princeton University in Aerospace Engineer­ing, an MBA from Harvard Busi­ness School and firsthand experience with entrepreneurship, appeared to be the perfect advisor.

Bharadwaj Obdula Reddy, Entrepreneurs' Club founder
 and soon-to-be contributor to the blog

Clauss even connected Reddy to a summer internship at the Colgate-associated Chenango Capital Firm. Through spending last summer at the venture firm, Reddy found him­self surrounded by entrepreneurs. He learned the ropes and, by summer's end, was determined to bring en­trepreneurship to Colgate's campus. After putting Reddy in touch with alumni, who continue to be outlets for potential funding for the club, and overseeing weekly meetings of the club, Clauss has continued to fill the role of advisor.

The first meeting of the Entre­preneurs' Club caught major atten­tion on the Campus distributions list. Over 85 students attended and watched Reddy's plans for the club pour out over a powerpoint presen­tation. The idea was to give on-cam­pus attention to business creation and ownership and to "provide a platform for aspiring entrepreneurs" by forming firsthand opportunities.

The opportunities of which Reddy spoke quickly became active endeav­ors. One such project, Alternative Food Service, was a business venture thought up and performed by the group. The idea was to buy food on credit from restaurants and even stu­dent chefs, sell to students and turn a profit. The event occurred three times in October and raised $2000 to go into an Entrepreneurs' Club account.

As meetings continued, the club became an outlet for career guidance and connections within and beyond Colgate; students who worked with the club were interested in access to alumni and networking opportuni­ties. Thus, the mission of the group was expanded to include the club's newfound meaning as an entrepre­neur-specific network. In fact, in the past semester alone, five accom­plished alumni entrepreneurs gave presentations to the club.

With the first project underway, the Entrepreneurs' Club soon discov­ered its need for organization. During the last semester, a board was elected, which consisted of a president, vice president, treasurer, secretary and outreach and inreach coordinators.

This semester, the Entrepreneurs' Club hopes to grow in three specific areas: workshops on topics such as web building and franchising; contin­ued entrepreneurial ventures and more networking opportunities. Some proj­ects that have already been discussed include "Good 'Gate Food" which is a continuation of the alternative ser­vice; "To Your Door" which would be a campus-wide food delivery service; "Youniversity" which is a student-teaching-student initiative and "Ham­iltonian," a service creating classified ads for the village and campus.

The group meets weekly and is searching for new members.

"From the multi-billion dollar Facebook to the home-baked Insom­nia Cookies, someone had an idea while in college and they had access to resources that helped them turn the idea into a successful venture." Reddy said. "The Entrepreneurs' Club is that resource for you at Colgate."

Make your own path

Stumbled upon this cool photo.

Colgate Entrepreneurship Panel - Robert Johnson '94, Jay Brennan '81, John Nozel '81,

Check out this Entrepreneurship web panel that was broadcast for Colgate alumni couple weeks ago. Robert Johnson '94, Jay Brennan '81 and John Nozell '81 answer questions about entrepreneurship while discussing their experience in business and venture capital.

Here are some of the topics they discuss:
- What is entrepreneurship?
- Should you start a business right after college?
- How do you raise capital for a new business?
- Do you recommend graduate school?
- Can you teach entrepreneurship?

I had the privilege of meeting these three when they visited campus.  They were fun smart guys with a passion for promoting entrepreneurship in the Colgate community. They're also in the process of starting a Colgate-centric venture capital firm. Keep following this blog for much more on their ventures.

Brian Haghighi '09 starts the California Fruit Wine Company

This was originally published in the Colgate Maroon-News. Here is the link to the Maroon-News website.
http://www.maroon-news.com/news/colgate-entrepreneurs-brian-haghighi-09-starts-his-own-fruit-winery-1.1921066


In the summer of 2009, just months after graduating Colgate, a still jobless Brian Haghighi at­tended a dinner party at the home of some family friends. As a hobby, his friends, Devin and Bobbi Lee Sission were making fruit wine.

 "I had never heard of fruit wine and I wasn't much of a wine drinker in college." Hagihidi said.

The Sissions excitingly poured their dinner guests their most re­cent creation, a plum wine. With Haghighi's first sip, the seed for his San Diego-based California Fruit Wine Company had been planted.

"When I first drank it, I said to myself ‘This is pretty good. Why have I never heard of it? There could be real potential here.'" Hagihidi said.

Haghighi had graduated from Colgate a few months earlier without applying for a single job.

"I didn't apply for jobs out of college, partially because the market was so bad and partially because my dad had an invention that he wanted to make a business out of so I felt obligated to support him," Hagihidi said.

His 75-year old father had invented a hair brush with two handles that would pull apart in the middle in order to put a design in your hair part. It didn't take long for the younger Haghighi to have his doubts.

"It took a couple months for common sense to kick in and real­ize this was a bad idea." Haghighi explained, "My dad is an old guy so he's probably not the best per­son to be coming up with female hair products."

Haghighi abandoned the idea of selling his father's hair brush but he still wanted to do some­thing entrepreneurial. He found it in fruit wine.

In September 2009, Haghighi returned to Colgate to visit friends and, at the same time, research the fruit wine market. Both Case Library and the world wide web had little to offer, but Haghighi was encouraged that there were so many wine firms owned and run by three people or less.

"I thought, ‘That must mean that wine is a viable business. There are so many of them that they must be making good mon­ey,'" Haghighi said, "a year and a half into it, I've learned that most wine businesses are habitually in the red."

Haghighi was still broke, job­less and had zero credit history when he started looking for capi­tal. He soon partnered with his friends Devin and Bob Lee Sis­sion and his brothers Alan and David to create the California Fruit Wine Company.

"Between the five of us, we started with $12,500 of capital which is nothing for starting a business," Hagihidi said.

Haghighi worked as a free-lance website designer on the side and moved home to save money.

"Living at home is not great for attracting girls but these are the sacrifices you have to make when starting your own company," Hagihidi said.

During the next year, the team, led by Brian and David, built Cali­forniafruitwine.com, found a place for their winery, purchased wine-making equipment, continued to perfect their recipes for larger batches and endured the long per­mitting process. In order to stay un­der budget, Haghighi says he used Craigslist.com, an online classifieds community, to find industrial space and purchase cheap second-hand winery equipment.

"When starting any business you have to be resourceful and there are always going to be un­foreseen setbacks but after nearly eighteen months we finally had movable and legal product," Hagihidi said.

In November 2010, the Cal­ifornia Fruit Wine Company received their last Federal and State licences making them the first Southern California winery dedicated to making fruit wine.

Haghighi, a Political Science major, credits Colgate for teaching him to run a business.

"I learned more about running a business and the real world from my extracurricular activities than any class," Hagihidi said.

Haghighi was involved in the Christian Fellowship, Men at Colgate and Brother's Society. He recommends taking Principles of Accounting and Intro to Eco­nomics to get a business founda­tion but more importantly, he said: "Get involved. Start a club because extracurricular activities teach you to operate in a team with a shared mission." He added, "Colgate is not just an academic institution, it's a life preparation institution so take advantage of those non-academic aspects."

Haghighi's company now of­fers four varieties of fruit wine for under $15 a bottle: peach, plum, cherry and strawberry. He contin­ues to expand his fledgling busi­ness, soon offering wine tastings and parties.

"I am wired for entrepreneur­ship for a couple reasons. One, I don't deal well with authority. Two, I am always more productive and happy when I do something that originates with me. I couldn't see myself doing much else."

Welcome to Creative Destruction

Early 20th century economist and political scientist Joseph Schum­peter asserted that the source of eco­nomic growth in capitalism is radical innovation that revolutionizes the economic structure from within, de­stroying the old structure while creat­ing a new one. He called this process of transformation and innovation "creative destruction." For Schum­peter, individuals drive an economy and the "wild spirit" of entrepreneurs is the force that shapes it.

The 'Gate Entrepreneurship Blog will profile some of these wild spirits and creative destroy­ers. The entrepreneurial pulse of Colgate is often overlooked, but Hamilton has been the breeding ground for countless companies including well known game-changers such as Trivial Pursuit, Ben & Jerry's and Vitamin Water. Each week The Maroon-News will sit down with a Colgate alumnus who has taken the road less traveled to start a business and lead the way in creative destruction. Some of the alumni profiled are navigating their first venture and others will have built and sold multiple companies but, regardless of their age or experi­ence, they all share a passion for innovation and entrepreneurship.

Besides covering the Colgate entrepreneurial community, members of the new Colgate Entrepreneurship Club will bring you events, articles, tools and videos for those who share their interest in entrepreneurship.