3 X GM's hired but only 1 exit: How I got this wrong | Dominic Sutton

Dom Sutton hired three general managers trying to step out of the business he built, and only one of those chapters ended in the exit he wanted. This is one of the more honest conversations you'll hear about the founder-to-owner transition, because Dom doesn't hide from what went wrong. He talks about the difference between delegating and abdicating, why he now believes you should hire someone into a growth role before handing them the GM title, and how a lack of the right metrics meant a profitable month could quietly slide into a loss before he ever saw it coming.

The backstory is just as compelling. Dom started Pumpt with his last paycheck, describing himself at the time as 60% desperate dad and 40% entrepreneur, cold calling from a tiny room next to the toilet at a mate's office while his two young boys slept on a mattress beside his bed in a flatshare. He built it into an advertising business putting 70 million items into New Zealand letterboxes a year. Then came the toy business he bought on a lick-of-paint story, which turned out to be a dog: a million dollars of dead stock, vendor financed at full cost, that lost him a dollar a minute for two years.

That disaster is where this episode turns from cautionary tale to something more useful. The inventory nightmare Dom lived through became Stocktrum, the forecasting software he now sells in 26 countries. He shares how he raised $1.2 million with Icehouse Ventures as a cornerstone, why he walked away from selling Pumpt when buyers refused to respect what he'd built, and how the eventual internal sale to his third GM finally got him out. Essential listening for any founder learning to let go.

Seeby Woodhouse: A $24m exit in my 20's!

Seeby Woodhouse, a pioneering entrepreneur in New Zealand's internet space, built Orcon from the ground up, starting at just 19 years old. In this episode, he shares how he scaled the company, navigated near-bankruptcy, and sold it in a multimillion-dollar exit before turning 30. He reflects on the lessons from that deal, the fortune he left on the table, and his journey through investments, photography, and a return to telecommunications with Voyager. A candid conversation about risk, resilience, and the highs and lows of life after a big exit.

Rudi Bublitz: How we went from kitchen table to $100m+ in <10 years!

What does it take to scale a company from two people to 400 and secure an £87M exit? 🎙️
In this episode of Two Commas, Rudi Bublitz reveals the key inflexion points that drove his company’s success, the art of training talent over hiring experience, and the critical role of timing in making the perfect exit.
From bold cultural moves to strategic decisions, Rudi shares lessons every founder scaling towards their big win needs to hear.

Marisa Fong: A double multiple by big thinking and playing hard to get!

What’s the secret to turning a small recruitment company into a national powerhouse, leading to a multimillion-dollar exit?

In this episode of Two Commas, I chat with Marisa Fong, a trailblazing entrepreneur who scaled her business from a part-time receptionist setup to a thriving enterprise acquired by a major player.

Marisa shares her unfiltered insights on crafting a scalable business culture, winning government contracts against the odds, and the lessons learned from navigating partnerships and leadership. This episode is packed with wisdom for founders ready to think big and achieve game-changing exits.