I met Stefano on Feb 18th, 2020. It was a brief trip to Saigon where a big part of my team was located. We only spoke briefly, expecting to meet again in just a few weeks. Little did we know.
An idea was planted in my mind right away. Subconscious, without clarity or a plan yet. More of a faint recollection of a déjà vu.
Then, Covid hit like a bomb. It would be 25 months before I returned to Saigon. When I did, we finally made time to talk, properly. With the Saigon river flowing lazily beside us, we spent a couple hours trying to understand each other’s values.
One story sticks out. Stefano told me he was offered the chance to pilot a plane he was on as a passenger. He took the chance, of course. Ballsy.
I liked him already, though it was much later that I realized why this one was so important to me.
Soon after, I left the startup we both worked at. It had been years since I’d been an employee, part of my move to cozy Singapore. But ambition has a way of nagging at you. If you’ve got it in you, you can’t sit still for long. I knew I had to come back as a founder.
That same ambition poked Stefano, who also decided to move on not long after. The stars were aligning. The idea silently growing since 2020 became crystal clear. Neither of us knew what the Next Big Thing would be, but I was certain Stefano was the co-founder I needed.
Here was someone who built a team from scratch in a foreign country. A New York lawyer who didn’t settle and chose startup life instead. A guy who takes the rudder when opportunity shows up. The World’s Best Boss.
Now, after more than a year together, one thing amazes me: a person so different from me, yet so aligned. A perfect combination.
Having the right co-founder is make-or-break for an early startup. It’s like being in a boat in the open ocean with no lifeline. You live or die with that person, day by day.
We’re just getting started, but one thing I know for sure: if you’re getting into that boat, take someone like Stefano with you.