We spoke with Konstantin Mehl. The likeable serial entrepreneur dispels the entrenched rumor that his startup Foodora was sold two years ago.. But: At the beginning of June, the exit happened! We can be excited about what the future holds, because Konstantin revealed that he wants to invest in Munich startups.
“We didn’t sell to Rocket”
Konstantin, you have already implemented several business ideas. After founding a flower startup, you founded Foodora, and after selling it to Rocket, you Kaia Health founded. Do you think there is an "entrepreneurial gene"?
First of all: we didn't sell to Rocket, but to Lieferheld, at the beginning of June. We know that, according to the internet, we already exited in 2014. We find that exciting, but it doesn't reflect reality 😉
The entrepreneurial gene
As for the actual question: I like building products and working with friends. So, one of the few alternatives is to start a startup. My brother Bernhard is also building a company. kisi, in New York. That would again speak for the entrepreneurial gene.
Many people have ideas, but not everyone can successfully implement them. What does a founder need to bring a vision to life?
I think there are essentially three points:
- Relentless resourcefulness (I stole that from Paul Graham). There are simply so many hurdles that you don't know about beforehand or underestimate. If you don't just keep going when these hurdles arise, or even turn the situation into something positive, you can quickly lose interest. You're often disappointed when, for example, marketing or product hypotheses are wrong ten times in a row. If you're not willing to try ten more hypotheses, you'll quickly fail.
- Complementary co-founders: I'm not a techie, so for that reason, and also because it's more fun, I always found companies with Manuel. On the other hand, Peter Thiel also says that the most common reason a startup fails is incompetence on the sales front. I take care of that. If you don't have one of the two pieces of the puzzle on the founding team, things get difficult. I've seen it many times.
Correct personnel selection as a success factor
- A vision that attracts very smart, pragmatic and reliable peopleNo matter how hard you work as a founder, it will never be enough. I spend a large portion of my time finding people who are committed to our mission and who have a key skill that the team doesn't yet have. The importance of this is often underestimated. People hire people who are likeable, or they spend little time on hiring in general. I have to remind myself of this frequently so we don't neglect our recruitment process.
Your latest venture, the Kaia Health App, helps with back pain. Konstantin, you suffered from back pain yourself. How important is it to have your own "pain" when thinking about a startup?
This has been the basic requirement for me so far. When I've experienced a problem myself, I'm a perfect, critical first user and know the pain points inside out. This speeds up product development.
Risk? Normal state!
What key learnings did you gain from your previous startups? What are you doing differently now—and better?
Now I'm very comfortable with the fact that risk seems completely normal to me. When I was first starting a business, it sometimes worried me. Now it's the norm.
It's also exciting to see how different companies can be, especially when it comes to operations. There's a huge difference between Foodora and Kaia. Foodora was very operations- and capital-intensive. Kaia is, to a large extent, a digital product. This, of course, has great advantages and was a proactive decision on our part.
Experienced entrepreneurs almost always report that they've become significantly better at hiring. You simply get a much better sense of which people are just sitting around doing their time and which people truly want to make a difference and are willing to invest the appropriate amount of time and energy.
You founded foodora with Manuel Thurner. To what extent do you agree with the statement "Never change a winning team"?
100%!
“Touching people with a good product”
Was the exit from Foodora planned from the beginning? And what's it like when you build a startup and then sell your company—how did you deal with having only limited or no influence at all?
We're truly about building a great product and touching as many people as possible with it. With Foodora, we've done that perfectly. A great product and an incredible global presence. We never would have imagined it. Other entrepreneurs value power, influence, and money. This type of entrepreneur is described in a fascinating book as a 'king.' The other type is described as 'rich.'
Book tip for first-time founders
I highly recommend the book 'Founders Dilemmas' to every entrepreneur. A Harvard professor writes about things you often can't ask anyone, especially as a first-time founder.
What is your vision for the future of your current startup Kaia Health?
We want to develop a painkiller for back pain that's as widely used as ibuprofen. So, ibuprofen only as an app. 😉
In the long term, we want to build a digital pharmaceutical company with multiple apps for various chronic diseases. With our 'AI Lab for Chronic Diseases,' we are researching which technologies can improve digital therapies. This will play a dominant role at Kaia for a long time to come.
Munich startup market extremely underestimated
And what else do you want to achieve? What are your future plans?
That was already enough plans, wasn't it? Now that I've left Foodora, I'm considering investing in a few startups from Munich because I'm convinced that the Munich startup market is extremely underrated and I know a lot of exciting people here.
Wanted: pre-seed and seed ventures with great founders
So: Who is looking for money and needs a relaxed investor?
Last but not least: You studied in New York and worked in Berlin with Foodora. What draws you back to Munich? And why do you think Munich is a good startup location?
In Munich, we have two of the best universities in the world AND, at the same time, a very pleasant culture. A developer from TU Munich can do just as much as one from MIT. We both attended CDTM, and at both Foodora and Kaia, we recruit almost exclusively CDTM students and alumni. This is our Munich family!
Generally, you can fly quickly anywhere in the world from Munich, and you have a good geographical position in both the US and Asia. When you're flying around a lot, you're also happy to be able to relax in a beer garden in Munich. After all, the Samwers live on Lake Starnberg, not in New York. 😉
Thank you for the interview, Konstantin. We look forward to hearing about your future investments in Munich startups!
