I spent time with a smart founder this week. He’s started a few businesses that failed, which I knew about. During this conversation, he shared something I wasn’t aware of. He created a social event that he hosted annually for several years. It was focused on getting people from all walks of life to enjoy time together on a lake. What started as a small gathering with a few people turned into an annual event with hundreds of attendees and major sponsors. It was a profitable event the founder organized from thousands of miles away while working a full-time job at one of the largest public tech companies. Some of the learnings from this event led to the tech start-up he’s building now.

Listening to the event’s origin story, I concluded that this founder has a knack for understanding what people want (even if they can’t articulate it) and creating it. He’s a combination of customer focused and action oriented. Much of the event’s success was due to his marketing savvy. He created marketing campaigns that spoke to the customer’s desire. Word spread quickly: the campaigns were highly effective at acquiring event attendees for minimal cost.

This founder is hipster and hustler in one. I’m excited for what he’s building next and can’t wait to see how he uses his hipster–hustler skills to turn this new company into a massive success.