Thibaut Souyris

We’re crossing borders to welcome our first out of country entrepreneur to share his story with Hustle Amsterdam. Thibaut Souyris is the founder of SalesLabs, a B2B sales training, consulting, and coaching company based in Berlin. 

Read on to learn how Thibaut got started and his top tips for entrepreneurs.   

Hustle Amsterdam (HA): Where are you from? And what brings you to Berlin? 

Thibaut Souyris (TS): I was born in Geneva, but both my parents are French. I moved to Berlin from Montréal in 2015, when I was 24. At the time, I came because I wanted to discover a new city and start my career in B2B sales. I never left and Berlin is now my home.

HA: Tell me about your business? What is your mission? 

TS: I run a sales training, coaching, and consulting company. My mission is to help B2B sales teams start more conversations and close deals faster.

HA: How are you handling our new “normal” due to the coronavirus outbreak? What impact has it had on your business? How has the transition to working remotely been for you? Are you being strict with a routine or taking it day-by-day?

TS: The situation in which we currently are has brought its load of challenges. Being the only employee of my business, it has been very easy to start working from home. The main impact was on my customers who froze decisions. As I was delivering onsite sales training, I have moved everything to Zoom and it’s working quite well. I have a good routine at home, I never thought it would work this well. I wake up around 7 AM, do 10 minutes of meditation, shower, and start working. In general, I manage to work until 13:00, then lunch and I work until 18:00, before going for a run. This new normal we live in has actually been a great opportunity to focus on my business and remove all distractions.

HA: Why SalesLabs? What brought you to the B2B sales industry?

TS: I’ve chosen SalesLabs because it was the only domain ending in .io that was cheap. I decided to start selling sales training after attending one in California, a few years ago. The trainer was so good and the experience was so transformational that I decided to quit my job and start giving sales training.

HA: What is the current state of SalesLabs? Do you have six and 12-month goals for your business? 

TS: So far, things are doing great. The lockdown helped me focus on my business and I have built some workshops and training programs that work well. It’s been challenging to close deals, but as I’m selling sales training, I got a taste of my own medicine and I’ve developed useful tactics to start more conversations. On top of that, I have managed to talk to better customers (bigger deals, better potential) and I’m seeing great signs of success. I have a 12-month financial goal, but I focus on experimenting with daily goals.

HA: What kind of obstacles do you face in your company? How do you handle them?

TS: There are tons of obstacles, on a daily basis. One of the biggest is time management. I have more and more tasks to do (podcast editing, content building, selling, delivering training…) and I’m currently optimizing everything I can with automation. I’ll outsource a lot of this work when I have validated some assumptions about the business.

HA: What has been your most successful moment so far? And how do you celebrate your wins? 

TS: I’ve been pretty successful in starting conversations with key prospects and building a targeted following on LinkedIn. I’ve gone from 2,500 followers to north of 8,500 in 6 months.

I don’t really celebrate wins. Once I have accomplished something, I usually set a new goal and start working on it. I feel like waking up every morning and being able to live my dream job is a constant celebration.

HA: How have you accomplished what you have? Did you go to business school? Did you wing it? Fake it till you make it? Get really lucky? 

TS: I have a Bachelor in Business Administration, specializing in Marketing. My education is pretty traditional, but I have learned most of my skills running my own business when I was studying and now.

I have never “faked it till I make it.” I think it’s a ridiculous thing to do as people can see through this. Being open about my shortcomings has actually helped me get the right mentoring and attract great customers.

I also got lucky to meet great people and have been privileged in the way my parents educated me.

HA: How big is your team? And where are your team members located?

TS: It’s just me.

HA: Do you have a favorite motivational quote? 

TS: “We are on this planet to grow our souls by helping other people grow theirs.” - Jon Ferrara

HA: What 3 tips would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs? What do you wish you had known before you started? 

TS: 

Tip #1: Find customers before building a product or solution. It’s always best to find a problem people are willing to pay for and then build a solution that solves parts of the problem or all of it.

Tip #2: If you can’t sell your product or solution, no one will. Stop looking for a “business partner” so you can focus on building a product or designing it. You have to be able to communicate your vision and transfer your knowledge and enthusiasm for the problem you are solving.

Tip #3: Act more than you think. Just go and test ideas. Keep experimenting and your market will tell you what it will pay for.

HA: How would you describe your working style? 

TS: I’m a lonely extrovert. I love working by myself, without having to manage teams, so I can choose where I focus my time. I have a lot of conversations with different people and that’s what brings me energy and motivation. But I absolutely hate managing people. I prefer finding customers, building relationships, and expanding my knowledge.

I am also obsessed with the concept of learning and mastering a craft.

HA: When you’re not working on SalesLabs — where can we find you? 

TS: Having a great time cooking or traveling with my fiancée.

HA: How do you find work-life balance while being an entrepreneur? 

TS: I don’t. I believe in work-life integration. If you look at my typical day or week, you would have a hard time understanding if I’m working or having fun. I also love traveling to different countries to change perspectives and find inspiration.

HA: What is your passion? 

TS: Learning and perfecting new crafts. I tend to obsess over specific topics and keep practicing until other people who practice that craft recognize me as one of theirs. I’ve done that with guitar, flying airplanes, or becoming a DJ.

HA: What inspires you most about Berlin? Do you have any favorite spots to work or hangout? 

TS: I love Berlin because it feels like a place lost in time and space. The typical social pressure you get in other cities doesn’t exist here, and you feel like you belong to something bigger than you. I love how people in Berlin don’t care about other people’s look, job or anything else.

I really love spending a Friday after work at Holzmarkt. You feel lost in time when the sun is setting over there.

HA: Anything else you’d like to add? 

TS: If you want to see daily tips on sales, you can follow me on LinkedIn. I’m also the co-host of The B2B Sales Podcast, where we interview thought-leaders, experts, and top-performers in B2B sales.

Follow SalesLabs on LinkedIn here.