MICKEY SWITZER —— A SERIAL FOUNDER WORKING WHERE BRAND, PRODUCT AND BUSINESS MEET. NEARLY TWO DECADES OF TURNING AMBITIOUS IDEAS INTO COMPANIES, PRODUCTS RANGE ZERO TO SCALE AND BRANDS. CREATING USEFUL EXPERIENCES

I’ve spent nearly two decades helping turn early ideas into things people can understand, care about and actually use.

I started out in design, but over the years I’ve ended up involved in pretty much every part of building a company: product, positioning, business models, fundraising, managing people and, more recently, building with AI and code.

I think being a generalist is probably my biggest strength. I like understanding how things affect each other and getting hands-on. AI lets me take that even further, going from an idea to a working prototype myself. Making things is getting easier. Knowing what’s worth making is still the hard part.

I’ve started a handful of companies. Today, I’m CXO at Frankly, where we’re rethinking modern insurance. I co-founded SimplyLabs and Tame, and founded Outshine, a Mac utility app, and Merchbart, which makes merch for startups and scale-ups.

Along the way, I’ve raised more than $7 million, grown SaaS businesses beyond $1.5 million in ARR and managed international teams spanning more than 30 nationalities.

I’ve also worked with local and international clients at pretty much every stage: from startups like Connie and Uniqkey, to scale-ups like Zenegy and Shikenso, and larger organisations like LEGO and Deloitte.

I also invest in founders and ideas I believe in, including Zenegy and Hybird, and work as a creative adviser to Zoe and Garni.

I’m probably most useful when the answer isn’t obvious yet. What is this company really about? What should it build? How should it make money? And how do we make people care?

Outside work, I live with my wife, Freckles, our son, Ozzy, and our dog, Whitney, in a former waterplant that we rebuilt as our home.