Charlie talks with the co-founder and CEO of Agworld, Doug Fitch. The 11-year old agtech business was sold to Vancouver-headquartered Semios earlier this year for more than A$100 million.
With his two co-founders, Doug pioneered data-driven farm management, working with agronomists and growing the business to more than 16,000 farms in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and the US.
Growing up in Perth, he always wanted to be a farmer, and got there via a stint being a mechanic then working for the German multinational Bayer. His family has a farm out in Bruce Rock, in the central wheatbelt of Western Australia.
When it comes to running a tech company, it’s a whole new language of SaaS metrics. I didn’t know what SaaS was. You have to build process into the business from day one, and it has to be repeatable, scalable, measurable processes, and then you have to be disciplined.
Doug Fitch
For more: www.agworld.com/au/ and semios.com/
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This episode of Startup West was recorded at MurdochxSpacecubed studios in beautiful downtown Perth, Western Australia, during Perth Podcast Week; produced by Startup News, edited by Carmen Yee Kai Wen and brought to you thanks to support from the New Industries Fund (JTSI), Spacecubed co-working, Curtin University, RSM Accounting and Finance, the City of Perth and Dinner Twist.
Startup West acknowledges the Whadjuk Nyoongar people, traditional owners of the lands and waters of Perth, where this podcast was recorded, and we pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
