Doctors Marlow Hernandez and Richard Aguilar founded Cano Health in 2009 to provide quality end-to-end health care for underserved Latino communities in Florida. In 2016, their company generated $1.6M in revenue, but they had an idea to roll-up other smaller medical practices in their footprint to leverage economies of scale. With the help of my friend Sol Trujillo they began accelerating their acquisition strategy. Beyond providing strategic support, Sol helped the doctors raise capital, but while he knew there would be a huge appetite from the investor community, Sol wanted the money to come from other Latino business leaders in order to keep the growing company Latino-controlled. In 2018, the company was recognized as the fastest growing healthcare company in America. This past week, Cano Health went public and was valued at $4.4 Billion.
The public offering generated enormous wealth for the company’s founders and the Latino investors who helped them grow. More importantly, the company has an amazing track record for providing world-class healthcare and now has the capital to scale nationwide. Doctors Hernandez and Aguilar were showcased at L’ATTITUDE in both 2019 and 2020. They had a story we wanted people to know about. Sol and I are confident that Cano Health will be the first of many Latino-founded companies that will be showcased at L’ATTITUDE and who receive early funding from our L’ATTITUDE VC Fund or from our investor partners who participate in Match-Up. Cano Health should serve as an inspiration. Dr. Hernandez is a 35-year-old Cuban immigrant, a brilliant man, with a heart of gold. I consider him a family friend. So, while some people are still obsessing about an election that has long been decided, other people are getting shit done. Companies are being built and fortunes are being made. This is our time. Start thinking bigger!
Almost everyone, including Democrats, were expecting last Tuesday’s midterm election results to heavily favor Republicans. Many predicted a “red wave” where they would pick up 50-60 seats in the House and 3-4 in the Senate. Joe Rogan said the red wave that is coming will be like the elevator doors opening in the horror film The Shining.
When we invited Gary Vaynerchuk to NAHREP at L’ATTITUDE in 2021, I was mostly relying on input from others. Several members loved his content, but the little I saw online left me underwhelmed. However, I thoroughly enjoyed his presentation at our event, particularly his comments about toxic employees, which he says to dump with impunity.
Selling during a downturn required a more strategic approach, but the opportunities for growth and expansion are available to the savviest of companies. Here are some of the best ideas I’ve read about.
A farmer and his son had a beloved stallion who helped the family earn a living. One day, the horse ran away and their neighbors said “Your horse ran away, what terrible luck!”. The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.” A few days later the horse returned home, leading a few wild mares back to the farm as well. The neighbors shouted out “Your horse has returned and brought several horses home with him. What great luck!” and the farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.”