Dave Zilko
Entrepreneur and author
What is it like to take a small salsa company, founded in the back of a bankrupt restaurant just outside Detroit, and grow it into the #1 brand in the country? What is it like to sell your salsa company to a Fortune 500 company for almost a quarter of a billion dollars? Dave Zilko shares his personal and informative account of his rags-to-riches entrepreneurial journey. He is the former partner at Garden Fresh Gourmet and the author of Irrational Persistence. With both humor and humility, Dave describes his story that leaves audiences inspired, invigorated and entertained. His story is living proof that, despite indications to the contrary, the American Dream is indeed alive and well, and most of all, attainable.
Irrational Persistence
What’s is like to take a bankrupt startup and eventually sell it to a Fortune 500 Company for almost a quarter billion dollars? And more importantly, what lessons can be conveyed from such an experience that will help you live the life you’ve imagined for yourself?
In “Irrational Persistence” Dave Zilko guides his audience through an actual “Only in America” story that details how he and his partner, starting with literally “less than nothing,” launched a fresh salsa company from the back of a tiny restaurant just outside, of all places, Detroit. Despite incredible odds they eventually built the premier deli supply company in the United States that the Campbell’s Soup Company recently purchased for $231 million.
Presented in an authentic and often humorous manner, “Irrational Persistence” both inspires and informs. It delivers practical tools that can be used immediately to foster entrepreneurial thinking, create value and deliver bottom-line results. You’ll learn:
- The importance of, and courage required, to act entrepreneurially
- How to search, and find, the Holy Grail of Capitalism
- The value of never compromising your standards
- A counterintuitive approach to sales, one in which you never sell anything
- A unique, holistic approach to strategically building your company
“We loved having Dave Zilco as our speaker for our Annual Meeting. He went above and beyond to meet our needs.”
