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Why Most CEOs Get Stuck Between $10M and $50M | And What Actually Gets You Out
What does it take to buy and scale a company in a foreign country, with your spouse, right before a global pandemic?
In this episode of CEOs Unscripted, host Jane Gentry sits down with Corbin Butcher, Managing Director of Beire Exhibitions in the Czech Republic, for a raw, unfiltered conversation about entrepreneurship through acquisition, cross-cultural leadership, and what it really means to evolve from a 1.0 to a 3.0 company.
Corbin shares how a military career, a "mediocre" stint in investment banking, and a Kellogg MBA led him and his wife Evona to buy a Czech exhibition company, armed with a shoebox full of business cards as their CRM, and turn it into a thriving, scaling business with 80 employees and 2.5x revenue growth.
Whether you're leading a $10M or $100M business, this episode is packed with hard-won lessons on scaling systems, building partnerships, managing culture across borders, and knowing when to evolve as a leader before your company outgrows you.
Episode Timestamps
00:00 — Cold open: No backup plan, just make it work
01:07 — Welcome to CEOs Unscripted: Jane's intro & what the show is about
02:46 — Meet Corbin Butcher: From Chicago to the Czech Republic
04:18 — Corbin's background: Army officer, Iraq tours, Kellogg MBA
06:06 — Why investment banking wasn't the fit — and what was
07:07 — The search fund model: Buying a business with your spouse
08:18 — The challenge of being a European company trying to break into the US market
10:51 — How to vet a strategic partner (and why face-to-face is non-negotiable)
13:44 — The qualities that make or break a partnership under pressure
15:08 — American work ethic vs. European work culture: The real clash
17:08 — How Corbin built a high-performance culture within European labor laws
20:31 — The pros and cons of being an American CEO leading a European company
21:50 — Running a business with your spouse: The investor who called it "marital risk"
24:38 — How Corbin and Evona divide roles and break ties
25:36 — First-time CEO with no safety net: How do you learn on the fly?
28:59 — The shock of COVID hitting an 85% leveraged company in year two
31:40 — Biere 1.0 vs. 2.0 vs. 3.0: The lifecycle framework every CEO needs to understand
33:13 — Sales in 1.0: A shoebox of business cards as a "CRM"
36:53 — Operations in 1.0: When everything depends on one person
38:18 — Why promoting your best operator to supervisor is often a mistake
41:30 — What changed in 2.0: Systems, structure, and elevating internal talent
43:05 — The power of vision: Can every employee in your company articulate where you're going?
46:01 — How Corbin had to change as a leader from 1.0 to 2.0
49:46 — How strategic planning evolves at each stage of company growth
52:54 — Honest reflection: Some parts of Bira are still in 1.0 — and that's okay
54:01 — Rapid fire: Who's the smartest person in your phone?
55:36 — Best book of the last 12 months: The Wright Brothers by David McCullough
57:09 — What Corbin does when he feels stuck
58:27 — Closing thoughts and where to find more
Key Topics Covered
About CEOs Unscripted
Hosted by Jane Gentry, CEO advisor, Harvard Business School Entrepreneurial MBA mentor, and consultant to mid-market leaders for over 20 years, CEOs Unscripted is a bi-weekly podcast featuring unfiltered conversations with founders and executives who've been where you are. No fluff. No jargon. Just real talk that drives real growth.
CEOs Unscripted, Jane Gentry, Corbin Butcher, Bira Exhibitions, entrepreneurship through acquisition, search fund, mid-market CEO, scaling a business, business growth podcast, CEO podcast, leadership podcast, military to entrepreneur, Kellogg MBA, Czech Republic business, cross-cultural leadership, international business, how to scale a company, company lifecycle, business systems, founder-dependent business, how to buy a business, ETA entrepreneur, CEO advice, business strategy, scaling up, small business growth, mid-market growth, CEO leadership tips, business podcast 2026, entrepreneurship podcast
View all episodes
By Jane GentryWhat does it take to buy and scale a company in a foreign country, with your spouse, right before a global pandemic?
In this episode of CEOs Unscripted, host Jane Gentry sits down with Corbin Butcher, Managing Director of Beire Exhibitions in the Czech Republic, for a raw, unfiltered conversation about entrepreneurship through acquisition, cross-cultural leadership, and what it really means to evolve from a 1.0 to a 3.0 company.
Corbin shares how a military career, a "mediocre" stint in investment banking, and a Kellogg MBA led him and his wife Evona to buy a Czech exhibition company, armed with a shoebox full of business cards as their CRM, and turn it into a thriving, scaling business with 80 employees and 2.5x revenue growth.
Whether you're leading a $10M or $100M business, this episode is packed with hard-won lessons on scaling systems, building partnerships, managing culture across borders, and knowing when to evolve as a leader before your company outgrows you.
Episode Timestamps
00:00 — Cold open: No backup plan, just make it work
01:07 — Welcome to CEOs Unscripted: Jane's intro & what the show is about
02:46 — Meet Corbin Butcher: From Chicago to the Czech Republic
04:18 — Corbin's background: Army officer, Iraq tours, Kellogg MBA
06:06 — Why investment banking wasn't the fit — and what was
07:07 — The search fund model: Buying a business with your spouse
08:18 — The challenge of being a European company trying to break into the US market
10:51 — How to vet a strategic partner (and why face-to-face is non-negotiable)
13:44 — The qualities that make or break a partnership under pressure
15:08 — American work ethic vs. European work culture: The real clash
17:08 — How Corbin built a high-performance culture within European labor laws
20:31 — The pros and cons of being an American CEO leading a European company
21:50 — Running a business with your spouse: The investor who called it "marital risk"
24:38 — How Corbin and Evona divide roles and break ties
25:36 — First-time CEO with no safety net: How do you learn on the fly?
28:59 — The shock of COVID hitting an 85% leveraged company in year two
31:40 — Biere 1.0 vs. 2.0 vs. 3.0: The lifecycle framework every CEO needs to understand
33:13 — Sales in 1.0: A shoebox of business cards as a "CRM"
36:53 — Operations in 1.0: When everything depends on one person
38:18 — Why promoting your best operator to supervisor is often a mistake
41:30 — What changed in 2.0: Systems, structure, and elevating internal talent
43:05 — The power of vision: Can every employee in your company articulate where you're going?
46:01 — How Corbin had to change as a leader from 1.0 to 2.0
49:46 — How strategic planning evolves at each stage of company growth
52:54 — Honest reflection: Some parts of Bira are still in 1.0 — and that's okay
54:01 — Rapid fire: Who's the smartest person in your phone?
55:36 — Best book of the last 12 months: The Wright Brothers by David McCullough
57:09 — What Corbin does when he feels stuck
58:27 — Closing thoughts and where to find more
Key Topics Covered
About CEOs Unscripted
Hosted by Jane Gentry, CEO advisor, Harvard Business School Entrepreneurial MBA mentor, and consultant to mid-market leaders for over 20 years, CEOs Unscripted is a bi-weekly podcast featuring unfiltered conversations with founders and executives who've been where you are. No fluff. No jargon. Just real talk that drives real growth.
CEOs Unscripted, Jane Gentry, Corbin Butcher, Bira Exhibitions, entrepreneurship through acquisition, search fund, mid-market CEO, scaling a business, business growth podcast, CEO podcast, leadership podcast, military to entrepreneur, Kellogg MBA, Czech Republic business, cross-cultural leadership, international business, how to scale a company, company lifecycle, business systems, founder-dependent business, how to buy a business, ETA entrepreneur, CEO advice, business strategy, scaling up, small business growth, mid-market growth, CEO leadership tips, business podcast 2026, entrepreneurship podcast