Patrick Lucchese

Patrick Lucchese is a Brazilian entrepreneur originally from Porto Alegre. He was born on March 4th, 1979. Patrick has a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Master of Engineering Management and Systems Engineering, from George Washington University. Patrick is the founder and CEO of Urban Advisors – one of Brazil’s most important Initial Public Offering (IPO) consulting companies.

After Patrick finished his studies in 2005, he went back to Brazil. It was then that he was invited by Rossi to work in their new business department, however, he would soon take over the commercial department of the company, where he found his great calling.

Lucchese’s great performance in the commercial department of Rossi Construcoes would soon lead the entrepreneur to take over the role of Chief Commercial Officer for Southern Brazil. A few years later, the Porto Alegre native would achieve the role of CCO of Rossi at the national level. At the same time, he was awarded the Master Imobiliario Prize for
leading the successful sale of 1024 apartments in only two days in an event in Manaus (AM).

In 2011, Patrick Lucchese left Construtora Rossi and took over the role of CCO for Grupo Invest, where he stayed until 2013 when he became the CEO and Partner of Bozano Realty, a Real Estate Asset company. The following year, 2014, he was invited to take over the role of Southern Regional CEO for Credit Suisse. He stayed with the bank until 2016 when, at last, he saw the opportunity for a new business in Brazil: Urban Advisors, which, currently, has offices in Porto Alegre and São Paulo.

Where did the idea for Urban Advisors come from?

The idea for Urban Advisors came when I was Director of Credit Suisse —
Regional Director for the South region — and, there, I saw the need of some clients for more strategic support, for closer support within the company, to define future paths that would be more appropriate for their company, and for their goals and those of their shareholders. So, I created Urban Advisors, I founded it to be an independent “advisor”, with the objective of helping companies to develop, grow, and achieve their long-term goals, mainly focusing on the possibility of making a future IPO [Initial Public Offering] of them.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

My day starts with reading the main newspapers and how the Stock Exchanges are operating abroad. From there, I start my routine of meetings. And, normally, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays I spend traveling and visiting clients because I really like being close to them, helping them with strategic decisions.

How do you bring ideas to life?

Much of my work is to understand how my client’s company works, what they are good at, what they can improve, and what are the opportunities in their market. And then, yes, create a business plan together with the client to take advantage of these opportunities. Another point where we use creativity a lot is in how to introduce a company to the financial market — often in a very unusual and not obvious way, but in which we can show how the company works and how it stands out from its competitors.

What’s one trend that excites you?

I am very excited about this new trend that companies have to generate cash, they have to be successful. I’ve always believed that. And I am very happy that today, the preference for companies with this profile has become a market trend. Cash is King.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

I think that the use of WhatsApp in a productive way, for work, came to bring a lot of agility. But, I believe that my system of working “in loco” with clients and being with them in the operation, gives a lot of agility, and a lot of productivity. A job that would take weeks to do with email exchanges, and Zoom meetings, is easily solved in a face-to-face working day with everyone involved.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Focus more on the documents, read the contracts to the end, and read the small lines.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

As an entrepreneur, it is essential to be connected with the market, to maintain an active “network” with relevant people in different segments to always stay up to date with all trends and news.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

I grew my business by 100% customer focus and 100% customer advocacy. When you work focusing on the client to achieve their goals, you will grow along with them and they will refer you to other clients.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

Diversifying into segments you don’t know, having to trust people you haven’t known for a long time, and also don’t know the profile, which can bring risks — and this has happened to me. The important thing is to understand the loss and turn the page forward.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

In the world of the internet, in the world of influencers, I believe that there is a lack of credible curation for various topics. A platform that brings curation of a specific niche, bringing people with credibility to be part of this curation, I believe it would be a successful business.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

Undoubtedly, in the purchase of a book. Knowledge is people’s greatest fuel and investing in reading — because today, there’s a lot of free stuff, but there’s also a lot of paid stuff — is the best investment you can make.

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?

Without a doubt, for me, WhatsApp has changed my productivity — it has greatly increased my productivity, generating instant agility for decision-making in groups and individually.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

“Atomic Habits” by James Clear. Undoubtedly, it is a read that will help a lot of people.

What is your favorite quote?

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” – Wayne Gretzky