From Founder to Family Office: Lessons on Building Businesses That Last | With Terry Graunke

In this episode of the Let’s Grab Coffee Podcast, George Khalife sits down with Terry Graunke, Founder and Chairman of Erie Street Growth Partners, to unpack lessons from more than 30 years of building, leading, and investing in high-growth companies. From founding and selling his first company to taking one public and later running a private equity firm, Terry has experienced every stage of the business-building journey. Terry has led more than $1.8 billion in investments, served as Chairman, CEO, or Director of over 36 companies, and now guides Erie Street’s mission to help founders grow in a rapidly changing world. Connect with Terry:   / terrygraunke   -- Time Stamps: [0:24 - 1:14] - Intro & Erie Street overview [1:14 - 6:16] - Origin & first ventures [6:16 - 10:36] - Early CEO lessons & confidence [10:36 - 17:38] - Eagle River: pivot to web, rapid scale, IPO [17:38 - 24:00] - Curiosity engine: pattern recognition [24:00 - 26:39] - Leadership: honesty & team connection [26:39 - 36:43] - Cycles, naming “Erie Street,” why start ESGP [36:43 - 44:33] - Family office vs PE: people-first, align levers before price [44:33 - 51:51] - Legacy, philanthropy & values -- If you're enjoying these conversations, make sure to like & subscribe to continue following along! Let's connect: https://linktr.ee/khalifestyle 🎧 Listen on all audio platforms Link - https://letsgrabcoffee.com/ #PrivateEquity #Entrepreneurship #FamilyOffice #BusinessPodcast #LetsGrabCoffee #ErieStreet #TerryGraunke