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  1. Home
  2. Find a speaker
  3. Phil Santoro
Phil Santoro's picture

Phil Santoro

Co-Founder
Wilbur Labs
Country or state 
United States (Florida)
Available to 
North America
City 
Miami
Fee 
Ask for pricing
Languages 
English
Volunteer
Yes
Timezone 
America/New_York

Personal Details

Bio

Phil Santoro is an entrepreneur and a co-founder of the startup studio Wilbur Labs.

Phil Santoro co-founded Wilbur Labs in 2016 alongside David Kolodny. Based in Miami, Florida, Wilbur Labs turns bold ideas into market-leading companies, having built and invested in over 21 ventures since its inception. Notable portfolio companies include VacationRenter, which became the fastest-growing travel startup to reach $1 billion in gross bookings, and the mobile pet grooming platform Barkbus.

Prior to founding Wilbur Labs, Phil served as a Growth Strategist at Google (2013–2016) in Mountain View, California. His entrepreneurial career began early, he founded FreeForums.org while still in high school. Phil scaled the hosting platform to 125 million monthly pageviews before leading it to a strategic acquisition by the publicly traded company CrowdGather Inc. in 2010.

Phil is a frequent speaker on entrepreneurship and a contributing author for Inc. Magazine and Fast Company. He holds a BBA in Finance from the University of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner College of Business. Phil currently lives in Miami, Florida, with his wife, Rubi, and their son.

Current position (1)

Co-Founder

Wilbur Labs

Degrees (1)
BBA, Finance
University of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner College of Business
2008 to 2013

Presentations

Presentations (4)
Why Startups Fail

Many entrepreneurs and investors opine on this question, but few offer data-driven answers. Phil will share clear learnings on this subject, using internal research and learnings from Wilbur Labs.

One great way to raise the odds of startup success is to learn from current and past entrepreneurs. Towards that end, Wilbur Labs surveyed more than 150 startup founders about the pressures that threatened their businesses. We also pulled records of 350 startup failures from CB Insights and Autopsy then analyzed them for patterns. The resulting insights can help founders improve their odds of success this year and beyond.

How To Turn An Idea Into A Business

A blueprint for turning an idea into a business will increase success as a founder. As a startup studio, we have systemized how to start a business, and detail the steps we use to build companies.

Lessons From Building Several Companies Every Year

Phil has learned a lot from building and investing in 21 businesses since founding Wilbur Labs in 2016. Every day, he is working alongside founders and their teams to build and scale companies-from high-level strategy, down to the lowest levels of execution. Today, Wilbur Labs' companies are part of daily life and have helped hundreds of millions of people travel the world, find a job, order everyday essentials, and take care of their pets – generating billions of dollars in sales each year.

How to Personally Prepare to Start a Company

With smart preparation, leaving a job to start a company is not as intimidating as it may seem. In 2016, I quit my job at Google to launch Wilbur Labs, a startup studio that builds companies. I remember wanting to work at Google since I was 14, so leaving after three years felt risky at the time. Before long, others in my network were reaching out to me saying: I’m thinking about leaving my job to start a new business. How did you do it?

  • All (2)
  • Videos
  • Photos (1)
  • Press information (1)
This speaker hasn't uploaded any videos yet.
Phil Santoro Speaking at Google
Phil Santoro Speaking at Google
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Phil Santoro - Home

Books & Articles (12)

Why Startups Fail | Lessons From 150 Founders
News What's the Invisible Impact of AI? The Winners Aren't Who You Think
What the Wright Brothers Can Teach You About Building a Company
How to Manage a Startup Through Recessions and Downturns
Preparing to Start a Company
News Next Generation Leadership: Three Core Principles to Follow
Why Startups Can Compete — and Win—Against Incumbents
How to Get Startup Ideas
How to Turn an Idea Into a Business
How to Guard Your Time More Effectively
What Is a Startup Studio? An Inside Look at Wilbur Labs
Why We’re Sponsoring the Xoogler.co Community

Expertise (8)

Business
Technology
Media & Marketing
Business and Startups Entrepreneurship Tech Startups Business Building Startup Studios

Awards & certifications (1)

Fastest time to eat a jam doughnut with no hands
Guinness World Records
2014
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