Preview Mode Links will not work in preview mode

The Startup Life


Mar 19, 2021

In this episode J. Byrne Murphy (Founder & Chairman of DigiPlex) about his book, the personal challenges of building a business abroad, and why context matters building in a foreign land. 

Purchase Le Deal: How a Young American, in Business, in Love, and in Over His Head, Kick-Started a Multibillion-Dollar Industry in Europe

 

**More On Byrne**

Byrne is an entrepreneur with more than thirty years of experience in international development and investment. Three times he brought US concepts to Europe and grew start-up companies into $1+ billion global enterprises.

After developing high-end mixed-use projects in Washington, DC in the 1980s and ‘90s, Byrne co-founded BAA-McArthurGlen, the company that imported the designer outlet concept to the UK and Europe. After opening the company’s Paris office in 1992, he led its expansion across Europe, resulting in more than $1 billion in sales.

He then developed private residence clubs, starting with restoring Palazzo Tornabuoni, a 15th century Medici palazzo in Florence, Italy. The Palazzo underwent a $250 million re-development and is now managed by The Four Seasons. In 2010, the project won Urban Land Institute’s prestigious Award of Excellence for EMEA.

Today Byrne co-owns DigiPlex, the leader in sustainable data centers in the Nordics, with Bill Conway, the Co-founder of The Carlyle Group. Byrne also owns and runs Kitebrook Partners, a real estate development and investment company.

A Cum Laude graduate of Harvard College, Byrne received his MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.

After living in Europe for thirteen years, Byrne now resides in the Washington, DC area with his wife Pamela and four daughters.
 

Hectic is an all-in-one business management software built specifically for freelancers who are just getting started or looking to take their freelance business to the next level. Sign up at gethecticapp.com/thestartuplife

Follow The Startup Life On Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or LinkedIn

Follow the StartupBlog or buy some gear from our website

Subscribe to our Patreon to listen to ad free episodes, exclusive content, and digital products that we are beginning to offer. 

Follow us on Clubhouse to interact with the show when we create content there. 

Check out other great podcasts from The Binge Podcast Network.

Written by: Dominic Lawson 

Executive Producers: Dominic Lawson and Kenda Lawson

Music Credits:

**Show Theme**

 Behind Closed Doors - Otis McDonald 

**Break Theme**

Cielo - Huma-Huma