Czech Entrepreneur's $20M Windfall Sparks Reflection and Reevaluation

Petr Janošík, the founder of Brno-based Smartlook, sold his company to Cisco in 2023 for an undisclosed sum in billions of Czech crowns. However, the real challenge was not the deal itself but figuring out what to do with a sudden windfall of tens of millions of dollars.

Smartlook developed software that helps companies understand user interactions on their websites and apps. Janošík's goal was to prove that a company from the Czech Republic could be just as successful as an American one.

The decision to sell Smartlook came when the company was preparing for a new investment round of around $20 million and planning to expand into the US market. The exact value of the Cisco deal was not disclosed, but the money arrived in installments, forcing Janošík to rethink his personal finances.

Janošík initially considered launching his own venture fund focused on SaaS projects but soon realized that it would require constant attention and dropped the idea. He then turned to a multi-family office model, partnering with Family Office Partners, which advised him to do nothing for a year after the exit.