CEO: How Trading Prepared Me for Entrepreneurship

One former trader is making a business out of table tennis, after opening an indoor sports arena for the game.

In this edition of Conference Room, Killerspin CEO Robert Blackwell tells FBN’s Jeff Flock he was drawn to table tennis because of its positive associations.

“If you ask most people what they think about table tennis, they’ll tell you it reminds them of good times with their family and friends,” says Blackwell.

It’s also a more economical way to get together with people – especially compared to other group sports like golf, says Blackwell.

“We started this sport to support our technology company as a hospitality sport. We were pretty small and couldn’t afford golf … We were focused on creating events where we could entertain customers and also help other people entertain their customer,” says Blackwell.

While Blackwell is optimistic about Killerspin’s future, he says his background as an equity options trader has prepared him for the ups and downs of entrepreneurship.

“Being a trader was, I think, really great experience. You have to be super focused, you have to pay attention to details, you can’t get too emotional when things are going well and you can’t get too despondent when you’re going through tough times,” says Blackwell.