What David Grutman Knows About Influence That Most Founders Miss

EXPERT OPINION BY DANIEL ROBBINS, CEO AND FOUNDER OF IBH MEDIA AND HOST OF FOUNDER'S STORY

David Grutman. Illustration: Inc.; Photos: Getty Images; Adobe Stock

Before David Grutman knew Miami, he knew the celebrities who now fill his venues.

Before he owned LIV, before Komodo, Papi Steak, Gecko, and Casadonna Miami, he was a guy in the nightclub business who made it his mission to bring influential people to Miami. When they arrived, he made sure every detail of their experience was unforgettable.

“I would take people to Wynwood before all the hoopla, just a bunch of street artists,” he told me. “I’d take them on a lap around Miami Bay because when you go on a boat with somebody in Miami, it changes your outlook on the city.”

That instinct to add value before asking for anything in return became the foundation for everything he’s built. Mark Wahlberg comments on his posts, Kim Kardashian wrote the foreword to his book, and he introduced Drake and Bad Bunny. When I asked how he built those relationships, his answer was disarmingly simple.

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“It’s not about equaling out,” he said. “When you do something great for someone and you see the look on their face, that’s reward enough.”

The harder question is what value you add to someone who already has everything, and Grutman’s answer is to figure out the thing they don’t even know they want.

“What’s one thing you can add that they don’t have access to or never thought about?” he said. “Maybe it’s a person they should meet, maybe it’s a deal they should see. That needs to be your superpower: figuring out what the touching point is for every person you come in contact with.”

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