When Dale Smith was a teenager, he had no specific aptitude for any one subject. However, he knew how to work hard and he knew he wanted to do something entrepreneurial.

“That’s a strength that I’m proud of. Hard work has carried me through not only my schooling and university, but also into my career,” he says.

“Also, my father gave me some good advice early on. He said, get a good grounding in numbers and that will set you up.”

Smith did just that, completing a degree in accounting and finance at Unitec Institute of Technology in Auckland, as well as a graduate diploma of chartered accounting at Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand. He then worked for five years in an accounting firm.
“I enjoyed the customer engagement side and was good at bringing clients into the firm, but I knew pretty early on compliance work and financial statements were not for me,” he says.

Going solo

At the age of 25, Smith took the plunge and purchased his first company, DTC, a transport and logistics business.

 “I had to put everything on the line for that but ended up selling it profitably in 2007, just before the GFC,” he says. “That was good luck rather than good management I think, but, in hindsight, great timing.”

After waiting out the recession, Smith purchased his second business — one that put him on the road to becoming a tech entrepreneur.

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