Stefano Arnhold was born in Brazil into a successful German banking family. After studying in his home country, he was recruited in 1987 by Tec Toy, a toy and electronics company based in São Paulo. Best known for producing and distributing Sega games consoles in South America, the company promoted him to CEO in 1994. His work helped establish Sega as the market leader in Brazil in much the same way that Nintendo dominated in North America.
Arnhold now chairs the Advisory Board of Conservation International in Brazil, a role that extends his more than 30 years of environmental work. He feels it’s important to develop sustainable supply chains in the Amazon rainforest and along the coast to help ensure the wellbeing of indigenous people and local farmers. If local communities can benefit from sustainable supply chains, they can tap into lucrative sources of income such as rubber.
As a keen skier in his youth, sport in general – snow sports in particular – remain close to Arnhold’s heart. He is dedicated to modernising sports governance in Brazil as well as on the world stage. Here he discusses how his entrepreneurial spirit and knowledge of wealth management are crucial for success in business, especially when leaving a legacy.
Small steps for bigger business
“I started off working in small companies,” Arnhold explains, “but I soon climbed the ladder to very large corporations. Tec Toy was hugely successful but I made mistakes along the way. The key is to learn from those mistakes so you don’t repeat them. It’s also essential to ask for advice from the right people, listen to what they have to say and then make informed decisions.”
Arnhold believes it’s especially important to ask for guidance if you’re planning to invest in a sector that you don’t know much about. “Perhaps the best piece of advice I ever received was to try not to do too much without sufficient capital,” he says. “I also feel that you should always consider the long-term implications of your actions. This is particularly true at the moment if you look at the way we’re poisoning the planet with plastics derived from fossil fuels. Manufacturers and investors are prioritising profits, but the whole planet will end up paying a heavy price.”
Arnhold believes a focus on sustainability is crucial. “For me, sustainability has two facets,” he continues. “The first is auto-sustainability, which is the sustainability of the venture itself, and the second is the social and environmental sustainability aspect. You need to find the right balance: if the project isn’t lucrative enough, it won’t be auto-sustainable; and if it’s very profitable, it might not be environmentally sustainable.”
Your values should match your business ethics
Arnhold’s company, CBKK, takes its name from the Esperanto phrase ‘Celo de Bonstato Kaj Konservado’, which means its purpose is to ensure wellbeing and conservation. CBKK is a venture-builder that develops and drives sustainable business practices with positive socio-environmental impacts. By allying entrepreneurs’ and communities’ knowledge and beliefs, Arnhold aims to tap into ideas that transform production and consumption.
“It’s vital that your investments and lifestyle align with your values and passions,” Arnhold adds. “You can’t invest in the oil companies and then oppose trying to substitute plastics, for example. When I meet people who are sceptical about investing sustainably, I say that it’s the long-term impact on those investments and how the wealth is managed that’s important. What’s the real return of the investment in financial terms for the investors and in environmental terms for everyone else? It would be great if these investments could be risk-free, but managing risk is part of business.”
Understanding family history when leaving a legacy
Arnhold doesn’t have a clear retirement plan in place – in fact, he’s just starting a new venture – but he’s aware that good business succession involves maintaining family values and traditions while also being a little disruptive. “This is the key to building a legacy,” he says. “I don’t mind not being appreciated for building something, but I do think it’s important to leave a solid foundation on which others can build. That can mean anything from an idea or family way of doing business to leaving an established organisation. In the long term, a successful business will have been built on strong values and good governance, and this is what we should be passing down to future generations.”
Successful entrepreneurship and proper wealth management
Arnhold may have family connections with Germany, but he also has a deep affinity with Switzerland. Having learned to ski there when he was young, he developed a passion for snow sports and an involvement in later life with sports governance. When it comes to being successful in business, he feels the Swiss have the right approach. “We think of Switzerland as a safe haven in times of geopolitical uncertainty,” he explains. “Given what is happening in Eastern Europe, this is especially true now. In terms of protecting your assets, Switzerland has strong traditions and good laws, people and systems, so it’s the perfect place to be from a wealth-management perspective.”
Other than the physical aspects of investing and wealth management, Arnhold attaches great importance to the emotional side as well. “My uncle, Henry, was a great reader of people,” he concludes. “He always said you should look into the eyes of people you want to do business with because this helps develop your emotional intelligence. And emotional intelligence is part of the magic of doing good business.”