{"id":347683,"date":"2025-12-17T03:49:29","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T03:49:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/angel-investor\/german-startup-changemakers-marcus-dr-opitz\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T03:49:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T03:49:29","slug":"german-startup-changemakers-marcus-dr-opitz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347683","title":{"rendered":"German Startup Changemakers: Marcus Dr Opitz"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Marcus Dr Opitz has over 30 years of operational business experience. He is a Managing Director for companies with a turnover of up to \u20ac3.7 billion. He managed acquisitions, restructurings, carve-outs and disposals of more than 60 companies on behalf of corporates (i.e.BASF SE), private equity businesses and bank syndicates. Find out which advice for founders he shared with us and why he\u2019s so passionate about growing companies.
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<\/span>1. Hi Marcus, thank you for agreeing to do the interview. Could you tell us a bit about your background and how you\u2019re connected to the startup world?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been doing business for over 30 years now, so I have quite a broad experience. For almost 20 years I\u2019ve worked for portfolio companies of private equity funds and grew a lot of businesses. I bought more than 60 companies and integrated more than 30 of them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

10 years ago I was a Managing Director of quite a big service business with more than 12 thousand employees. Since then I have been looking for other participations, startups or ventures. As an investor, my focus is on B2B. I have invested in 10-12 small businesses and helped them grow. I always say that I can\u2019t found, but I can definitely grow businesses.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

2. You\u2019re the Managing Director of OP Advisory Services GmbH, where you managed acquisitions, restructurings and disposals (including flotations) of ~80 companies on behalf of both corporate (i.e.BASF SE), private equity businesses as well as bank syndicates. Tell us more about your mission!\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

As I mentioned, for 20 years I\u2019ve been working at private equity funds growing businesses. In the past 10 years, I changed my business model a bit. I\u2019m focusing on restructuring. I\u2019ve done 15 restructurings in the past 10 years and saved more than 50 thousand jobs overall. I\u2019m doing this because I simply love business.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I have quite a strong financial background but I\u2019m a very operational person, with a mission to give back to the business world. I\u2019m supporting, helping and modestly investing in young companies. I\u2019m also participating in a mentorship program there at the University in Cologne.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

3. What is it about the companies you invest in that particularly attracts you and how are you shaping startup ecosystems in cities you do business in?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u2019m an EU person. I\u2019m a German, currently living in Brussels but I\u2019ve also been living in France and my network is very strong in the German-speaking countries.<\/span><\/p>\n

My business focus is B2B, I\u2019m quite selective, but once I\u2019m engaged in a new company, then I support them and give them assistance. I\u2019m very much a process guy, so my main goal when helping these companies is to improve business processes. I contribute to these ecosystems by mentoring as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Could you share the top 3 lessons for entrepreneurs you learned over the years with our readers?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Having interviewed many startups and working with a lot of companies, the most important lessons that stand out would be:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n