Five years ago, Lisa Calhoun recruited Gary Peat to Valor VC as general partner— one of the most experienced and successful venture capitalists in the South. In this episode of **Signal South**, he tells the whole story: how a Wall Street analyst became a seed-stage legend, and what he's learned across 25 years and 18 exits in this region. This is the conversation Southern founders need to hear. Gary breaks down what actually separates the companies that scale from the ones that stall. You'll learn: -the four data points he uses to vet a sales leader *before* you hire them, -why "ready to grow" beats a big idea every time, and -the painful lesson behind picking A-level talent over an A-level market. He's candid about the struggle: why a third of his biggest winners had to transition their founding CEO, and how he learned to coach founders into becoming top CEOs. Gary is clear about what he wants to see now — the sectors, the signals, and the kind of founder he'll chase across the South. If you're building here and wondering how to get on the radar of an investor like this, start with his own words. If you're pitching venture capital in the fastest growing region of the country, this is a must-listen conversation.
