Gediminas Kvietkauskas on the conversation that angered him and led to millions: “I felt undervalued”

Gediminas Kvietkauskas, founder and CEO of the agricultural machinery trading company East West Agro, today leads a business that holds a leading position in Lithuania. From the outside, it may look like a dream come true, but the entrepreneur himself says his story did not begin so romantically. He was pushed into business by a decisive conversation that did not end as expected.

Into business – not from a dream

Speaking about the career moment that became a turning point, Kvietkauskas was open in the podcast “Pokalbiai apie pinigus” with Miglė Grybinienė, Head of Marketing at Profitus. He admits he never dreamed of owning a business or becoming an entrepreneur.

“To be honest, I never thought I would have my own business or be an entrepreneur. There was no plan. I was working as an employee at the time, and there was a conversation with my manager about a salary increase. I felt undervalued, even though I believed I could build a good career in that company. But my salary was not increased—and thank God it wasn’t, because that’s when my thinking shifted in a completely different direction,” he recalls about the start of his now two-decade-long journey.

According to him, the decision to start a business was not an emotional leap into the unknown but a pragmatic step.

“We had contacts for sourcing spare parts, and a colleague had contacts for selling them. The beginning was very simple: we bought somewhere and sold somewhere else. And it worked for us,” he says.

Over nearly 20 years in business, Kvietkauskas has experienced not only successes but also serious challenges. While many companies consider the 2008 crisis their biggest test, he says their toughest lesson came later—in 2019.

“In 2017, agriculture was hit by heavy rains, then in 2018 by severe droughts—again poor harvests. For small players like us, it seemed that after two bad years, the market would eventually rebound and 2019 would be the breakthrough. But it wasn’t. That’s when we faced our own crisis and had to learn,” he explains.

After the 2019 crisis, he began to view so-called business “safeguards” differently, though he still considers the commonly praised financial safety cushion somewhat illusory.

Teaching children to make choices

Although he speaks about business calmly and without drama, his tone softens when talking about his children—here he is first and foremost a father. He admits that financial education in his family is not automatic.

According to him, the best financial lessons come when children are allowed to make their own decisions—even if those decisions cost money and nerves.

“There was an episode in Switzerland—my son bought a cheap watch, and it broke within a few days. Then he bought a better one with his own money. That was a lesson about value and price. There was also a situation where I chose monitors for my kids because I wanted to do it quickly, and I got a lecture because the process of choosing mattered to them. I realized you have to let children choose. The balance between ‘giving everything’ and ‘leaving some desire’ is difficult. The easiest path is always to give, but you need to talk, explain, and let them decide,” he says.

Why he chooses Kaunas

From family life, the conversation naturally shifts to environment—something parents consider very practically. Kvietkauskas says that the rhythm of a city and the feeling of being “in the right place” matter to him, which is why he chooses to live in Kaunas.

“Living in Kaunas is good. I don’t like Vilnius, for example. Kaunas feels cozier—it’s home, and there’s less hustle. Although I must admit traffic jams in Kaunas are now even worse than in Vilnius, I believe Kaunas has a lot of potential. It’s an industrial city with plenty of room to grow. As industry grows, more workers are needed, and the city expands. I see Kaunas growing,” he says, noting how much the city has changed over the past decade.

Asked what could drive another major breakthrough in the future, he doesn’t hesitate. He recalls how a major sports event once transformed the city.

“If we talk about a ten-year perspective—a world basketball championship in Kaunas would be a huge boost. We can remember 2011, when the European Championship took place and the arena was built. I lived next to it at the time and remember what Kaunas was like—there was nowhere to go, just a couple of bars and clubs. The championship essentially changed the city—restaurants, hotels, the whole ecosystem emerged. A big event creates momentum for a city. But one thing matters to me—I don’t want Kaunas to be privatized. I want the city to develop transparently and responsibly,” he emphasizes.

He also discusses business decisions, financial mistakes, family money management, and why the “safety cushion” in business is often just an illusion in the YouTube podcast “Pokalbiai apie pinigus.”