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Antun Krešimir Buterin i Josip Hrgetić
Episode · #223

ISELJENI USPJEH Antun Krešimir Buterin i Josip Hrgetić

Guest Antun Krešimir Buterin i Josip HrgetićHosted by Boris ŽivkovićMay 3, 2026
About this episode
What you'll hear in this conversation

When the pandemic made global travel impossible, Antun Krešimir Buterin and Josip Hrgetić faced a challenge for their annual Meeting G2 conference. For five years, the event had gathered Croatian entrepreneurs from 28 countries in Zagreb. Instead of canceling, they opted for a virtual format, naming it 'Best When It's Toughest.' This pivot wasn't a compromise; it became an unexpected advantage. As Buterin explains, it allowed them to attract speakers they could never have secured in person, like Maglite founder Antony Maglica and UFC champion Stipe Miočić. In this conversation, Buterin and Hrgetić share how this crisis-driven strategy revealed the resilience of a global community, offering lessons on how to transform constraints into new opportunities for connection and collaboration.

Insights from the conversation
What to take from this episode
01
The 'Best When It's Toughest' virtual conference wasn't a fallback; it was the only way to attract speakers like Maglite founder Antony Maglica and UFC champion Stipe Miočić, who would never have traveled to Zagreb. When you cannot gather in person, the constraint itself can become the reason you get access to otherwise inaccessible talent.
02
The genesis of Meeting G2 wasn't a strategic workshop, but a chance meeting between the two founders and their wives at a U2 concert in Zagreb, combined with an observation from Josip's wife about Latvia's efforts to engage its diaspora. The most effective community-building efforts often begin with an informal connection and an external example of what works, not a grand blueprint.
03
Meeting G2's singular focus is 'networking,' aiming to connect Croatian entrepreneurs abroad with opportunities in Croatia, and those in Croatia with partners who can help them expand globally. The most impactful diaspora initiatives prioritize mutual benefit and shared growth, recognizing that collaboration is more powerful than a call for return.
04
Josip Hrgetić draws a clear distinction between 'diaspora' – those born outside Croatia when it didn't exist as a state – and 'emigration,' referring to those who left an already established nation. The way you engage a community depends entirely on their historical context; the ties of someone whose grandparents left a non-existent state are different from those who left a functioning one.
05
For Croatian companies looking to export, the conference offers a direct channel to diaspora members who, as Buterin notes, 'know the local language, local people, and government structures' in their adopted countries. The fastest way to new markets isn't always through traditional trade routes, but by activating a trusted network already embedded in the target geography.
06
The program includes numerous stories of entrepreneurs who, facing the pandemic, not only survived but 'thought of something new in their business,' with some even pivoting entirely. Crisis is rarely just about endurance; it's often the catalyst that forces a re-evaluation of your core offering, leading to unexpected new directions and innovations.
07
The conference title 'Best When It's Toughest' isn't just a slogan; it reflects a core belief that, as the organizers put it, 'you can get hit, it’s logical to take it, many times it can knock you to the ground, but that doesn’t mean you have to give up.' Building resilience isn't about avoiding blows, but about the conviction that a setback is a temporary state, not a final verdict.
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