Nasser Mansurali: The Third Culture Kid Revolutionizing the Expat Experience

Born in Lisbon, Portugal, a city steeped in tradition and also deeply connected to the modern world, 27-year-old entrepreneur, Nasser Mansurali, has been on the go since he left home to pursue college at the tender age of 18.

Moving to the United Kingdom marked the beginning of Mansurali’s nomadic journey which lasted almost a decade. Born to parents who hail from Mozambique and grandparents whose roots can be traced back to the Subcontinent, the entrepreneur is every bit a “third culture kid” - a label he wears with pride.

While the label can be generalized as cool, it goes far beyond the superficial. Being a third culture child brings with it wholesome wisdom, an emotional maturity and a unique drive for experiential learning through discovering the world and its varied cultures.

Why does this happen? Because when one is born into a family where one’s roots spread beyond one particular ‘homeland’ offspring born into such families have a natural proclivity towards wanderlust. Moving far beyond their comfort zone to unearth their surroundings, they harbor a lifelong quest to discover themselves.

With a BBA Management from Lancaster University, the entrepreneur was the first in his family to graduate from college. Following his graduation, he joined Amazon in London in 2017, embarking on a journey that would take him to Dubai and Madrid over the next four and a half years. Yet, even as he enjoyed success in his professional life, Mansurali yearned for something more - a chance to travel the world and create something meaningful.

In 2022, he took the leap of faith and quit his job to launch his own startup, Matutto, a one-of-a-kind relocation platform that offers reliable information and advice to expats embarking on their journey of moving abroad.

Derived from two languages,‘Matuto’ means ‘to learn’ in Tagalog (a language spoken in the Philippines), while ‘tutto’ means ‘everything’ in Italian. Therefore, ‘Matutto’ represents the idea of ‘learning everything’ and embodies the mission of the company to provide reliable information and advice to guide expats through the journey of moving abroad.

“After having moved abroad five times in nine years, I recognized that moving to a new country is not easy, and set out on a journey to make it better and more accessible,” the entrepreneur states.

In recognition of his vision and dedication, Mansurali was accepted into Techstars London, one of Europe's top startup accelerator programs.

But why a relocation platform for expats? Was there a gap in the market that he knew he could fill?

“I did many jobs in my life and one of them was being a tutor, so I started Matutto as an online marketplace for people to teach and learn,” he says. “It got just over 300 users and maybe around 35 people paying for classes. That helped us get accepted into Techastars. However, after joining Techstars we decided that we had to pivot for a number of reasons; the market, the timing, the competition, the access to further capital, etc., and I began a long period of introspection about the things I cared about, the experiences I have a personal insight into and also that which could help others and generate real value. Ultimately I ended up coming to a conclusion that a lot can be improved in the process of moving to a new country, and decided to go in that direction.”

Besides, the entrepreneur states that the current pricing structures of relocation agencies render their services inaccessible for most people. He argues that the cost of paying $10,000 for relocation assistance is prohibitive for the majority of individuals, making it a luxury only available to the wealthy. This encouraged Mansurali to provide an alternative solution that caters to the millions of people who do not fall into the high-income bracket.

“I was always an entrepreneur. When I got an internship at age 20, I used my first salary to start a clothing brand and sell products online. Even before that when I was 11 I used to sell pens and calendars in the street,” the entrepreneur reveals, “So when I joined Amazon, my mind had been set in launching a business. It was just a matter of what to do and when to do it. I gave myself enough time at Amazon to learn and absorb as much as I could, while attending networking and educational events after work. Towards my 4th year, it became evident that my learning curve was stagnating and it was time to risk it. And so I did.”

Speaking about what makes Matutto unique compared to its competitors, the entrepreneur states that information online is often incorrect and unreliable for those moving abroad. Given the plethora of sponsored content, it’s hard to sift out solid, trustworthy information.

“At Matutto we collect and make available (for free) validated information extracted from the latest government/official resources and tips and recommendation provided by expats - all without a single ad, and in one single place,” Mansurali says.

“We also provide access to extra support by connecting people to an expat or expert (for a fee) who can help you find accommodation, open a bank account, register for local healthcare, and so on. The big difference here to traditional relocation agencies is the price point, as we made it 20x cheaper than they currently charge. Today there are over 280 million people living abroad. In the next ten years there will be another 150 million. We want to support every single person in their journey.”

Rapid Fire with Nasser Mansurali

What are the top 5 things you've learned since you launched your startup?

1. Efficiency is more important than perfection. Launching a product or feature fast before it’s perfect is much more important than trying to tweak it infinitely before launching. Customer feedback is what should guide your decision-making, not your ‘ideal of perfection.’

2. Intellectual Elasticity will keep you alive. Being open to learning new things and adjusting your approach allows you to continuously iterate and improve your solution. This is what I think our competitors lost sight of and got complacent. And it’s why we will be successful over them long-term.

3. A lot of people will hate what you do, but you only need a few people that believe in you. Most people we spoke to that never moved abroad did not understand the problem we’re trying to solve. But some did. And those ended up being mentors, advisors, investors and customers. Focus on those people and cut out the noise.

4. Being a founder is all about selling your vision. To customers, to investors and to new team members. The ‘selling’ never stops.

5. Nothing beats grit. We may not get the results we want today, nor tomorrow nor the day after. But being able to deal with that and keep focusing on the right inputs will eventually lead you to getting your results. It’s important not to give up in the face of adversity.

Entrepreneurship always comes with the courage to take big risks: what's your internal process when it comes to taking calculated risks and making smart decisions for Matutto?

We have a compass in the team that’s guided by customer experience. So whenever we make a decision we ask ourselves; ‘How will this help our customers?’ If it doesn’t, maybe it’s not the right decision. Sometimes we get it right, sometimes we don’t, but I always keep myself accountable and try to learn from the outcomes.

What are the most important qualities that make a 'successful' founder?

I’m yet to find out. But from seeing people doing well around me - a good understanding of your customers, the ability to iterate fast, and humility seem to be key attributes in making a startup successful.

Any current initiatives that you're currently working on at Matutto?

We’re currently working on launching Matutto to Businesses looking to relocate their employees to a different country. This is something we’re already doing in the form of pilots with a few companies. We are also working on the launch of two new marketplaces, the US and the UAE, which we aim to launch publicly by June 2023.