In Episode 2 of Season 3 of Bet It Drives, powered by GR8 Tech and hosted by Yevhen Krazhan, CSO, Karolina Pelc, leader of HerPlay, slides into the passenger seat immediately after a helicopter ride. She shared a journey that spans cruise ships, London casinos, LeoVegas, BeyondPlay, and mentoring the next generation of founders.
The dialogue in video showed Karolina sharing different recommendations based on her knowledge and experience:
- From dealer to deal-maker: How starting as a 19-year-old casino dealer in Poland and on cruise ships gave her the front-row education that later shaped BeyondPlay.
- Using every card you’ve been dealt: Why she refused to “throw away” her land-based experience when online gaming started booming and how that decision changed everything.
- LeoVegas, BeyondPlay, FanDuel: What it takes to go from corporate casino director to founder whose startup builds a brand strong enough to get acquired.
- “Her Play” book: How she turned 20 years of grind into a structured system in book form, designed to give a mindset framework for building businesses.
- No comfort zone: How a calendar packed with conferences, keynotes, and client meetings became her best investment in reputation and opportunity.
- Mindset over everything else: Why she focuses her advisory work on helping early-stage founders reframe fear, rejection, and failure before they worry about valuations and cap tables.
- Women who build: How she invests in female-founded startups, mentors young women in gaming, and leads by example rather than letting herself be boxed into “diversity speaker” status.
- The startup roller coaster: Why three years of building BeyondPlay felt like ten years of lessons, with more tears, team challenges, and near-misses than most people ever see from the outside.
About this chapter, Krazhan said: “This episode goes deep into the real journey behind the success. With Karolina, you see the full journey: it’s raw, it’s honest, and it’s exactly the kind of mindset story this industry needs right now.”
Season 3 of Bet It Drives opened with Eman Pulis in Rome, taking on legacy, risk, and the chaos of building an events empire. Episode 2 keeps the wheels turning with Karolina’s story of reinvention, resilience, and what happens when you bet on yourself for 20 years straight.
Next up: more road-level conversations with standout leader Valentina Diaco, who isn’t afraid to talk about the hard hands as well as the jackpots.
Watch or listen to Season 3, Episode 1 with Karolina Pelc on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
Season 3 of Bet It Drives is rolling, and Karolina’s episode proves that the biggest gamble is never at the table. It’s you.