Bill Poulos was born in 1947 at Providence Hospital in Detroit, Michigan. His grandparents came to the U.S. to start their families. His parents raised him in a middle-class community with a strong love for their Greek heritage. He was involved in Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Eagles Scouts. At age 13, he was the youngest person in the Detroit Area Council to be named Eagle Scout. He was on the high school swim team and excelled in his studies, graduating close to the top of his class.
Bill married his high school sweetheart, Karen Asquini, in 1969. He and Karen were neighborhood friends. They met when they were just 14 years old. They have now been married more than 48 years. Together they had 3 boys. Their sons are Greg, Robert, and Michael. The boys are now grown with families of their own.
Bill went to GMI (General Motors Institute) where he earned an engineering degree while also working on the floor of the Cadillac Motor Division—through the co-op program at GMI. He graduated in 1970 and was then hired on at General Motors. While working full-time, Bill took night classes at the University of Michigan. There he earned his MBA with a major in Finance. During his 30 years at GM, he worked his way through positions and up the ranks to executive titles. GM took Bill all of the world—including Germany, Japan, the UK, Brazil, and Mexico. When he retired from his career with GM at age 54, he was Director of the Vehicle Development Center.
After his retirement, Bill co-founded Profits Run with his son Greg. In 2001, the company came to fruition right from the Poulos kitchen table. In the 1970s Bill began trading. This was back before trading from your home computer in a matter of a few minutes was possible. Stock and futures trading was his much-loved hobby. He learned to do it through studying as well as much trial and error. He made lots of mistakes along the way but stuck to it, navigating the market and figuring out how to invest smarter while minimizing risk for his portfolio. Greg, his son, was an expert marketer. Bill was an expert investor. It made perfect sense for the duo to share Bill’s trading expertise to help others try to grow yet protect their nest-egg.
Profits Run is a financial education corporation who educates individuals on investing. The company’s goal is to give ordinary people the training they need to trade and invest in a safe, well-informed way—in all markets. Profits Run educates people on investing options, stocks, foreign exchange (forex), exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and cryptocurrencies. The company’s viewpoint emphasizes protecting a portfolio by minimizing risk. The Poulos duo coined Profits Run’s name from a common axiom among traders, “Cut your losses and let your profits run.” Today, Profits Run offers training courses, investment tools and software, and investment coaching. Bill has authored multiple books and training courses on investing. ProfitsRun.com offers training for both the beginner and skilled investor.
Two things that greatly influenced Bill Poulos early on were Boy Scouts and his Greek Heritage. In Boy Scout Troop 586 he learned to live by the scout oath. From his parents, he was exposed to his Greek heritage. He learned the Greek concept of Philotimo, teaching him to live with integrity, always honor and bring honor to the family.
When not in the office, Bill and his family appreciate taking their 19-year-old, beautiful 46 Beneteau sailboat out on the water. The Poulos family also has a love for dogs—their own and their kids’ dogs. He and his wife have been known to babysit their grand dogs at times. He dabbles in golf, but it is not his forte. He enjoys swimming and tennis.