Why high gross margins matter

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Hannah Dittman sits down with Trevor Rechnitz, Principal at Vanterra Ventures, to explore the realities of fundraising—not just what looks good on paper, but what truly matters to investors. Trevor brings deep consumer investing experience built over nearly a decade, from sourcing and diligence to partner engagement and post-close value creation.

At Vanterra Ventures, Trevor helps evaluate and back visionary teams and companies redefining consumer health, digital health, and enabling technologies across branded products and emerging categories. Vanterra Ventures is the venture and growth equity arm of Vanterra Capital, investing $1-10M checks into seed and Series A rounds across a $6 trillion consumer health category growing 10% year over year—from supplements and functional beverages to digital healthcare and health tech infrastructure.

Throughout the conversation, Trevor breaks down common pitfalls founders encounter during fundraising and diligence processes, what makes an A+ intro call (strong problem-solution articulation and founder-market fit), and why knowing your numbers cold is non-negotiable. He shares practical insights on LTV to CAC dynamics (targeting 3x+ over 2-3 years), why gross margins north of 60-70% matter so much, and how to diagnose weak metrics by breaking them into components—AOV problems, margin problems, or repeat purchase problems (the hardest to fix).

Trevor also discusses the importance of expectation setting with investors (success = results minus expectations), why consistent monthly investor updates are one of the most correlated variables to success, and what revenue ranges typically align with each fundraising round (0M pre-seed, 1-5M seed, 5-15M Series A, 15-30M+ Series B). Whether you're navigating your first fundraising process or looking to level up your investor relationships, this episode offers grounded, practical insights on what investors actually evaluate and how to build with intention from day one.

Listen in as they discuss:

• Trevor's background: nearly a decade from PE consulting to Circle Up to Vanterra Ventures
• What Ventera is: $175M AUM, $1-10M checks, seed/Series A in consumer health products, services, and tech
• Common fundraising mistakes: getting defensive about risks, not knowing numbers cold, failing to interview VCs
• What makes an A+ intro call: strong problem-solution-founder fit, doing homework on the fund
• Advice for founders: success = results minus expectations, send consistent monthly investor updates
• Why high gross margin (60%+) and repeat purchase rate are essential for consumer businesses
• LTV to CAC breakdown: targeting 3x+ over 2-3 years and how to diagnose weak metrics
• Revenue ranges by round: 0M pre-seed, 1-5M seed, 5-15M Series A, 15-30M+ Series B

Episode Links:

Trevor Rechnitz - Principal, Vanterra Ventures 

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-rechnitz-43b72582/ 

• Website: https://www.vanterraventures.com/ 

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• Episode music by Super Fantastics