In this episode, John Andrew Entwistle, founder & CEO, breaks down Wander’s explosive growth and recent $50M Series B round led by QED Investors and Fifth Wall, with support from Redpoint, Uncork, Starwood Capital, and Breyer Capital.
Wander is building the first vertically integrated platform in vacation rentals, targeting the $35B luxury short-term rental segment with over 1,000 homes, a best-in-class 85 NPS, and 35,000+ nights booked to date.
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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - John Andrew Entwistle Introduction
1:00 - Series B Benchmark: $5M–$15M ARR
3:32 - What is Wander?
5:20 - Maintaining a high NPS through various transitions
6:10 - The Unscalable Beginning
8:15 - Building the First Vacation Rental REIT
10:46 - Brex Sponsorship Break
11:48 - Market Size: $35B GMV in Top 5%
13:42 - Customer Experience Philosophy
17:00 - Solving the Marketplace Cold Start Problem
19:15 - Hardest Challenge: The 2022 Crisis
23:47 - Sourcing Premium Properties
25:30 - Favorite Properties and Hidden Gems
28:51 - B2B Opportunities
32:34 - The Technology Stack
36:18 - Founder Background
39:59 - Advice for Young Founders
41:37 - Staying Clear During Rapid Scaling
43:53 - Team Structure and Hiring
48:56 - Efficient Marketing and Operations
51:04 - Demand Generation Strategy
53:22 - Activation Over Growth
55:27 - Business Model Deep Dive
57:59 - Capital Raised: $100M+
1:00:13 - What to Look for in Investors
1:02:20 - Life Philosophy: The Four Rules
1:06:24 - Looking Forward
#podcast #investing #technology #venturecapital #entrepreneur #startup #siliconvalley
