The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

20VC: 3 Addictions Of Early-Stage Startup Founders, How Founders Should Strategically Think Through Unit Economics From Day 1 & Why Micromanagement Can Be Beneficial In The Early Days with Adena Hefets, Co-Founder @ Divvy Homes

Mar 13, 2020

Adena Hefets, Co-founder of Divvy Homes, revolutionizes homeownership by allowing renters to use payments towards a down payment. She shares the three common addictions of startup founders and the importance of thinking strategically about unit economics from Day 1. Adena argues that micromanagement can actually be beneficial in early-stage ventures. She also highlights the unique struggles female founders face in securing funding, advocating for more inclusive support in the venture capital landscape.

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ANECDOTE

Adena's Journey to Divvy Homes

Adena Hefetz transitioned from private equity to a startup (Square) before founding Divvy Homes.
At Square, she helped launch Square Capital, a multi-billion dollar lending platform.

INSIGHT

Operator vs. Investor Perspective

Being an operator provides a deeper understanding of company building than investing.
Adena believes she would be a better investor now after her operating experience.

INSIGHT

Unit Economics Focus

Adena prioritizes positive unit economics from day one, influenced by her background in finance.
This contrasts with the venture capital emphasis on growth over profitability.

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Adena Hefets is Co-Founder @ Divvy Homes, the startup that turns your monthly rent into a down payment allowing you to get on the property ladder, sooner. To date, Adena has raised over $189M with Divvy from some of the best in the business including a16z, Ray Tonsing @ Caffeinated, Max Levchin, DFJ and Threshold Ventures to name a few. Prior to founding Divvy, Adena was an early-stage fintech investor at DF. Before the world of venture, Adena was part of the original team that started Square Capital and grew the product to over 10,000 advances ($50M) within 1 year. Finally, before that, Adena started her career in the world of private equity with TPG.

In Today’s Episode You Will Learn:

1.) How Adena made her way from the world of venture with DFJ to changing the way we think about homeownership with Divvy?

2.) What does Adena believe are the 3 addictions of many early-stage startup founders? How does Adena advise founders on the right way to think about paid marketing? What have been some surprising lessons from seeing Divvy's CAC change over time? How does Adena advise founders to construct a playbook and cadence for hiring?

3.) How does Adena think differently about unit economics today? Is it fundamental to have this mindset from Day 1? Where does Adena believe many founders go wrong when it comes to unit economics? Who is to blame for this desire for synthetic growth? The founders? The VCs?

4.) Considering female founders get a tiny portion of VC funds raised, how was the fundraise for Adena with Divvy? How does Adena advise other female founders and minorities on fundraising successfully? Does Adena believe that founders should always be raising? How does raising debt differ to raising equity? Why is it so much more challenging?

5.) Why does Adena believe that micromanagement can be beneficial in the early days? How does Adena ensure that it does not lead to dependencies and dejected team members? What does Adena to do push people to really get the most out of them? What works? What does not?

Items Mentioned In Today’s Show:

Adena’s Fave Book: Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City

As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Adena on Twitter here!

Likewise, you can follow Harry on Instagram here for mojito madness and all things 20VC.

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