Consumer VC: Venture Capital I B2C Startups I Commerce | Early-Stage Investing I Brands Brendan Rogers (Wag! and 2 a.m.) - Founding Wag!, Scaling by Doing Unscalable Things, and Investment Opportunities in India
Feb 11, 2021
36:46
My guest today is Brendan Rogers, one of the co-founders of Wag! and 2 a.m. Wag! is #1 app for pet parents and the leading on-demand dog walking platform. 2 a.m is a venture fund, investing in the next generation of entrepreneurs in India. We discuss the insight that led to the founding of Wag!, how they approached scale, and the opportunity he saw in India as an investor.
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A couple books that inspired Brendan:
Rudy: My Story by Rudy Ruettiger
The Start-up of You by Reid Hoffman
Some of the questions I asked Brendan:
- What was your attraction to technology and consumer technology?
- Wag! -
- What was the insight that led you to found Wag!?
- Which side of the marketplace did you have to initially focus on to get the wheel in motion - demand or supply?
- What were some of the creative strategies that you employed in order for Wag! to become a successful marketplace?
- How did you approach expanding to different markets?
- What was the fundraising strategy?
- After you left Wag!, how did you think about what you next want to do?
- 2AM & India -
- Why the interest in India? Why not focus on companies in the United States?
- How did 2AM come together?
- What are some of the differences you've had to experience when investing in Indian companies vs. U.S?
- What are some of the differences in population that an entrepreneur has to take into account that they wouldn't have to in the United States?
- What are some consumer trends in India that you're most excited about?
- What's one thing that you would change about venture capital?
- What's the best piece of advice that you've received?
- What's one piece of advice to founders?