Sharona Cohen of DSTNC on Endurance Culture, Brand Curation, and The Future of Cycling (EP.255)

I’m always excited to interview a portfolio company founder on Panic with Friends, so I’m doubly excited to have Sharona Cohen, co-founder (her husband Nave is the other co-founder who I previously had on the pod) of DSTNC (Social Leverage Fund IV) on today’s show. The company is at the forefront of fashion and technology, or as I like to call it, ‘fashology’ – for the modern cyclist. DSNTC (pronounced 'distance' - vowels removed) is a first of its kind global marketplace and content destination, curating the largest selection of high-end brands and performance products from around the world.

Nave and Sharona have done a phenomenal job over the last eight months or so, and with the site launched and a seed round raised, this is the right time to check in and hear about the company. With DSTNC I finally get to dig into 'fashology', something I’ve been talking about since the Oakley days. I’ve been able to invest and help build a Lifestyle brand from the ground up. Sharona has an eye for fashion, culture, brands and what people will buy. The curation is excellent.

The KEY business hack here is the logistics of shipping returns. DSTNC can locally take returns for all these foreign brands and customers do not have to ship items that do not fit (a large problem with cycling gear sizes) back overseas at a high cost. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did.

Guest - Sharona Cohen, Co-Founder & CEO at DSTNC.com 

howardlindzon.com, dstnc.com 

Twitter: @howardlindzon, @shop_dstnc, @sharonanco, @naveavimor, @PanicwFriends, @knutjensen 

Instagram: @shop.dstnc, @sharonanco

linkedin.com/in/sharona-cohen-41588027 

#fintech #invest #investment #venturecapital #stockmarket #finance 

Show Notes:

00:36 - Introduction

09:58 - Learning Hebrew and Yiddish in Canada

13:00 - Investing in husband and wife teams

16:04 - Trends in cycling

17:17 - Endurance culture

20:00 - Brand curation

24:08 - Challenges in the industry

26:30 - Inspiration behind starting DSTNC

28:06 - The future of cycling

30:00 - New entrants in cycling

35:00 - What to expect from DSTNC

39:00 - Competitors in endurance wear

40:20 - Dream collab

40:55 - Tricks to curation

42:16 - Outro