Tank Talks By Ripple Ventures

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Elizabeth Yin, Co-Founder & Managing Partner @ Hustle Fund.On today's Talk, we ask Elizabeth about her journey in leaving Google during the last crisis to start Launchbit, an ad-tech platform that she eventually sold to BuySellAds and how she eventually made her way onto the investment side with 500 Startups. We dig into Elizabeth's time in running the 500 Startups Mountain View office and how she was able to select founders to back after reviewing over 20,000 pitch decks. Next, we discuss the reason she started Hustle fund with her partner Eric and what their mission is for the next 25 years. Finally, we ask Elizabeth to explain what hustle means to her as an early-stage investor and how she assesses hustle when meeting founders for the first and sometimes only time before deciding on backing them with a $25,000 investment.This tank talk really helps you think about what characteristics and qualities to look for when making early-stage investments.Books Mentioned In The Show:-The Lean Startup- The Hard Thing About Hard Things-Predictable RevenueElizabeth’s words of inspiration - “Building a startup is tough, so make sure you dig deep and decide why you want to do it, besides the money, because it can really be your north star when moving through difficult times”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Darrell Heaps, Founder & CEO @ Q4 Inc.On today's Talk, we ask Darrell about his journey as an Elite Mogul Skier on the World Cup stage and his transition to Founding and Leading Q4 Inc. for the last 15 years. We discuss the bumps and bruises Darrell experienced both on the mountain and in the boardroom. We also dig into Darrell's ability to overcome adversity as an Elite Athlete and how his competitive nature in sports has helped him build Q4 into a market leader in the investor relations space while raising over $90M in financing and completing 5 acquisitions. Finally, we discuss Darrell's plans for Q4 in the future and how his team's culture has played a vital role in managing these uncertain times during COVID.This tank talk really makes you appreciate the hustle, determination and no b******t attitude Darrell brings to his company each and every day.Books Mentioned In The Show:-Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice- That Will Never Work - the Story of Netflix-American King Pin - the story of Silk Road- Billion Dollar WhaleDarrell’s words of inspiration - “Don’t believe your own bull-s**t!”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Tony Conrad, Partner @ True VenturesOn today's Talk, we ask Tony about his humble beginnings of growing up in a rural farming community in Indiana and how he made his way around the world living in places like Paris, New Delhi & Jakarta. We dig into Tony’s experiences of Co-Founding two startups that both exited to AOL and what he looks for when backing founders. We also ask Tony why he backed specialty coffee brand Blue Bottle Coffee and how it became a billion exit for the fund. We also ask Tony about his passion for Community based investment like Wordpress, Voiceflow & Zero Fasting and the experience in watching Wordpress grow to power over 30% of all internet websites. Finally, we ask Tony about his incredible 16 year career at True Ventures and the firm's people-first approach to investing.This tank talk really makes you appreciate the empathy, passion and patience Tony brings to his investments and everyday life.Books Mentioned In The Show:-The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz- Bird Lives!-Shackleton's Boat JourneyTony’s words of inspiration - “Everyone should take a step back from their day jobs and make sure you are taking a more holistic experience as a human and figuring where you side on the societal and economic issues facing our world today and take a stand.”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guestMimi Lam & Drummond Munro, Co-Founders of Superette, Canada’s Most Awarded Cannabis Startup.On today's Talk, we ask Mimi & Drum about how they originally entered the Cannabis industry before teaming up to start Superette. We dig into how they came up with the unique concept for Superette’s brand and how they differentiated themselves in the already crowded retail cannabis space. We discuss their ability to recruit passionate and talented employees who are not necessarily interested in the cannabis industry and what that has done for company culture. Finally, we ask them how staying private has helped them navigate the volatile cannabis markets and if they have any plans to go public soon. This tank talk really makes you appreciate the passion and commitment Mimi and Drum have towards building the most loved and respected cannabis company in the world.Books Mentioned In The Show:-Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World- How to Change Your Mind: The New Science of Psychedelics-Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind-Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NikeDrum’s words of inspiration - “Stick to your vision and commit to that...its the only way to truly succeed”Mimi’s words of inspiration - “Have a vision, but focus on execution. It’s easy to have ideas, but how that shows up in the real world and how you build a company and a team around that is what matters.”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guestDevon Wright, General Manager at Yelp! In San Francisco & former Co-Founder & CEO of Turnstyle Solutions.This talk is a special one for me personally as I owe a lot of my entrepreneurial and venture investing career to Devon. Not only was Devon the first person I wrote my initial angel check into back in 2012 to help start Turnstyle before it was even a company, but Devon has become one of my closest friends and supporters to push me to leave my cushy job on wall st and start my own venture fund. I could go on and on, but you will hear more about that and more on the show.On today's Talk, we ask Devon about the humble beginnings of starting Turnstyle in 2012 along with my initial capital investment that in hindsight was truly based on a ridiculous idea. We also dig into what it was like trying to find a Venture Fund let alone one to pitch to in Toronto during the first few years of the company. We learn how Devon found a way to beg, borrow and hustle his way through the early years at Turnstyle with limited capital and supporters. Finally, we dig into Devon's journey building Turnstyle into a profitable 40 person company with some amazing talent around him even after all the VC funds turned him down and why he decided to eventually sell to Yelp in 2017. Devon's entrepreneurial journey is one of hustle, persistence and the desire to prove others wrong in the face of adversity.Books Mentioned In The Show:-Loonshots - How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas that Win Wars - by Safi Bahcall- Brick by Brick - How Lego Rewrote The Rules Of Innovation - By David C. Robertson-The Perfect Store - Ebay’s Story - By Adam Cohen-Teams of Teams - New Rules of Engagement for Complex Worlds - By Gen. Stanley McChrystalDevon’s words of Inspiration “Be fair and be generous to everyone on your team when it comes to equity. It is really easy to get sucked into the capital side of your balance sheet. But don’t forget your role as an employee. And how important those people are to your success every day. Do what you can to give your employees ownership of the company. To make sure they win from the upside of your success. “You can follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Tony van Marken, Co-Founder & Managing Partner of First Ascent Ventures.Tony is not only a successful businessman and venture capitalist but has an extremely accomplished mountaineering career having become the first South African to climb all Seven Summits, the highest mountains on each of the world’s seven continents.On today's Talk, we ask Tony about his experience climbing Mount Everest in 2005 and his battle with the mountain, poor health and the worst weather seen on Everest for decades and his final steps to the summit on June 2, 2005. We also talk about his own personal business and other expedition experiences and the lessons learned that he has applied in building and investing in startups. This tank talk sure was a cliffhanger!Now please welcome today's guest to the Tank, Tony Van Marken.Books Mentioned In The Show:- Annapurna Paperback - by Maurice Herzog- Touching My Father's Soul: A Sherpa's Journey to the Top of Everest Paperback – by Jamling T. Norgay- Into Thin Air - by Jon Krakauer- Seven Summits - by Dick Bass, Frank Wells & Rick Ridgeway- High Altitude Leadership - by Chris Warner & Don SchminckeTony’s words of Inspiration "If you dream of doing something, stop dreaming, get out and make it happen" by Sir Chris BoningtonYou can follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest John Ruffolo, Founder & former CEO of OMERS Ventures and Co-Founder & Vice Chair of the Council of Canadian Innovators.John is well known around the VC and Tech ecosystem for starting the Ontario Municipal Workers Pension Funds Venture arm in 2011. John has been instrumental in helping develop some of Canada’s biggest tech companies and was an early investor in some of the biggest exits in Canadian tech. Johns portfolio includes companies such as Hootsuite, Hopper, PasswordBox (which sold to Intel), Shopify (which IPOd 2015), Wave (which sold to H&R Block) and countless others.On today's Talk, we ask John about his views on Venture and Growth Capital and how investors should be thinking about valuations during the crisis. We also talk to John about his views on the Canadian tech landscape and how founders should be thinking about building world class companies for the next decade.You can follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Michael Hyatt, Co-Founder of Hyatt Family Office.Michael is well known in the Canadian tech ecosystem as a serial entrepreneur turned angel investor and is regularly seen on TV providing his advice to aspiring entrepreneurs. Before Michael started his first company, he was President & CEO at Dyadem which sold to IHS a US public company in 2011. Michael went on to co-found BlueCat Networks with his brother and eventually sold the business to private equity firm Madison Dearborn for a reported $400mm in 2017On today's Talk, we ask Michael about his family office and their focus on wealth preservation vs wealth creation during the crisis. We also talk to Michael about his operator first approach to investing and what he looks for when backing early-stage founders or fund managers.You can follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Lawrence Mandel, Director of Production Engineering & Developer Acceleration at Shopify. Prior to Shopify, Lawrence spent time at Mozilla as a Director of Engineering where he oversaw the release of the Firefox browser & before that he spent time at IBM as a Senior Product Manager.On today's Talk, we ask Lawrence about running remote engineering teams and some best practices on how to keep developers engaged and on time during COVID. We also talk to Lawrence about life at Shopify and what it's like working for one of the world's fastest-growing technology companies while going head to head with Amazon.You can follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On today’s Tank Talk! We welcome our guest Houman Haghighi, Partner at Menlo Ventures.Houman has spent the last decade of his career investing and building startups. Prior to joining Menlo, Houman was the Director and Head of Business Development at Qualcomm Ventures for over 7 years and was a Senior Product Manager and engineer at Qualcomm Corporate before joining the venture team in 2011.On today's Talk, we ask Houman about his outlook on Venture as a top tier VC and his tips on managing business development opportunities and partnerships as a startup. We also talk to Houman about his investment in Zooms Seed round and what Menlo is looking at investing in during the crisis.You can follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com