Consumer VC: Venture Capital I B2C Startups I Commerce | Early-Stage Investing I Brands

Fan Bi, Founder & CEO of Hedgehog, talks about valuing direct-to-consumer brands, challenges in the messy middle stage, expanding a DTC business to additional sales channels, and the Founder's predicament in the consumer acquisitions market.

Our guest today is Sarah Woelfel, Co-Founder & Partner at Cult Capital. She combines her zeal for investing with her affection for cult consumer brands. Their investments include Supergoop!, Babo Botanicals, and Lawless Beauty. Prior to CULT Capital, Sarah served on the investment team at Audax and as an I-banking analyst at Deutsche Bank.-----------Thank you to our partner Propeller IndustriesPropeller Industries is the leading strategic finance and accounting partner for venture-stage companies.

She leads the day-to-day operations and long-term strategy for Belgian Boys and is bringing European treats like Belgian waffles, brioche french toast, crepes, and other delicious delights to the American home. They are now in over 8,400 stores including Walmart, Target, Whole Foods.Thank you to our partner Propeller IndustriesPropeller Industries is the leading strategic finance and accounting partner for venture-stage companies.We discuss:• Anouck’s journey from fashion to joining her husband in starting a food CPG company• How they first got into retail• What it was like years of bootstrapping• How they landed KIND snacks founder Daniel Lubetzky’s venture firm Camino Partners as investors• Why they pivoted from frozen food to refrigerator food and much more.

Caleb Wang, CEO and Co-Founder of MiLa, shares the story of their authentic soup dumplings and Chinese noodles business. They discuss starting as a restaurant, expanding to ecommerce, raising capital, challenges of Asian food brands, unique customer moments, and potential restaurant expansion.

Our guests today are David Wagner and Jesse Marble, Co-Founders of Wildwood Ventures. Wildwood Ventures is backed by VF corporation, a holding company whose portfolio includes iconic outdoor and activity-based lifestyle and workwear brands like Vans, North Face, Timberland, Dickies. Wildwood Ventures invests in consumer technology companies that make lives better.Want all the updates?Subscribe to The Newsletter

Our guest today is Denise Lambertson, Managing Partner at Constellation Capital and Chairwoman & Founder of LMS, the influencer marketing agency. We actually didn’t get into the Constellation Capital / VC / Investing side for this episode, we ran out of time. We focused on the relationship between talent and brand and how that partnership could work and how it could not work.Enjoying TheConsumer VC?Subscribe To The Newsletter Here

Today’s episode we focus on the wonderful world of consumer fintech and our guest today is Drew Glover, General Partner of Fiat Ventures and Founding Partner of Fiat Growth. Fiat Growth is a growth consultancy helping to scale some of the largest fintech companies out there - Chime, Lemonade, Copper. They decided to launch a VC fund that focuses on emerging fintech companies. Want to receive updates on all the VC fundraises in consumer?Subscribe Here To The Newsletter

Our guest today is Brian Fenty, Co-Founder & CEO of TodayTix. TodayTix is the digital gateway to live shows, arts, and cultural experiences.We discuss:His introduction to Broadway & ticketingHow Broadway initially tried to appeal to younger demographics and failedHow TodayTix partners with theatresThe threat of TicketMasterWhy they didn’t pivot during COVIDTheir acquisition strategy & more

Our guest today is Martin Mignot, Partner at Index Ventures. Index Ventures is a global firm that operates as one team across three offices (London, SF, NYC) and invests at all stages. Martin opened Index’s office in New York a couple of years ago. We discuss the massive consumer opportunity in New York that Index has tapped into through, the future of transportation and delivery, and the differences Martin has seen between European and American consumer markets.

Listen in as we explore the exciting journey of Miguel Leal, co-founder and CEO of Somos Foods. Miguel shares his experience transitioning from successful stints at Kind Snacks and Chalula to establishing his own brand. Inspired by a disparity in the market, he decided to revolutionize the Mexican food aisle by creating authentic, plant-based, non-GMO products. He also discusses the pivotal decision to quickly shift to retail and the profound impact of AI technology on the brand's success.Our conversation navigates the unique challenges and opportunities that arose during the launch of Somos Foods. Miguel sheds light on the creation process, the impact of the pandemic, and how his conversations with his wife and friend Daniel Lubecki, founder of KindSnacks, sparked the genesis of the company. Discover how their passion for authentic Mexican cuisine and the need for innovation in the market led to the creation of this game-changing brand. Lastly, we discuss the importance of retail expansion and product innovation for Somos Foods. Miguel offers insights into the company's unique approach to market expansion, pricing and margin structure, and how they successfully created a complete customer experience. He also shares his thoughts on the value of social listening and how it led to the creation of popular recipes. So, tune in and learn about the transformational journey of Somos Foods, their innovative strategies, and their quest to bring authentic Mexican cuisine to your kitchen.