Dear Twentysomething

As a Halloween special for this week, our host, Erica Wenger talks about the unsettling myths surrounding fundraising and venture capital.On this episode Erica shares her 2 cents on what people get wrong about fundraising and Venture Capital. Erica delves into the common misconceptions that often mislead aspiring entrepreneurs and offers valuable insights to demystify the world of fundraising, and hopefully help you get ready to navigate the intricacies of VC and fundraising with confidence!For anyone having doubts and fears about becoming an investor or wanting to break into VC, this episode is for you!Follow Us!Erica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we chat with the one of a kind, B. Pagels-Minor! Erica and B know each other as solo GPs in the early stage venture capital world. In this episode, B shares how they've navigated various industries (including the world of venture as of recently), especially as a non-binary person of color. B has an amazing story, and we were so honored to have them on the pod!B. is an award-winning product strategist, podcast host, startup advisor and investor, executive coach, and a respected thought leader in agile technologies. B.’s fierce drive to promote diversity in tech and impact authentic change continues to define their work and life outside of their work. B. is a proud graduate of Northwestern University with a focus on history and an MBA and master of information systems from Robert Morris University. B. gives back to various organizations by being the Vice Chair & Secretary on the Board of Directors at Howard Brown Health, one of the top 3 largest LGBTQ community health centers in the country, Vice President & Secretary on the Board of Directors at the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago, and Board of Directors of both the Northwestern Alumni Association and Outfest. In 2022, B. Was honored as one of the Queer 50 from Fast Company, 35 Hero Advocate Executives by Involve People and Yahoo Finance UK, and a finalist for 2022 LGBTQNation heroes of the year.Follow Us!B. Pagels-Minor: @bpagelsminorDVRGNT Ventures: @dvrgntventuresErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we chat with Mike Jones! Mike is co-founder and managing director of Science, a Los Angeles-based multi-asset investment firm partnering with and investing in disruptive consumer technology companies in traditional venture equity and blockchain investments. As a serial entrepreneur, Mike has built, invested in and been on the board of consumer tech companies like Dollar Shave Club, Liquid Death, and PlayVS. Science’s blockchain practice has invested in Web3 startups such as Dapper Labs, RealBlocks and Protego Trust, which is one of just three banks to have OCC approval to hold custody of digital assets.Before Science, Mike was the CEO of MySpace, and he has advised the founders of Snapchat and TikTok. His experience and expertise in both large and small companies focuses on strategy, growth, and operational efficiency, and has resulted in over $2B in exits. Mike started his first company in college and continues to build new companies within his firm Science Inc. He currently lives in Aspen, Colorado with his wife and two kids.Follow Us!Mike Jones: @mjonesScience Inc: website hereErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we’re talking all things angel investing with the enthusiastic & knowledgable, Brian Nichols. In this explained episode, Erica and Brian chat through what exactly angel investing is, who can be an angel investor, how to get deal flow, how to evaluate startups once you get that deal flow, and so much more. Most importantly, Brian shares his story as an angel investor and why/how he joined the Hustle Fund team to build Angel Squad.Over the last decade, Brian has helped build Lyft, Zoox, On Deck, and BlackBird past a combined market cap of over $5B, and helped raise $500M. In 2019, he decided to try something new. He decided to shift his focus from building businesses to investing in them. He teamed up with Ann Miura-Ko to start Uplyft (Lyft alumni syndicate) and it started with 300+ of Lyft’s earliest employees who have invested over $30M+ together. He soon found myself becoming the go-to "alumni syndicate guy” and helped Airbnb, Stripe, Pinterest, DoorDash, and many others get their alumni syndicates off the ground.After opening up the Lyft alumni syndicate to the public (any accredited investor can join, regardless of affiliation with Lyft), he started to notice a trend. There were folks from all over the world, all professional backgrounds, who were investing alongside them. These folks didn't have access to a network, the knowledge, and the guidance that he was lucky to have.So, in October 2020, less than a year into the pandemic, he quit his job and joined Hustle Fund – his favorite early-stage VC – to build Angel Squad. The results were pretty phenomenal. In 2.5 years, 1,400+ people joined Angel Squad, and as a group, they have invested $21M+ in 50+ startups. They have reporters, scientists, founders, and students from all over the world in their community.Follow Us!Brian Nichols: @b_nicks11Read Hustle Fund's Angel Investing Starter Kit HEREErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we’re talking all things community design with the expert on all things community, Gina Bianchini. In this explained episode, Erica and Gina chat through the founding story of Mighty Networks (Gina's company), her community design framework, the difference between a community and an audience, and so much more. Gina gives a masterclass on how to build a scalable, self-sustaining community.Gina Bianchini is the Founder & CEO of Mighty Networks. Her mission at Mighty Networks is to usher in a new era of digital businesses built on network effects. Mighty Networks serves small and medium businesses that offer digital memberships, online courses, community, and subscriptions–all offered in one place under their brand, instantly available on every platform.Before Mighty Networks, Gina and Netscape co-founder Marc Andreessen launched Ning, a pioneering global platform for creating niche social networks. Under her leadership, Ning grew to ~100 million people in 300,000 active social networks across subcultures, professional networks, entertainment, politics, and education. It was sold for $150M in 2010.In addition to Mighty Networks, Gina serves as a board director of TEGNA (NYSE: TGNA), a $2.7 billion dollar broadcast and digital media company, and served as a board director of Scripps Networks (NASDAQ: SNI), a $14.6 billion dollar public company which owned HGTV, The Food Network, and The Travel Channel that was purchased by Discovery Communications in 2018.Gina and Mighty Networks have been featured in Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Wired, Vanity Fair, Bloomberg, and The New York Times. She has appeared on Charlie Rose, CNBC, and CNN. She grew up in Cupertino, California, graduated with honors from Stanford University, started her career in the nascent High Technology Group at Goldman, Sachs & Co., and received her M.B.A from Stanford Business School.Follow Us!Gina Bianchini: @ginabMighty Networks: @mightynetworksBuy her book Purpose: Design a Community and Change Your Life---A Step-by-Step Guide to Finding Your Purpose and Making It Matter HEREErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we’re talking the membership economy with the knowledgable expert, Robbie Kellman Baxter. In this explained episode, Erica and Robbie chat through what exactly the membership economy is, why Robbie thinks those companies are best set up for success in the coming decade, and how Robbie coins terminology that the industry adopts. She has a fascinating path starting off in consulting and carving her niche as the world's expert on the membership economy.Robbie Kellman Baxter helps companies leverage subscription pricing, digital communities, and freemium models to build deeper relationships with customers. Over the past 21 years, she has worked with over 100 organizations in over 20 industries like the National Basketball Association, Hagerty, The Wall Street Journal, Microsoft, and Ingram Micro.  As a keynote speaker, she has presented globally at major conferences, association meetings, trade shows and elite universities as well as to private audiences at many of the world's most well-known companies. She hosts the podcast, “Subscription Stories,” where she sits down with business leaders to discuss how they’re using subscription pricing and membership models to redefine the biggest industries and generate predictable recurring revenue. Robbie has also developed and taught nine video courses for LinkedIn Learning on business topics ranging from innovation to customer success and membership.Her first book, “The Membership Economy: Find Your Superusers, Master the Forever Transaction & Build Recurring Revenue,” anticipated and defined the massive transformation from ownership to membership and the rise of subscription pricing. It was named a top 10 marketing book of all time by BookAuthority. Her second book, “The Forever Transaction,” takes readers through every step of the subscription business process – from initial start-up or testing of a new model to scaling the operation for long-term growth and sustainability. Prior to launching Peninsula Strategies, Robbie was a strategy consultant at Booz-Allen & Hamilton, a New York City Urban Fellow, and a Silicon Valley product marketer. She received her MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and graduated with honors from Harvard College. Twentysomethings, tune in now for a jam-packed chat on all things membership economy.Follow Us!Robbie Kellman Baxter: @robbiebaxBuy The Membership Economy hereBuy The Forever Transaction hereErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we chat with Lee Anne Grant! Lee Anne has been an executive at various consumer companies and has launched numerous new products and businesses in her career. She’s passionate about helping companies grow revenue in a profitable, thoughtful, and aggressive way.Currently, Lee Anne Grant manages the sales and marketing team at Babylist, the leading vertical marketplace and commerce destination for baby- responsible for driving profitable revenue through community growth, partnerships, and the development of new products. (Babylist is now driving purchases for over 9M people each year.) She uses her extensive experience in performance and brand marketing to optimize an eight-figure marketing budget with content and brand strategies that support an industry-leading NPS score. A true sleeping giant, Babylist has built a nearly $300M business around baby registries, transforming from a simple baby registry website to a multi-faceted marketplace encompassing e-commerce, content creation, and healthcare resources for the entire family graph.Her greatest passion lies in helping people feel good. She prides herself on being a wellness enthusiast: She’s completed an Ironman and 4 marathons and is a certified yoga instructor and trans-Tahoe swimmer.Follow Us!Lee Anne Grant: Linkedin hereBabylist: website hereErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we’re talking fundraising with the enthusiastic storytelling expert, Robbie Crabtree. In this explained episode, Erica and Robbie chat through Robbie's fascinating story and his advice for founders who plan to or are actively fundraising. He gives away a lot of his proprietary tips in this episode that he normally reserves just for his clients. If you are a founder or VC raising $ anytime soon, you don't want to miss this episode!Robbie Crabtree spent the first seven years of his career as a trial lawyer in Dallas, TX where he tried 102 jury trials. He specialized in violent felonies like robberies and murders before moving into the special crimes unit focused on child abuse cases. During his 16 months in that unit he tried cases of child sexual abuse, child physical abuse, and child death cases. After 7 years as a trial lawyer, he left the legal world behind to work in the tech industry. He first founded an edtech startup around public speaking for tech company executives and leadership that was acquired by On Deck at the end of 2020. Since that acquisition he’s founded Competitive Storytelling and turned it into the premier storytelling practice for founders, CEOs, and other leaders inside of the tech and venture capital world. Over the past 2 years, Robbie has trained thousands of these leaders from startups all the way to large public companies to help them become world-class storytellers.Founders and CEOs that he’s privately coached have raised over $575 million dollars and been backed by the biggest venture capital funds in the world. His approach to storytelling and fundraising comes directly from his experience as a trial lawyer which is why he’s regularly asked to speak across the world on the subject. He’s spoken at Stanford University multiple times where he’s addressed the funding gap for minority and female founders while providing a roadmap for how capital allocators and founders can change that dynamic. Robbie is also the author of the upcoming book titled Competitive Storytelling: Raise Capital, Win Influence, and Shape the Future.Twentysomethings, tune in now for a jam-packed chat on all things fundraising.Follow Us!Robbie Crabtree: @robbiecrabCompetitive Storytelling: website hereErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week our host, Erica Wenger, chats about one of the questions she gets asked most often... how to break into venture capital?On this episode Erica talks through why someone would want to break into the industry, what types of people would thrive and in what roles (hint: pretty much anyone can find their place!), and my miscellaneous tips for someone who has that as a future goal. I share the behind-the-scenes on how I did it (working for a fund and then starting my own) and all the other ways you can get exposure to the industry before officially taking a full-time job.For anyone thinking about becoming an investor or wanting to break into VC, this episode is for you!Follow Us!Erica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething

This week we chat with fellow twin, Ali Partovi! Ali Partovi is CEO of Neo, a diverse community of tech veterans coming together to invest in the leaders of tomorrow. Neo identifies awesome undergrads, connects them with other community members, and invests in companies they start or join. Ali was born in Tehran and lived through the Iran-Iraq war. He studied CS at Harvard. His first startup, LinkExchange, was acquired in 1998. He has backed Airbnb, Dropbox, Facebook, & Uber. He co-founded Code.org to promote CS education. Ali is passionate about sustainable food and loves climbing, guitar, puzzles, and family.Ali is a legend in the Silicon Valley ecosystem who started building businesses at a very young age. He gives fascinating advice in this episode for very entrepreneurial individuals and very technical individuals on how they should approach their early career decisions. Lots of gems in this one. Enjoy!Follow Us!Ali Partovi: @apartoviNeo: @neoCode.org: website hereErica Wenger: @erica_wengerDear Twentysomething: @deartwentysomething