Consumer VC

Our guest today is Gail Becker, founder of CAULIPOWER, the most disruptive company in the better-for-you frozen food space named as one of the top 10 World’s Most Innovative Food Companies in 2022 by Fast Company. The hyper-growth company reached more than $100m in revenue in three years under her leadership as CEO. We discuss how and why she left corporate America to start Caulipower, her approach to growth through retail, how she thought about fundraising and managing her cap table, what capital efficiently means to her and product expansion. Without further ado, here’s Gail.

On this episode of the Consumer VC podcast, we are joined by Kevin Parakkattu, partner at Plug Play Ventures, for an intriguing exploration of the rapidly evolving landscape of the media industry, particularly the rise of GenAI. Kevin and I talk about the potential of AI to replace writers' jobs in the future and the potential legal implications surrounding the use of AI-generated content. 

We then turn our attention to the commerce industry, discussing the challenges that direct-to-consumer brands face, such as inventory overstock and cost-cutting. Kevin provides insights into the need for working capital, growth opportunities in the venture capital space, and how Plug Play Ventures has been able to create value for their investments. We also delve into the changing multiples of direct-to-consumer brands and the criteria for investing in pre-revenue consumer brands.

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Our guest today is Helene Servillon, Founder of JourneyOne Ventures. JourneyOne Ventures is a 100% woman and minority-owned early-stage fund that invests in the billion-dollar opportunities of misunderstood markets that are highly regulated and fragmented.

We discuss:

• The opportunity to invest in cannabis companies
• Different regulations within cannabis
• How she built her LP network
• Other “vice” industries she finds attractive
• Why she’s more focused on infrastructure than brands

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Our guest today is Matt Alexander, founder & CEO of Neighborhood Goods. A new type of department store, featuring an ever-changing landscape of the world's most thoughtful, progressive, and exciting brands. This was a live podcast episode in Dallas that we did a few weeks back. Really want to thank RevTech Ventures for hosting us. Without further ado, here’s Matt.

The Consumer VC represents the opinions and beliefs of Michael Gelb and does not reflect the opinions and beliefs of Manufactured Networks, Inc. 

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This issue is brought to you by Vauban from Carta. Vauban from Carta is the easiest way to launch & run your venture investing. They offer SPVs, and fund vehicles for GPs at all stages of the journey - from your first syndicate to operating a multi-million dollar venture fund. Their end-to-end platform automates your back-office and manual workflows so you can focus on what matters: finding the next unicorn & building investor relationships.

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Thank you to my brother, Rob Gelb for the introduction to our guest today, Nigel Eccles, Co-Founder of Vault. Vault is introducing Digital Music Collectibles as a new format for collecting exclusive, authenticated, limited-run collectibles from your favorite artists. This episode brought me back, I worked in music for the first few years in my career and am an avid music listener. Previously, Nigel co-founded and was the CEO of FanDuel and is the #1 sportsbook in the US, a leading daily fantasy sports platform. We discuss why he left FanDuel and got into crypto, how artists  are currently monetizing their music and the void that Vault fills, the type of artist they are looking to attract and how he thinks about fandom in the digital age.

The Consumer VC represents the opinions and beliefs of Michael Gelb and does not reflect the opinions and beliefs of Manufactured Networks, Inc. 

**Sponsor***

This issue is brought to you by Vauban from Carta. Vauban from Carta is the easiest way to launch & run your venture investing. They offer SPVs, and fund vehicles for GPs at all stages of the journey - from your first syndicate to operating a multi-million dollar venture fund. Their end-to-end platform automates your back-office and manual workflows so you can focus on what matters: finding the next unicorn & building investor relationships.

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We have two amazing investors on the show today who just came off raising their second fund at $34 million fund. We have Kiva Dickinson, our first non-named Mike second time guest, and Madeline Kaplan from Selva Ventures. Selva Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm dedicated to partnering with consumer brands that promote healthier living. We discuss how fund 2 is different to fund 1, the difference between and clean and clinically backed beauty and personal care brands, do they value one dollar of online revenue more than a dollar earned in retail and much more.

The Consumer VC represents the opinions and beliefs of Michael Gelb and does not reflect the opinions and beliefs of Manufactured Networks, Inc. 

**Sponsor***

This issue is brought to you by Vauban from Carta. Vauban from Carta is the easiest way to launch & run your venture investing. They offer SPVs, and fund vehicles for GPs at all stages of the journey - from your first syndicate to operating a multi-million dollar venture fund. Their end-to-end platform automates your back-office and manual workflows so you can focus on what matters: finding the next unicorn & building investor relationships.

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Our guest today is Rakesh Narayana, who is the General Manager of Access VC. Access is the venture capital arm of Reckitt. Reckitt is a publicly traded consumer goods conglomerate focused on the hygiene, health and nutrition spaces. You probably recongize their brands Lysol, Dettol, and Calgon. So Access VC is their venture arm that Rakesh leads, some of their investments include Beekeeper’s Naturals, Maude, and Future Method. In this episode, we’re going to talk about how Access VC approaches their investments since corporate venture capital in general typically doesn’t have the best reputation and we’re going to be speaking about how Access VC is taking a different approach, how they make investments and think about exit potential.

**Sponsor***

This issue is brought to you by Vauban from Carta. Vauban from Carta is the easiest way to launch & run your venture investing. They offer SPVs, and fund vehicles for GPs at all stages of the journey - from your first syndicate to operating a multi-million dollar venture fund. Their end-to-end platform automates your back-office and manual workflows so you can focus on what matters: finding the next unicorn & building investor relationships.

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Our guest today is Andrew Blackmon, Co-Founder and CEO of The Black Tux. The Black Tux is reinventing formalwear. We design and manufacture modern suits and tuxedos for rent or keeps. We discuss why Andrew decided to start a DTC rental tuxedo business in the first place, how he thinks about size, fit, standardization vs. customization, the growth avenues, how they are influenced by fashion trends and much more.

***Sponsor***

This issue is brought to you by Vauban from Carta. Vauban from Carta is the easiest way to launch & run your venture investing. They offer SPVs, and fund vehicles for GPs at all stages of the journey - from your first syndicate to operating a multi-million dollar venture fund. Their end-to-end platform automates your back-office and manual workflows so you can focus on what matters: finding the next unicorn & building investor relationships.

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Thank you CJ Fowler at Goat Rodeo Capital for the introduction to our guest today, Melissa Facchina, Co-Founder & Co-Managing Partner of Siddhi Capital. Siddhi Capital is an operationally-focused food and beverage growth equity firm. Their portfolio includes Mid-Day Squares, Aura Bora (who both have been on the show) Copper Cow Coffee, Mud/Wtr, Magic Spoon, Momofuku Goods. I had a blast chatting with Melissa about her story, what makes great entrepreneurs in the food & bev space and do great entrepreneurs have to be great operators and much more.

***Sponsor***

This issue is brought to you by Vauban from Carta. Vauban from Carta is the easiest way to launch & run your venture investing. They offer SPVs, and fund vehicles for GPs at all stages of the journey - from your first syndicate to operating a multi-million dollar venture fund. Their end-to-end platform automates your back-office and manual workflows so you can focus on what matters: finding the next unicorn & building investor relationships.

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Our guest today is Chaz Flexman, who is the founder & CEO of Starday. Starday is a next-generation food conglomerate that uses data science to predict product-market fit and create food brands. We discuss why he left Pattern Brands to go into food, how they create and launch new products very cheaply, how they think about data and trends and different categories to enter, and building relationships with retailers.

***Sponsor***

This issue is brought to you by Vauban from Carta. Vauban from Carta is the easiest way to launch & run your venture investing. They offer SPVs, and fund vehicles for GPs at all stages of the journey - from your first syndicate to operating a multi-million dollar venture fund. Their end-to-end platform automates your back-office and manual workflows so you can focus on what matters: finding the next unicorn & building investor relationships.

Click Here to Get Started - https://structurer.vauban.io/