Annie Evans is the founder and CEO of Dream Ventures, a boutique fund that invests in the most promising founders striving to positively impact the world. Dream Ventures’s portfolio includes theSkoop, House of Wise, DORE, MOONS, and many others. Before founding Dream Ventures, Annie co-founded Beautified, a geo-located app that finds and books on-demand beauty and fitness services. With a Bachelor of Arts degree in Corporate Communications from Elon University, Annie understands consumer behavior and the essential role of B2B partnerships in turning great ideas into thriving companies.

Annie joins us today to share her journey from sleeping on her friends’ couches while bootstrapping her first business to helping the most promising founders through her boutique investment fund platform. She describes how she once converted her first customers into early investors and explains what makes a great investment pitch. She also shares her three essential tips on creating an operating agreement with business partners and explains how to make the fundraising process approachable for every Entreprenista.

“Fundraising is sales: The first step is research, followed by good, old fashioned organization.” - Annie Evans

This week on the Entreprenista Podcast:

Annie’s first venture and how it led her to found Dream VenturesHer experience getting an investor and raising money for the first timeHow the early customers of her first business turned into angel investorsWhy her first company went out of business and the lessons she learned from the experienceWhat founders need to think about when finding business partnersThe importance of having a great business attorney and how they can help you with creating operating agreementsWhy Annie decided to move forward and start another business after the failure of her firstWhat Dream Ventures is and how it can help Entreprenistas raise funds for their dream businessesHow Annie raised $50,000 in over a month on IFundWomenSelling your vision, creating an experience for investors, and Annie’s advice on delivering the best business pitches on ZoomHow Dream Ventures can help every Entreprenista through their fundraising processThe most challenging part about founding a business without a business partnerFinding angels for IFundWomen and how Annie raised $2 million in 60 days for the platform

Resources Mentioned:

Book: Backable: The Surprising Truth Behind What Makes People Take a Chance on You by Suneel GuptaBook: Pick Three: You Can Have It All by Randi ZuckerbergIFundWomenHouse of WiseStripe PaymentsSPV Sisters

Our Favorite Quotes:

“Determine how much equity you need to set you up for success. Negotiate the right equity to give yourself voting rights.” - Annie Evans“Always do a reference check on anybody you’re going to business with. Look at where they worked and how they handle tough situations.” - Annie Evans“When you’re doing the operating agreement, outline how you make decisions; it’s inevitable that not everybody’s going to agree on decisions.” - Annie Evans

Connect with Annie Evans:

Dream VenturesDream Ventures on LinkedInDream Ventures on InstagramAnnie Evans on LinkedInEmail: [email protected]

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