VCedia: Venture Capital l Entrepreneurship | Ecosystems

Today I’m so excited to talk with Mio Yamamoto.

Mio is the co-founder and Executive Director of World in Tohoku.

Mio has more than twelve years of experience in providing high-impact social entrepreneurs with management, capacity building, and funding support. Along with her experience in marketing, sales, and strategy consulting in the private sector, she is building a platform where leaders from private, public, and civic sectors promote cross-sector, cross-border collaborations to accelerate social change.

In the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake, she co-founded WIT (World in Tohoku, formerly WIA) to support social entrepreneurs in the disaster-affected area. As Executive Director of WIT, she is providing management, funding, and impact assessment support to nine social entrepreneurs in such areas as education, job creation for disabled persons and ethnic minorities, and citizen-led community development.

Before founding WIA, Mio was Partner of SVP Tokyo, a venture philanthropy organization for more than 7 years. She helped the launch of an agricultural social venture and led knowledge sharing between SVPs in the US and SVP Tokyo around issues on social innovation, venture philanthropy, social impact assessment, and etc.

Mio received an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management, and BA with a major in International Relations from the University of Tokyo. She worked for McKinsey & Co. as Summer Associate, and Sumitomo Chemical as Marketing and Sales Rep.

Mio spends her time in Japan and Boston with her husband and a cat. She loves volunteering in farms, and designing and sewing dresses.

Episode Mentions:

World in Tohoku

Startup Studio Model Episode

Asks, Challenges, and Goals:

"We are looking for funders, business professionals and impact organizations who would like to get involved in the cross-boundary leadership initiatives!"

VCedia and Host Info/Promos:

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com. You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups:

https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests:

https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I’m so excited to talk with Lucy Svoboda, Ali Lauer, and Soha Yasrebi, three of the four co-founders of Galvanizer. Galvanizer is a start-up community tackling the female founder gap with the mission to encourage more women to take the leap into entrepreneurship.

Lucy, Ali, and Soha are all Stanford GSB Class of 2021. Previously Lucy was Chief of Staff at Nearpod, Ali was a VC at Adam Street Partners, and Soha was a VC at OMERS Ventures.

Episode Mentions:

Galvanizer

Manifesto for a Moral Revolution: Practices to Build a Better World by Jacqueline Novagratz

Great chocolate chip cookies in Palo Alto! Antoine’s Cookie Shop 

VCedia and Host Info/Promos:

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com. You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups:

https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests:

https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I’m so excited to talk with Risa Ishii.

Risa is a Senior Partnerships Manager at Plug and Play Tech Center, the world’s largest early stage investor, accelerator and corporate innovation platform.  They have close to 40 locations around the world, making over 250 investments a year. Bridging startups and corporations in Japan with the rest of the world, Risa focuses on Smart Cities which includes mobility, real estate, energy industries, and more.  She oversees corporations' strategies and supports them in accelerating their innovation activities in the Bay Area, sometimes setting up their innovation roadmaps and providing related industry expertise.

Risa shares valuable insights on multiple facets of engaging with Japanese corporations, exciting events from the past year, and how Japanese young professionals can thrive outside of Japan.

Now let’s get started.

Episode Mentions:

Plug and Play Tech Center

Asks, Challenges, and Goals:

“My goal is to see as many Japanese young professionals as possible, thriving outside of the country. Whether it's government sector, private sector, startups or academic field, I see almost no Japanese population compared to the rest of Asia here in Silicon Valley. This is even more true for the younger generation and I really think that Japan has so much potential if we can allocate assets and provide opportunities for the younger generations seek these career paths. After then, Tokyo and then eventually the entire Japan will be the ranked as one of the most innovative countries.”

VCedia and Host Info/Promos:

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com. You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups:

https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests:

https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I’m very excited to talk with Nana Britwum and Jannice Newson, co-founders of Lillian Augusta.

Nana and Jannice are social entrepreneurs creating hair solutions for Black women. Frustrated with their own experiences of irritation in wearing braiding hair, they decided to innovate and make a high quality and sustainable alternative to the traditional plastic braiding hair found in beauty supply stores across the country. Their plant-based braiding hair is just the beginning to becoming the premier company for sustainable Black hair care products.

Episode Mentions:

Lillian Augusta

Take their survey to win!

Connect with Lillian Augusta!

Twitter @lilaugustahair | Instagram @lillianaugustahair | Facebook @lillianaugustahair

For questions, please contact [email protected].

Asks, Challenges, and Goals:

1. We are looking to expand our team with a textile engineering position and a supply chain management position. Anyone interested please reach out!

2. Take our survey for a chance to win a $25 gift card.

VCedia and Host Info/Promos:

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com. You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups:

https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests:

https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music:

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I’m so excited to talk with Aishwarya Vardhana.

Aishwarya is a product designer, visual artist, and writer interested in developing and practicing decolonial design thinking. Aishwarya published an incredible article on the Decolonial Design Thinking framework she is developing. Today, we discuss her experience with design, Decolonial Design Thinking, expanding what it means to be a designer (hint: It’s you!), and more. This is an awesome and ongoing conversation. If you’re energized by what you hear today and want to get involved, be especially sure to check out the episode description to learn how you can connect with Aishwarya on the topics discussed today.

Now let’s get started.

Episode Mentions:

Decolonial Design Thinking

Asks, Challenges, and Goals:

1. My primary goal is for my design practice to be done in community with others. Anyone who is listening, if this effort interests you and you want to be involved, email me at [email protected] or DM me on IG @shweeze.

2. If anyone listening has experience founding a design studio or a nonprofit, please reach out.

3. Follow me on IG @shweeze to stay tapped into the movement.

VCedia and Host Info/Promos:

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com.

You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups:

https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests:

https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I’m excited to talk with Bob Mason! Bob is a Managing Partner at Argon Ventures, leading pre-seed stage investments in Boston with a mission to amplify founder energy to launch cutting-edge software products and build impactful, global businesses. He has been a Managing Partner at Project 11 Ventures and was previously part of the Techstars Boston investment committee. His portfolio includes over 50 startups and access to a network of hundreds of founders.

Before his career as an investor, Bob helped found and build industry-shifting products and businesses for two highly successful public companies: ATG, a leading e-commerce and personalization platform, and Brightcove, the market-leading online video platform for enterprise and premium media. In both roles he provided engineering and product leadership in support of the companies’ vision and strategy.

Bob received the Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 1994 and currently sits on the WPI Department of Computer Science Board of Advisors and mentors founders through the WPI Tech Advisor Network.

Episode Mentions:

https://www.argon.vc

Venture diversity is burdened by the unnecessary need for wealth.

VCedia and Host Info/Promos

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com. You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups:

https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests:

https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I am so excited to talk with Rafid Sikder and Farhan Kathawala of Passed Plates.

Rafid is one of the cofounders of Passed Plates - an app where you can rescue delicious surplus food from restaurants, bakeries, supermarkets, and cafe’s nearby at 50% off or more. They’re relatively new and just launched in SF this year. Their goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions emitted into the atmosphere from food waste. Rafid holds a BS in applied mathematics and environmental science from UC Riverside with a MS in computational and mathematical engineering from Stanford. In his spare time you can catch him skateboarding in the streets of SF, surfing, or playing guitar around the Bay.

Farhan is a full stack developer and handles everything engineering related to Passed Plates. He received his Computer Science degree from Stanford in 2017, and he feels fortunate that his main hobby, programming, is also his day job.

Rafid and Farhan are a great team tackling an incredible mission. This conversation is fun, informative, and motivating. 

Episode Mentions:

https://passedplates.com

https://www.serialreader.org/

Asks, Challenges, and Goals  

Feel free to leave a 5 star review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vcedia-venture-capital-l-entrepreneurship-ecosystems/id1536946802

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com.

You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups: https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests: https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I am so excited to talk with Stephane E. Fouche. Born in Montreal, Canada but raised in Haiti, Stephane graduated from Harvard University. At the age of 12, he moved to New York, USA due to Haiti's political instability.   Utilizing the Japanese Education Ministry's sponsored study-abroad scholarship - MEXT, Stephane studied for one year at Kyushu University.   During his time in Japan, he interned/worked at Tokyo Gas, Active Learning, Rakuten, and Monex Securities, and became the youngest manager at DMM.com.   From the Chairman's Office, Stephane established the DMM.com Strategic Partnership department in order to build a Global Partnership/Ecosystem program geared towards start-ups.  As the Expansion Manager for DMM.Africa, he oversaw the launch of the DMM.com sponsoredABIC/African Business Idea Cups in Rwanda, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Tanzania. Before leaving DMM.com, Stephane oversaw the organization's Global Branding Strategy & Corporate Social Responsibility agenda. Currently, Stephane is the Honorary Representative of Harvard College Japan Initiative and the Representative Director of Komatsu Summer School. He servers as an advisor to the Ministry of Education's MEXT Scholars Association,Taktopia Co., Ltd. and fabbit Co., Ltd.  He is the Founder & CEO of the Consulting Firm HAKO, LLC focused Crisis Management, Branding & Strategic Partnerships. 

Stephane is also a consultant for 500 Startups, working on government projects.

Stéphane E. Fouché（フシェ・ステファン）  カナダのモントリオール生まれ、ハイチ育ち。ハーバード大学卒。12歳の頃、ハイチの政変でアメリカのニューヨークへ移住。  九州大学の国費外国人留学制度を活用し、日本の在住経験もある。東京ガス、アクティブラーニング社、楽天、マネックス証券に、社員もしくはインターンとして勤務し、DMM.comでの最年少のマネージャー就任。会長室内にDMM.comの戦略的パートナーシップ部門を設立し、スタートアップ企業などを支援してグローバルなエコシステムを構築すべく、DMM.Africa部門でルワンダ、ケニア、ザンビア、タンザニアのABIC・アフリカビジネスアイデアカップを立ち上げの成功に主導的役割を果たした後、DMM.Strategy部門でDMM.comのグローバル化およびブランド化戦略や、企業としての社会的責任遂行を監督。Harvard College Japan Initiativeの名誉代表、Komatsu Summer Schoolの代表理事。文部科学省国費留学生協会・MEXT Scholars Associationと㈱Taktopiaとfabbit ㈱のアドバイザー。ただいま、合同会社HAKOのファウンダーとCEOとして活躍。

Episode Mentions:

https://www.myhako.co

https://fabbit.co.jp

Feel free to leave a 5 star review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vcedia-venture-capital-l-entrepreneurship-ecosystems/id1536946802

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com.

You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups: https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests: https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Today I’m excited to talk with Lia Camargo! Lia is a bilingual project manager and translator with experience supporting the global expansion of early stage startups. She graduated from Wellesley College (Massachusetts, USA) with a B.A. in Women's and Gender Studies. At the Cambridge Innovation Center, she facilitated R&D collaboration between Boston-based startups and multinational corporations focusing on biotechnological innovation. Lia is passionate about making emerging femtech products and services available to users in Japan, and currently supports Tokyo- and Singapore-based startup, fermata inc., as Global Business Manager.

This is a really fun and informative conversation I know you’ll enjoy.

Episode Mentions: https://hellofermata.com

Feel free to leave a 5 star review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/vcedia-venture-capital-l-entrepreneurship-ecosystems/id1536946802

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTube, and on our website at www.vcedia.com.

You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole!

Know someone who should be on VCedia? Let us know here!

For startups: https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests: https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018

Our guest today is Ilse Calderon. Ilse is a senior associate at OVO Fund. She has been at OVO for the past 2.5 years and was previously at Silicon Valley Bank doing venture debt. OVO Fund is a pre-seed fund ($35MM) based in the Bay Area where they like to invest ($250k to $500k) in the earliest of founders (pre-product, pre-rev, pre-product market fit, etc) across capital efficient sectors. Ilse would love for founders targeting the U.S. Hispanic youth audience as well as underrepresented founders in the earliest stage of their startup journey to contact her!

Episode Mentions:

AWESOME articles on the Hypercultural Latinx:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/nancyleesanchez/2020/11/09/meet-the-hypercultural-latinx-community-a-mexican-american-stanford-university-graduate-shows-why-we-must-invest-in-the-youngest-and-most-diverse-communities-in-the-us/?sh=4b8ec7b945fd 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/ilsecalderon/2020/10/26/how-startups-can-successfully-target-the-hypercultural-latinx/?sh=2f9e7d6b1b0c 

https://techcrunch.com/2020/09/30/brands-building-for-scale-should-look-to-hypercultural-latinx-consumers/  

https://www.forbes.com/sites/pamdanziger/2020/09/20/biden-was-right-the-diversity-of-the-hispanic-market-creates-confusion-for-brands/?sh=278f76eaf3b9 https://techcrunch.com/2020/07/18/investing-in-the-hidden-generation/

https://www.fastcompany.com/90548164/by-ignoring-this-community-venture-capitalists-are-missing-out

OVO Fund: https://www.ovofund.com

American Kingpin: https://www.amazon.com/American-Kingpin-Criminal-Mastermind-Behind/dp/1591848148

Follow VCedia @the_vcedia on Twitter and Instagram, The VCedia on YouTuve, and on our website at www.vcedia.com. 

You can also follow the host Schyler Cole on Twitter at @SchylerCole! Know someone who should be on VCedia?

Let us know here!

For startups: https://forms.gle/8ESnmJf4XNRL5W1A6

For other guests: https://forms.gle/LbTvrUUbXW1YiAPP7

Music:

Intro/Outro - Instafunk - Premium Beats

Intermission - hard animal crossing type beat by vanity - https://soundcloud.com/11182018