Tank Talks By Ripple Ventures

John Ruffolo and Matt Cohen convene an emergency news rundown to discuss the recent OpenAI news.(00:22) OpenAI's Board’s surprise ousting of CEO Sam Altman(01:07) Impact on investors like Microsoft and Silicon Valley figures(01:29) Perspectives on OpenAI's dramatic changes(03:21) Criticism of OpenAI's governance approach(04:46) Exploration of OpenAI’s corporate structure(06:28) Implications for Microsoft and Tech Industry(07:54) Leadership dynamics and legal aspects(08:32) John's experience at the APEC Summit and discussions on AI and geopolitics.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

There’s a term of art in the business world—dogfooding. It means if you’re going to propose a solution, you should use that same solution to help better understand problems the end user may encounter. Our guest today is familiar with dogfooding, both as a business process and from literally making food for pets. Isaac Langleben made the leap from consulting to leading Open Farm, a sustainable pet food business. We talk about that leap, the Canadian Startup Scene and have a news roundup with John Ruffolo.About Isaac Langleben: Isaac Langleben is the CEO and Co-Founder of Open Farm, a premium pet food brand on a mission to deliver exceptional pet nutrition while driving a positive impact on animals and the planet. Isaac leads Open Farm’s team across Canada and the US in bringing innovative, healthy products to pets through over 6,000 pet stores & online. A serial entrepreneur, Isaac has also co-founded two other pet product companies – Canada Pooch, a leading pet accessories company and Diggs, an innovative pet supplies company.Prior to being a pet entrepreneur, Isaac was at Clairvest Inc, a Toronto-based private equity firm with over $2.4 billion of equity capital under management, and a consultant at Boston Consulting Group.He has two bachelor’s degrees from McGill University.In this episode, we discuss:(01:02) News rundown with John Ruffolo(02:08) Developments and challenges in quantum computing(04:18) Analysis of Microsoft's investment strategies(06:12) Microsoft's approach to innovation in technology(07:24) OpenAI's expansion and its implications(08:12) Challenges and opportunities in AI and consumer technology(10:26) Impact of GPT-4 Turbo on AI development(11:06) Competitive landscape in AI startups(12:58) New AI technologies and privacy concerns(14:07) Role of AI in modern technology trends(15:21) Isaac's journey from law to pet food industry leadership(17:13) His private equity experience and insights into the pet industry(18:44) Evolution of the pet food industry(21:02) Strategies for scaling and diversifying in the pet industry(23:41) Challenges and opportunities in business growth(26:18) Different investment and growth approaches(28:18) Open Farm's commitment to sustainability(30:21) Challenges in global expansion and market entry(32:20) Strategies for customer base expansion in the U.S.(34:22) Open Farm's future growth and sustainability goals(36:15) Alignment of Open Farm's mission with business objectives(38:44) Role of investors and strategic partnerships in business growth(41:51) The Canadian startup ecosystem(44:29) Encouraging entrepreneurship in Canada(47:20) Navigating supply chain challenges during COVID-19(49:38) Isaac's advocacy and educational initiativesFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Ringer NBA and Bill Simmons* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Axios* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Traeger Timberline* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Return to work and Brazilian jujitsu* 📚- Favorite Book: Every Night is Pizza Night* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: If you see something, just go for itFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

On Today’s episode, we dive into the world of Family Office Investing with Ronald Shon from REDDS Capital.We talked about to him the beginnings of his family's real estate empire, the Shon Group, which flourished in Vancouver since 1954. Following his education at Stanford and Wharton, Ron took the helm of the business after his father's untimely passing, eventually diversifying into technology and venture capital investments, driven by a pivotal investment in Apple stock that revealed the limitations of real estate compared to institutional investing.Today, as the head of REDDS Capital, Ron emphasizes their distinctive approach to startup assessment, not only providing financial backing but also offering strategic guidance and networking support to foster innovation and growth within their portfolio companies.About Ronald Shon: Ronald Shon Chair & GP of REDDS Capital in Vancouver. He has investments in technology, education, real estate, natural resources, fashion, private equity, and venture capital primarily in North America and Asia. He was a founding shareholder of Salman Partners Inc. an independent boutique investment banking firm that has raised over $20 billion CDN.In this episode, we discuss:(01:11) News Round-Up with John Ruffolo(18:32) Ron Shon's Journey into Real Estate and Investment(21:14) Transition from Real Estate to Technology and VC Investments(23:50) How Ron’s international worldview impacted his perspective in Vancouver(25:18) Insights on Real Estate Development and Challenges(31:09) Investing in Technology and Venture Capital(34:50) Assessing Potential Startup Investments(39:06) Impact of Investments and Future Plans(47:50) Advice to his children and the next generation of investorsFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Fast Money* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iPhone* 📈- Favorite New Trend: AI* 📚- Favorite Book: The Fourth Industrial Revolution* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Always have a planFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

As the Canadian Tech scene expands, we often are aided by Canadians abroad who have gained experience and expertise in various aspects of startup life and culture. Our guest today is Andre Charoo, Founder and GP of Maple Ventures, which invests in founders with Canadian roots.We spoke about the lack of early-stage Canadian investors on the cap tables of successful companies like Instacart and Wish even though their founders have Canadian roots and what it was like being an early employee at both Uber and Hired.Maple started in 2016 with just $1.2m in commitments and currently has over $16M in AUM.And John Ruffolo is back to discuss the news.About Andre Charoo:Andre Charoo is the Founding Managing Partner at Maple VC, an early-stage venture capital fund based in San Francisco that backs Canadian-led companies. Andre’s deep operational expertise stems from helping to scale some of the most successful companies around, including his time as one of the first 25 employees at both Uber and Hired. He is also a Co-Chair of The C100, an influential community of Canadians in tech.In this episode, we discuss:(0:01:11) News rundown with John Ruffolo(0:14:09) Andre’s jounrey from Markham, Ontario to Silicon Valley investor(0:31:19) Lessons from being an early employee at Uber and Hired(0:38:21) The problem with Canadian investors(0:40:11) Why all successes are unique(0:43:03) How he signed on to be a Venture Partner with Inovia Capital(0:47:23) Operating from his homebase in Seoul, SK while investing in North America(0:53:39) Tools he uses to stay organized(0:55:48) How Maple’s portfolio construction has evolved(1:00:20) Demonstrat value and viability to his LPsFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Acquired* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: The Generalist* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Too many to name* 📈- Favorite New Trend: AI* 📚- Favorite Book: Shoe Dog* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Put yourself in uncomfortable situations because that's how you will growFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

The grass is always greener, as the saying goes, and when our guest today saw the opportunity to build his lawncare empire and launch GreenPal, a lawncare marketplace he jumped in with both feet and never looked back.Bryan Clayton is the Co-Founder and CEO of GreenPal, and has lived the lawn care life before. He also knew what lawn care professionals needed and what lawn care customers wanted, but he didn’t know much about launching an app.Today, GreenPal is the largest on-demand lawn care marketplace in the US with the goal to be the easiest way to book a local lawn care company for yard maintenance services at an affordable price.We talked to Bryan about his career journey, how to sell your company, and the decision to bootstrap GreenPal to $30M in GMV.About Bryan Clayton:Bryan Clayton is the Co-Founder and CEO of GreenPal, an online marketplace that connects homeowners with local lawn care professionals. GreenPal has been called the “Uber for lawn care” by Entrepreneur magazine and has over 300,000 active users completing thousands of transactions per day.Before starting GreenPal, Bryan Clayton founded Peachtree Inc., one of the largest landscaping companies in the state of Tennessee, growing it to over $10 million a year in annual revenue before it was acquired by Lusa Holdings in 2013. Bryan‘s interest and expertise are related to entrepreneurism, small business growth, marketing, and bootstrapping businesses from zero revenue to profitability and exit.In this episode, we discuss:(01:14) Bryan’s 10-year journey to being an overnight success(02:04) What building a sales process was key to his first business, Peachtree(03:22) Scaling the sales team(07:30) Deciding to sell Peachtree(10:13) How he built GreenPal differently and why they have bootstrapped(12:37) The evolution of his leadership style at GreenPal(14:42) How GreenPal solved the marketplace problem by focusing on the supply side first(17:15) Has bootstrapping effected their decision-making(23:27) How being an industry insider helped him navigate a lot of the blockers in starting GreenPal(26:33) The importance in building community in their lawn care professionals(28:23) Advice for other marketplace founders(30:29) The decision tree for his time and why he says no to many requests(34:05) Understanding a job function before you delegate(34:49) The most rewarding aspect of being an entreprenuer(36:19) What the next 10 years of GreenPal looks likeFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: All In* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Lenny’s Newsletter* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iPhone* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Large Language Models* 📚- Favorite Book: Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, The Cold Start Problem* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Walk your store.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

There are moments that can make your day-to-day life come to a halt. What happened in Israel on 10/7 is the sort of public tragedy that stops the normal course of life, it also creates an impact of devastation that will go on for years to come.These events have struck a chord with us personally as members of the Jewish community. Many of our investors and partners share this connection, whether directly or indirectly, and are being impacted by these unspeakable events.As a firm, we want to clearly state that we unequivocally stand behind Israel and its right to defend itself and its people against terrorism. In the face of terrorism or any acts of violence against our fellow communities, we will remain resolute in our support.We are grateful for the messages of concern and solidarity that we have received from both Jewish and non-Jewish founders and VC colleagues who have reached out to inquire about the safety of our family and friends during these events.In times like these, we all need to support one another.Today we welcome Itamar Novick, an operator, investor, and Israeli who founded Recursive Ventures, a firm based in Berkeley, CA.We spoke about the news he is getting from the ground in Israel and his views on what the future might hold for the country and the world. We also have John Ruffolo on to discuss the current headlines making news around the world. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Fintech regulations around the world can vary wildly, but here in Canada, they can be particularly onerous. Today someone who is no stranger to redefining and working through the complexing of Canadian regulations. Our guest is the Founder and CEO of KOHO Financial, Daniel Eberhard.Dan grew up in a tiny town in British Columbia and now runs a company with over 250 employees and $275m in financing.We talk about how bad the Canadian regulatory environment is for fintech companies and why innovation in the industry is being throttled by the government and their respective industry advisory groups.About Daniel Eberhard:Daniel Eberhard is the Founder and CEO of KOHO Financial. He started his career in 2010, building Kineticor Renewables Inc., a Saskatchewan wind farm company he and partner Andrew Plaunt began as a class project. They sold in 2011 to renewable energy giant Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. Eberhard then decided to take on Canada’s bank giants by starting Koho Financial Inc. in 2014. Koho does away with the bank fees most users pay by providing them with a free, prepaid Visa card and mobile software to do many of their transactions such as taking direct deposits, paying bills, and making electronic transfers. Koho is not a bank but has partnered with Vancouver-based Peoples Trust Company to hold clients’ money while Koho handles the user interface, earning money by taking a portion of the interchange fee that merchants pay to process credit card transactions.In this episode, we discuss:(01:11) Dan’s path to becoming an entrepreneur(05:05) Lessons he learned from his mom about business(06:53) The problems with Canada’s banking regulations(09:26) Why the name KOHO(10:40) The culture at KOHO(13:57) Finding the right fit for new hires(17:50) How EQ figures into Dan’s leadership style(20:36) The impact of coaching and therapy on his leadership(22:52) The role of coaches at KOHO(30:22) How Dan is able to focus and compartmentalize his work(32:31) Why Fintech innovation is failing in Canada(37:26) How the market for fund raising and managing capital as a startup has changed(39:20) The next five years for KOHO(41:41) Advice to new founders(44:08) Early feedback from users(45:06) KOHO’s current relationship to other bankers(45:56) Life if Dan wasn’t a founderFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Sam Harris* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Wait But Why* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Oura* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Deoptimizing your life* 📚- Favorite Book: The Lessons of History by Will and Ariel Durant* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Watching how hard his mom workedFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

We welcome Prashant Matta, General Partner at Panache Ventures.We look back at Prashant's time at OMERS Ventures, how his approach to investing and working with founders has evolved, and the lessons he learned working with some amazing investors and founders during his time there.We dig into the changes in the Canadian venture scene since Prashant entered the industry, how recent market downturns have impacted Panache Ventures' investment strategy, and why they focus on pre-seed and seed-stage investments.And lastly, we discuss the importance of diversity in startups and how Panache Ventures supports founders along the different stages of development.About Prashant Matta:Prashant Matta is a General Partner at Panache Ventures. Before joining Panache, he worked as a Principal at OMERS Ventures as a product strategist at Samsung, and as a senior management consultant at Deloitte.He's a board member at Junior Achievement and the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association and has been a mentor at Creative Destruction Lab and Techstars.He received a bachelor’s from York University and an MBA from INSEAD.In this episode, we discuss:(01:21) Prashant’s journey to becoming an investor(02:35) His time at OMERS Ventures(04:21) The importance of seeing a lot of deals to learn(05:22) Joining Panache Ventures(07:19) Panache’s place in the Canadian startup ecosystem(10:48) Why Panache focuses on early stage inversting at Pre-Seed and Seed(13:08) LPs view on joining fund II(15:25) Lessons fron the super-heated 2021 venture market(17:49) Why founders are so important to Prashant(19:09) How they source early-stage founders(22:30) The trade-off for going for YC(25:36) What is Founder Fuel(27:44) How Canada differs from other regions with its accelators(34:14) Future plans for PanacheFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: All In* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: The Algorithm* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iRobot* 📈- Favorite New Trend: 20 million post-money cash or pre-product market companies* 📚- Favorite Book: Thinking Fast and Slow* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: You've got to stay in the game before you win itFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

This week we have a titan of Private Equity and Real Estate in Canada, Jon Love the Founder and CEO of KingSett Capital.Jon shares some incredible stories from his early years of running Oxford Properties, the lessons he learned from helping the firm navigate two real estate market downturns, and how the eventual sale to OMERS came to be.Jon discusses the reasons he decided to launch KingSett Capital back in 2002, how his leadership style has evolved from his days at Oxford, and how he has been able to grow the firm’s assets to over $17B.We dig into how Canada is falling behind on many aspects of innovation, the return-to-office mandates CEOs are facing today, and his thoughts on the current political climate in Ottawa.Plus we have John Ruffolo back to talk about the week’s news.About Jon Love:Jon Love is the founder and CEO of KingSett Capital, a prominent private equity real estate investment firm. Since its inception in 2002, KingSett has impressively managed over $17 billion in assets, earning a strong reputation for its effective investment strategies across various sectors, including Growth, Income, Urban Development, Mortgage, Residential Development, and Affordable Housing.Before his leadership at KingSett, Jon had a distinguished career at Oxford Properties, beginning in 1980 and eventually becoming President in 1987 and then CEO in 1992. He notably guided Oxford's transition to a publicly traded company in 1995. In 2001, Oxford was privatized when it was acquired by the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) in a $4 billion deal.Jon actively participates in prestigious business organizations and has received numerous accolades for his leadership and academic achievements, including an Honorary Doctorate from Western University in 2016, membership in the Order of Canada (C.M.) in 2018, and prestigious awards such as the Ivey Business Leader of the Year Award and the NAIOP Rex Icon Award in 2023.In this episode, we discuss:(0:01:04) News rundown with John Ruffolo(0:21:57) Jon Love’s career journey(0:23:08) Advice his father Don Love gave him as he took over Oxford Properties(0:24:12) How Jon’s experience selling Oxford shaped his view on when to sell(0:26:47) The importance of leveling with creditors and investors(0:30:50) Why he didn’t view as a Oxford a family business(0:33:35) How Jon’s approach evolved when he started KingSett Capital(0:34:26) On second-guessing himself for starting a new business(0:35:38) Making the jump to entreprenuership(0:38:40) How KingSett works to retain talent(0:40:30) How Jon’s approach to fundraising has changed over time(0:41:16) Why no deal is too small for KingSett(0:42:18) Derisking deals to protect against broader market trends(0:44:11) What current market conditions have meant for KingSett(0:45:23) The state of equity deals(0:46:18) Why innovation is lagging in the Real Estate sector(0:48:22) The importance of ESG to Jon and KingSett(0:50:42) Thoughts on the Canadian residential Real Estate market(0:54:39) Advice to younger leaders and CEOs(0:56:15) Why face to face is important(0:57:30) How Jon uses his Family Office Jona Capital(0:58:32) Jon’s passion investments(0:59:34) Political ambitions(1:02:19) How competitive Canadian capital is in the global marketplaceFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Tank Talks* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Bloomberg News* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: His Phone* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Facetime for keeping up with family* 📚- Favorite Book: Kids books with his grandchildren* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Bet on peopleFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

We are big fans of coaching as a way to make career (and life) progress. Having a seasoned third party helping guide you through big decisions and day-to-day processes can be an invaluable edge in business. Our guest today is Joe Dunn, Principal at Cloudbreak - Executive and Founder Leadership Coaching.We dig into some of Joe’s coaching strategies when dealing with young leaders, how his coaching style sets him apart from the other CEO coaches out there, and how Joe balances emotional and rational responses when coaching founders who are struggling to find ways to drive company growth and personal development as a leader.About Joe Dunn:Joe Dunn, Principal at Cloudbreak - Executive and Founder Leadership Coaching, is a certified CTI Professional Coach known for his "Candor Coach" role with the Radical Candor team. With an impressive client roster that includes industry giants like Airbnb, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Asana, Envoy, Segment, and Plaid, Joe specializes in coaching CEOs, founders, executives, and technical leaders in the tech sector. His extensive background encompasses key early roles in three successful startups that went public and another that achieved a noteworthy $250 million sale. From humble beginnings in startup garages to a six-year stint as a product/engineering VP in a publicly traded company, Joe brings a wealth of experience spanning all stages of company growth.Joe's clients, typically founders, executives, and technical leaders, seek his guidance for personal and organizational growth. He offers expertise in various aspects of effective management, including hiring, communication, and navigating organizational change. Moreover, he helps clients uncover and transform fundamental personal patterns that drive success, making him a versatile and invaluable resource for individuals and organizations aiming to reach their next level of achievement.In this episode we discuss:(01:13) Joe’s journey to becoming a leadership coach(04:37) Parallels between coaching and parenting(07:45) Coaching founders and CEOs to be better communicators(09:50) An early experience that showed Joe the importance of a good coach(13:41) Helping founders become leaders(15:49) How surfing around the world with his son helped Joe evolve as a coach(18:03) Joe’s coaching style(22:06) Advice that Joe is giving in this current market to founders(26:13) Common traits amongst successful founders(28:21) How founders can empower their teams and delegate(30:42) What to do if delegating backfires(32:14) Advice to remain mindful and have a work-life balance as a founder(35:03) Perceptions of coaching in the marketplace(37:34) How Founders can maintain their overall focus on their long-term vision(40:03) Will AI replace coaches?Fast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Prof Galloway* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Ben Evans* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Electric Bikes* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Psychedelics* 📚- Favorite Book: Possession by A. S. Byatt* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: There's way more time than you thinkFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Building a career is a series of choices, outcomes of those choices, and then reacting to those outcomes. Sometimes a small choice can have an outsized return, sometimes the reaction to an outcome can lead you down a new path. In investing we are looking for power-law returns, the small bets that we can return exponential value.Our guest today is an investor who has seen some amazing choices turn into huge returns and even better stories to teach and entertain us. Alexander Niehenke is a Partner at Scale Venture Partners where he specializes in Vertical SaaS investing.And John Ruffolo is back to talk about the news!About Alexander Neihenke:Alex Neihenke is a Partner at Scale Venture Partners since 2017. He has focused on early investments in vertical software markets where incumbents have failed to invest in advanced technology offerings. That thesis has led to investments in Archipelago, Dusty Robotics, Motive formally KeepTruckin, Root Insurance, Scout RFP, Spruce, Proscia, and Proxy. Motive has been one of the fastest growing SaaS companies of all time; Scout RFP was acquired by Workday in late 2019 for $540M; and Root completed its IPO in late 2020.He received his bachelor’s from UC Berkeley.In this episode we discuss:(0:00:56) News rundown with John Ruffolo(0:16:27) Alexander’s path to becoming an investor(0:18:45) The effect of watching his dad work so hard(0:20:50) Alex’s experience working in the banking industry(0:24:31) How the experience at Crosslink Capital shaped his career(0:25:56) His role advising Dollar Shave Club(0:28:08) On investing in friends(0:29:46) Joining Scale Venture Partners in 2013(0:32:17) How he focused on Vertical SaaS(0:35:23) Alex’s definition of Vertical SaaS(0:36:20) Misconceptions around Vertical SaaS(0:38:11) Why there’s a misunderstanding around TAM(0:40:08) Case studies around misaligned TAM(0:44:04) Lessons from his investment in Root Insurance(0:48:59) How Scale’s outlook has evolved over the last few years(0:52:06) Why Alex invested in Ripple Portfolio company Rose Rocket(0:54:30) Rules he lives by when joining a new board(0:57:29) What makes a good board member(1:00:00) Why Alex writes about industries prior to investing in them(1:02:52) Thoughts on the AI investing craze(1:05:47) Using data to analyze massive volumes of startups and their success(1:09:16) What would he be doing if he wasn’t an investorFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: I’ll Drink To That* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Scale Studio Flash Updates* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Pokeball* 📈- Favorite New Trend: 90’s Fashion, Open Water Swimming* 📚- Favorite Book: Catch-22* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Find humor in thingsFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Liquidity for investing in Venture Capital has been a recurring topic lately. Outsized rewards from investing in early-stage companies come when you hold until an IPO or other liquidity event. But life happens and that sometimes requires LPs to sell early and as more retail investors look into becoming Venture Investors, new ways to find liquidity will become the norm.Our guest today is an expert in secondary markets for LPs, a friend of the Pod Jeff Leathers, Co-Founder and CEO of Tap, a platform designed to help facilitate secondary market sales for LP stakes in PE and Venture Capital funds.About Jeff Leathers:Jeff Leathers is the Co-Founder and CEO of Tap. Before Tap, Jeff started and led the SPV and Fund Formations businesses at Carta. He previously held Product roles at fintech companies, including Quovo (acquired by Plaid) and Bloomberg. He received his MBA from Wharton.In this episode we discuss:(01:42) Jeff’s career and journey to Co-Founding Tap(04:03) Problems he helped GPs and LPs solve while at Carta(06:23) Why he went out and founded Tap(08:21) Differences between LP secondaries and direct secondaries(10:14) Why the time is right for more secondary markets for LPs(11:55) Problems that can occur in secondary markets(14:17) Why GPs can be resistant to secondary markets(15:29) How Tap’s approach is different in the market(17:56) What are stapled transactions(18:37) Defining industry terms like tender offers, continuation, and vehicles(21:45) Making sure deals comply with regulations(23:58) What Jeff is seeing in the market right now(26:47) What’s driving the secondary market(27:45) The biggest challenges for Tap and secondary markets(30:21) What secondary buyers are looking for(34:22) The role of technology in secondary markets(37:15) Tap’s business model(39:40) Advice to LPs and GPs looking at the secondary market(41:03) Jeff’s vision for the secondary market’s futureFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Capital Allocators* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Money Stuff* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Airpods* 📈- Favorite New Trend: AI, AskPDF* 📚- Favorite Book: The Years of Lyndon Johnson* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: We just got to do everything and have faith that you will win.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

John is back! And here’s the news that he and Matt discussed:(00:21) The loss of Damien Steel at OMERS(03:38) Who will fill the void left by OMERS(05:06) Tiger Global’s mysterious liquidity memo(09:08) The importance of a long-term view of relationships with LPs(10:49) ChatGPT Enterprise(13:57) With Kleenex leaving Canada, why is it so hard for US-companies to service us?Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Want to be featured on our Tank Talks Partner Showcase Episode - Apply Here!A word from our sponsor:The team at Ripple is always focused on helping our founders and portfolio companies find the best partners to work with within the tech and venture capital ecosystem. And that is why we are so excited to announce our partnership with the incredible team at Torys LLP. When it comes to legal support and advice, the team at Torys is the best in class. Torys is a storied Canadian law firm with offices in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Halifax and New York City. Torys has been around since its founding in 1941.They have always worked closely with players across the emerging startup ecosystem in all aspects of the creation, acquisition and commercialization of businesses. They help founders determine when and how much to fundraise, how to achieve the right economic structure, how to think about board and control issues and how to successfully navigate different stages of growth. They are also advisors to VC funds, strategic investors, private equity funds and other institutional investors on fund formation and shareholder arrangements to buyouts and other exits.In fact, Torys recently acted as counsel to Maverix PE on the transformative $260M Miovision Technologies growth funding with an advisory team that included Dany Assaf, Konata Lake and Max Schwartz-Labell on that investment.So whether you are negotiating a new business arrangement or developing a new service offering, Torys helps clients seize new opportunities and build creative, market-leading business models in this fast-paced world we live in every day space.Matt Cohen sat down with Konata Lake from the firm to talk about their background and services.Visit torys.com to learn more.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

There’s a lot of talk about supporting underrepresented emerging managers and founders in the startup space, and it’s refreshing to speak with someone that’s moving beyond talk into action. Our guest today is Courtney McCrea, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Recast Capital, a platform supporting and investing in emerging managers in VC. Recast is investing that emerging managers, particularly those with diverse partnerships, that represent both an underserved market and overlooked business opportunity, and is taking a new approach to meeting the need.This was a great conversation where we talked about the state of the market, why diversity is more than just window dressing, as well as the challenges women and underrepresented GPs face in raising venture funds and how Recast Accelerate is making a difference.Also John Ruffolo is back to talk tech headlines with Matt Cohen.About Courtney McCrae:Courtney is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Recast Capital, an investment platform established to invest in and support emerging managers in venture capital, with a preference for diverse partnerships.Prior to co-founding Recast, Courtney was a Managing Director of Weathergage Capital, a fund of funds that provided its clients with access to premier venture capital, growth equity, and micro-VC partnerships. She also was involved in various private equity and finance roles at Weston Presidio, Silver Partners, Sterling Stamos, PPM America, and GE Capital.Courtney has an M.B.A. from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management and a B.A. from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. She is a member of the Kauffman Fellows Class 3.In this episode we discuss:(01:13) News rundown with John Ruffolo(18:38) Courtney McCrea’s journey to becoming an investor(20:43) How Weathergauge supprt of emerging managers evolved(22:07) Why emerging managers can outperform established managers(24:06) The decision to launch Recast(27:27) DEI stats for venture were and how is it starting to change(29:50) Early successes for Recast(32:10) How she evaluates potential managers(34:17) Advice she gives to her managers(36:10) What LPs are thinking about in the current market(41:42) Explaining risk and mitigation to her LPs(44:35) How the growth-quity landscape has evolved(46:40) What type of reporting and communication she likes to see(47:46) Advice to new investors looking to get into venture(49:46) The best career advice she’s received(50:43) What keeps Courtney motivatedFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Tank Talks* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Recast Newsletter* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iPhone* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Technology disrupting legacy industries* 📚- Favorite Book: Grit* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Be your true self and the rest will come.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Sales and RevOps are the lifeblood of successful startups (and companies in general), and because of that high-stakes nature, there is a lot of fear and confusion on how to set up and run a sales process in the best way. Our guest today is an expert on the RevOps experience, Tutt Mrasek of Fiat RevOps, who has a nearly two-decade career building and guiding companies through creating sales pipelines. And now his company Fiat is also getting into VC investing with Fiat Ventures.Tutt is a fun person to talk to about all things sales, bringing enthusiasm, charm, and insight to the hows and whats of the sales process.About Tutt Mrasek:Tutt Mrasek is the General Manager of Fiat RevOps, the revenue operations and sales consulting arm of Fiat Growth. Fiat RevOps was founded to help Sales Leaders, Sales Teams, and their companies get a more productive, happier, and healthier outcome while building for the future. With a career spanning 18+ years of having built Sales Orgs, three of which created category leaders, Tutt has seen firsthand the steps to success and failure that companies take.In this episode we discuss:(01:33) Tutt’s journey into sales and RevOps(06:43) Falling in love with the grind of sales(08:54) Defining traits of successful sales organizations(10:11) How Fiat RevOps works(11:31) How Tutt defines RevOps(16:26) Why companies need better sales infrastructure sooner than they realize(18:30) What can be done to encourage retention and career growth amongst sales teams(23:49) Some success case studies from Fiat RevOps(28:23) Commons sales issues with startups(31:51) Key components to a successful sales funnel(34:14) Leveling up your sales team(37:32) Shared mindsets that are helpful to grow sales teams(41:23) Coaching strategies and development frameworks for scaling a team(43:08) Dealing with company leadership that is focused on the wrong mindset(45:45) How Fiat Ventures, Fiat Growth, and Fiat RevOps work togetherFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Tank Talks / Armchair Expert* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: RevOps Co-op* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Anything AI right now* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Oversized Everything Clothing - Hilarious* 📚- Favorite Book: The Second Mountain * 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Don't have unrealistic Expectations & My empathy will go as far as your effortFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Finding the pulse of what’s now and what’s next is a vital part of any VC’s life. You need to see what is both practical as a business, but also what is coming up that might be worth investing time and energy to help grow. Our guest today Diana Kimball Berlin, Partner at Matrix, has only been an investor for a short stint, but she has a long track record of both product management as well as creating and curating internet culture. She founded ROFLCon, an early conference devoted to internet culture and has held product positions at some incredible companies like Microsoft, Soundcloud, and Quip.This was a great conversation where we discussed Diana’s career, Matrix’s mission and ethos as an early-stage investment fund, how they navigate the ever-evolving boundaries between sectors in the startup world, and her strategy for portfolio construction and how she navigates re-investment decisions.About Diana Kimball Berlin:Diana Berlin is an early-stage investor at Matrix with a focus on optimizing work tools, innovative apps, and scaling emotional labour. She was also a host on the "Should We" podcast.Before investing, Diana had roles at Microsoft, SoundCloud, and Quip (acquired by Salesforce). And while studying at Harvard, Diana co-founded ROFLCon one of the first internet culture conferences.She received a BA and MBA from Harvard.In this episode we discuss:(01:34) Diana’s path into tech and investing(04:35) How her degree in history helped shape her career(06:33) Lessons from Soundcloud and Quip(08:10) Differences in the Berlin Startup Scene and San Francisco’s(11:08) Diana experience co-hosting the Should We Podcast(13:52) Why she chose to transition to investing at Matrix(19:35) How deal attribution is structured at Matrix(22:07) Breaking down the factors of why she chose to invest in Accord, a Toronto/SF startup(24:46) How Diana’s product background has informed her investing career(27:16) Areas she is actively investing in(32:51) How Diana stays up on trends(33:59) On not being able to see every deal in the marketplace(37:06) Using metrics to help define success as an introverted investor(40:54) Advice she is giving to her founders to survive this tough market(43:13) How she works with first-time founders(45:15) Decision making around reinvestment(47:36) Diana’s passion for LegoFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Deep Questions with Cal Newport* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Hello Metaverse with Annie Zhang and Elena Mosse* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Anker 737 Power Bank* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Retro apps, especially Retro itself* 📚- Favorite Book: The Age of Em* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Optimize for outlier outcomesFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

One of the most concrete ways users experience a modern startup is through the design of the app itself. Small choices in design and implementation can sway a user from becoming a fan or never opening the app again. Our guest today is Robin Rotman, Director of Design and Founder of ARE TOO, a design agency that focuses on UX/UI and Branding.About Robin Rotman:Robin Rotman is the Design Director and Founder of ARE TOO. She previously worked at Atlassian on the Trello team. Prior to that, she was at GrubHub Agency, where she started as a Visual Designer and ultimately became their Lead Product Designer and Developer. Designing and developing their core product offerings such as the home screen native app navigation, the Agency web SDK, branded email campaigns, and more.She graduated from Boston University with a BS in advertising.In this episode we discuss:(01:28) Robin’s path to opening ARE TOO(05:02) Why she decided to focus on Product Development and Design(06:51) How remote is impacting creative work and collaboration(08:22) What she took from her time at GrubHub Agency(10:14) The role of the GrubHub Agency(11:39) How Sweetgreen used her platform(12:29) What it was like working on Trello at Atlassian(14:35) Issues she faced at Atlassian(18:00) Are there ever bad signals from users you should ignore?(20:25) MVPs for individual features within an app or experience(21:52) Why she started ARE TOO(24:20) Robin’s process for developing brand identities and apps(26:26) The role of data in the design process(28:56) Balancing form and function of apps(31:22) Robin’s experience being lecturer at her alma mater Boston University(33:13) Advice to aspiring product designers(34:48) Does she recommend college(36:59) The longterm vision for ARE TOOFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Dear Gabby* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Reformation* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Tesla* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Going back to maximalism to logos* 📚- Favorite Book: The Giver* 🤔- Favorite Life Lesson: So much can be accomplished to give space to choose again, Do your best to leave people better than you found themFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Communicating with investors is delicate — being open and transparent is always the preferred method here at Ripple, but that openness sometimes requires thoughtful framing, especially when dealing with private companies and investments. Our guest today is Matt Curtolo, Managing Director at Allocate, an Alternative investment platform allowing greater access to high-performing venture funds.Matt has 20 years of experience in private financing from his time at MetLife; Hirtle, Callaghan & Co.; and Hamilton Lane. We spoke about assessing subjective qualities like trust, openness, and responsiveness when evaluating potential partners or fund managers, and his best advice for other fund managers when deciding on running a successful AGM.We also have John Ruffolo to run down the news of the week.About Matt Curtolo:Matt Curtolo is Managing Director, Investments at Allocate. Prior to joining Allocate, Mr. Curtolo spent nearly two decades as an investor and allocator within private markets. Mr. Curtolo began his career at Hamilton Lane Advisors, working in a variety of capacities, both in client service and investment roles. He holds a B.S. from DeSales University and is a CAIA charter holder.In this episode we discuss:(00:00:53) News rundown with John Ruffolo(00:21:35) How Matt Curtolo’s career brought him to investing(00:23:59) Why sports statistics played such a key role for him(00:25:39) Matt’s time at Hamilton Lane and how it shaped his career(00:28:34) The importance of client knowledge in the service world(00:30:27) His time at Hirtle, Callaghan & Co.(00:34:14) How he gauges a manager(00:36:06) What Allocate does(00:39:21) How Allocate decides on funds to partner with(00:42:55) Assessing qualitative aspects like trust, openness, and responsiveness(00:46:36) Advice to fund managers about running a successful AGM(00:49:28) What kind of things he looks for as a perspective LP on an AGM visit(00:52:38) How to ensure authenticity and maintain trust from allocators at AGMs(00:55:08) Is the term “emerging manager” overused?(00:58:18) Crafting pitches to different audiences(00:59:38) How Allocate is working with and educating family offices on venture(01:01:21) The illiquidity of the venture market as a feature or a bug of the market(01:04:22) Educating new investors on the risks and rewards of venture(01:06:34) How 2023 is shaping up as a vintage in venture(01:08:27) How new LPs can mitigate risk and capture upside in today's market in the venture capital asset class(01:10:23) Best career advice he’s receivedFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Venture Unlocked, Acquired, Capital Allocators, The Rewatchables* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: AVC (Fred Wilson)* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Shot Scope Rangefinder (after 20 years of “playing” golf, I’m trying to learn how to play!)* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Remote work * 📚- Favorite Book: How to Win Friends and Influence People* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Always assume good intentionsFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

One of the biggest factors in whether you receive outsized returns as a VC is how your portfolio is constructed. A single investment can create outsized returns which can be lost if your portfolio construction is flawed. Our guest today is Alex Edelson, Founder and GP of Slipstream Investors, a noted and up-and-coming Fund of Funds who has done a lot of work in Portfolio Construction. We get his take and talk about his experiences in Venture and his thoughts on the current market conditions.We also welcome back to the Tank, John Ruffolo of Maverix PE, to discuss the latest tech news and headlines across the venture ecosystem.About Alex Edelson:Alex is the Founder and General Partner of Slipstream Investors. Before starting Slipstream, he worked at QED Investors, a top fintech-focused venture capital firm with $3+ billion in assets under management. Alex joined as Nigel Morris's Chief of Staff and became the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel. He previously worked at a fintech startup and spent seven years practicing law. Alex holds a J.D. and B.A. from the University of Michigan.In this episode we discuss:(00:00:59) News roundup with John Ruffolo(00:23:56) Alex Edelson’s journey into Venture Capital(00:25:48) Working as a Chief of Staff at QED Investors(00:26:57) Being mentored by Frank Rotman and the QED Team(00:33:54) The importance of providing context to a no over pure speed(00:34:50) Why he decided to start investing on his own(00:39:41) Early LPs that backed his vision(00:40:52) How his investing thesis evolved after the initial conversations with his LPs(00:42:18) The importance of seeing a lot of deals before investing(00:43:26) Setting clear expectations with companies at what stage you are at in your cycle(00:44:45) What Alex looks for to consider a deal a win(00:48:31) How Alex mitigates risk with diversification and other strategies(00:50:24) Why every round of financing is an opportunity to buy or sell(00:52:19) The benefits of having early liquidity(00:54:07) Redflags that can scare LPs from emerging managers(00:59:36) How the current market is affecting his strategy(01:00:44) Trends he is seeing in the market(01:02:21) Best career advice he’s receivedFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Tank Talks, Venture Unlocked, 20 Minute VC, Sure Shot Entrepreneur* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Mark Suster, Open LP* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Cyclops Hammer* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Work from home* 📚- Favorite Book: Man’s Search for Meaning* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Focus on what you can controlFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Matt Roberts is a veteran of the Canadian tech and venture scene. In Silicon Valley, his story would be somewhat common, a young talented tech person, the child of a computer pioneer, moves up the ranks through mentorship and gains wealth and stature through savvy choices and a little luck. However, in Canada, these stories are far less common and therefore more exciting to share.This is a fun trip through Canadian Tech history. Matt was around, and often in a pivotal position, to see the rise of tech giants like GaN Systems and Shopify, and he brings a perspective of a tech scene that pre-dates the internet through the experiences of his late father, John Roberts. This is a candid and wide-ranging conversation that was an amazing deep dive.About Matt Roberts:Matt is a cofounder and General Partner at CMD Capital, focusing on Seed opportunities in AI with a generalist lens. Matt Co-Founded CMD Capital after spending seven years with ScaleUP Ventures, where he was Partner and subsequently a GP in its Opportunity Fund. While there, he was the lead investor in Solink, Renorun, Rewind, and #paid. Prior to that Matt was at BDC, where he led the IT Venture Funds investments in Crowdriff, Sonder (Flatbook), Hubdoc, Unsplash and Crew. He also raised the Seed and Series “A” round for Semiconductor startup GaN Systems. Matt started in Venture as an Analyst at Wesley Clover, best known as billionaire entrepreneur Terry Matthews investment group. He was a founder and operator at various tech companies early in his career.In addition to his MBA from Western University, Matt holds a BA from Carleton University.In this episode we discuss:(01:28) Matt’s journey into tech following in his dad’s footsteps(04:46) Why mentorship and curiosity are so important(05:54) Working with Terry Matthews early in his career(08:20) His experience at GaN Systems helping raise funds(14:07) His time at BDC(16:30) Starting ScaleUp Ventures in 2016(18:18) How being a GP changed his investing philosophy(20:01) Decision making process at ScaleUp(20:44) Why it’s prudent to make friends with Junior partners(22:14) The evolution of the Canadian Venture Capital market(24:22) Launching CMD Capital(26:57) How fund size effects investing(27:36) Why smaller funds can deliver more value(29:16) CMD investing thesis(33:04) How the lack of early-stage Canadian VCs has effected the market(36:25) What CMD brings to founders beyond money(38:13) Advice to young investors(42:28) Trends he is seeing in VCFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Hardcore History* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Paul Wells* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iPhone* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Focus on Revenue* 📚- Favorite Book: Zero To One, Dominion* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Try something new every dayFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Source: Canada’s Venture Capital Landscape Report (2023) — BDCObjectiveThe venture capital landscape is a dynamic and ever-evolving environment, where success is measured not only by achieving high valuations but also by generating strong returns for investors. As we saw companies climb Mount Everest to unicorn statuses in the past 18 months, many failed to get back down safely to survive.It is imperative for Canada to ensure transparency in venture capital returns to remain globally competitive. Open dialogues on challenges and strategies are part of this effort. The aim is to disseminate insights, equip other fund managers with valuable knowledge, and bolster Canada’s standing in the global venture capital sphere. This collective effort has the potential to drive Canadian startups forward and attract international capital and talent to this burgeoning ecosystem.In Canada, the federal government has been influential in creating a conducive environment for startups and venture capital, through initiatives such as the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) and the Venture Capital Catalyst Initiative (VCCI). These efforts have proven crucial in supplying public funding to draw in private sector capital and kickstart the Canadian VC ecosystem. The significant contribution of these programs in laying the groundwork for a sustainable and competitive startup ecosystem globally is acknowledged and appreciated. Without such support, a number of companies and funds could face substantial hurdles in launching and realizing their full potential. The federal government’s dedication to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship has played a major role in developing the Canadian startup ecosystem.The 2023 Venture Capital Landscape Report by BDC revealed data on Distribution to Paid-In capital (DPI) Across Vintages, indicating that the upper quartile of Canadian funds from pre-2011 to 2013 recorded a 1.2x DPI. This contrasts with the 2.0x DPI of U.S. incumbent funds during the same period, as reported by Cambridge Associates. This difference illustrates the distinct market dynamics that characterized the less mature Canadian venture capital sector during this time. However, since then, Canada’s ecosystem has seen substantial growth, reflected in an increased number of venture funds and startups, and overall improved performance. Notably, most of the active venture funds in Canada, including Ripple Ventures, have been established in the past 5–7 years, underlining the recency of this expansion.While we acknowledge that not all venture capital funds wind down after the traditional 10-year period and extensions can occur, a strategy that funds can take to protect the performance over the life of the fund is to return at least the original capital within the first 6–7 years. This approach allows for sufficient time and opportunities to graduate the portfolio and reduce the entire reliance on unpredictable outliers of breakout companies alone to return the fund. This strategy increases the chances of moving from a 1x to 3x+ return within the remaining 3–5 years. As such, we want to cover two general approaches to achieving a 3x fund. The first relies solely on 1–2 outlier investments that generate significant returns in the final years while having minimal returns in the earlier stages. The second approach involves consistently returning capital throughout the fund’s lifecycle, allowing the mediocre outcomes to return the original capital and for the winners to drive true profit. We believe that the latter approach is more sustainable and favorable. While the former approach can be challenging, requiring a consistent scale of exits and various factors to align perfectly, our belief is that consistent capital returns across the portfolio create a higher probability to outperform over the long run. At Ripple, we personally invest a significant portion of our net worth into our funds, making us very aligned with our limited partners to strive not only for homerun outcomes but also to return our own original investment. Our goal is to open up the discussion of fund performance, key drivers of winning strategies, and how we can put Canada as a winner on the global stage. By highlighting benchmarks and sharing insights from our journey, we aim to contribute to the broader conversation about driving enterprise value in Canada. We recognize the importance of collaboration and knowledge-sharing in building a strong ecosystem, and we are committed to playing our part in its development.Union Square Ventures — the gold standard for DPIBefore diving into the details, we want to establish the gold standard DPI benchmark that every fund should strive to achieve. Recent returns data from the University of Texas Endowment, as highlighted by Eric Newcomer’s blog, has captured attention. Union Square Ventures has demonstrated exceptional performance, delivering 9x DPI cumulatively across all their funds. Their 2012 vintage fund, with a DPI of

That Sheel Mohnot, Founding Partner of BTV, is a natural storyteller and a good hang, you can just figure that out with his Twitter feed and his track record of creating one of the most popular startup podcasts. That he also happens to be one of the sharpest minds in FinTech investing which makes him an exceedingly interesting guest.This is a wide-ranging conversation that covers Sheel’s early days, what he learned as a founder, and how he’s grown as an investor. Enjoy!A word from our sponsor:The team at Ripple is always focused on helping our founders and portfolio companies find the best partners to work with within the tech and venture capital ecosystem. And that is why we are so excited to announce our partnership with the incredible team at Torys LLP. When it comes to legal support and advice, the team at Torys is the best in class. Torys is a storied Canadian law firm with offices in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Halifax and New York City. Torys has been around since its founding in 1941.They have always worked closely with players across the emerging startup ecosystem in all aspects of the creation, acquisition and commercialization of businesses. They help founders determine when and how much to fundraise, how to achieve the right economic structure, how to think about board and control issues and how to successfully navigate different stages of growth. They are also advisors to VC funds, strategic investors, private equity funds and other institutional investors on fund formation and shareholder arrangements to buyouts and other exits.In fact, Torys recently acted as counsel to Maverix PE on the transformative $260M Miovision Technologies growth funding with an advisory team that included Dany Assaf, Konata Lake and Max Schwartz-Labell on that investment.So whether you are negotiating a new business arrangement or developing a new service offering, Torys helps clients seize new opportunities and build creative, market-leading business models in this fast-paced world we live in every day space.Visit torys.com to learn more.About Sheel Mohnot:Sheel Mohnot is a founding partner of Better Tomorrow Ventures. Before BTV, Sheel was a Partner at 500 Startups, running the 500 FinTech Fund and the FinTech track within the San Francisco Accelerator program. His recent startup experience includes 2 successful FinTech exits – a payments company and a high-stakes auction company. He also created and hosted a podcast called The Pitch.He formerly worked as a financial services consultant at BCG and did Microfinance work at the non-profit Kiva. Sheel holds an MBA from the University of Michigan and a BS from Carnegie Mellon. In this episode we discuss:(02:58) Sheel’s journey to becoming a FinTech investor(07:55) How did growing up in India and around the world help shape him(11:14) Sheel’s time at Fee Fighters and why they sold to Groupon(13:33) What he learned at Groupon(16:31) How the Pitch Podcast came to be(18:58) Selling the podcast to Spotify(20:58) How Sheel started as an Angel investor(22:24) 500 FinTech as a stepping stone to becoming a VC(25:05) His first fundraising experience(28:30) Investing in BTV’s first company before they had finished fundraising(30:18) How his investing journey has evolved(32:22) The importance of being a sounding board for founders(33:20) BTV’s investing thesis(35:18) Who Sheel looks up to as investors(36:29) Why VC needs to be collaborative(37:28) The importance of partnership in the VC/Founder relationship(38:56) Concrete things early-stage founders should ask from their VCs(39:37) How power law informs all of VC and portfolio construction(43:14) Lessons from Sheel’s anti-portfolio(44:59) His stay with Brian Chesky at Airbnb LAFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Acquired* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Marginalrevolution* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iphone/airpods, bidets, Disco lights * 📈- Favorite New Trend: would it be crazy not to say AI?* 📚- Favorite Book: Enders Game* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: "People don't want to do new things if they think they're going to be bad at them or people are going to laugh at them. You have to be willing to subject yourself to failure, to be bad, to fall on your head and do it again, and try stuff that you've never done in order to be the best you can be."Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Big news this week with Matt and John, we cover Cohere raising $270M at a $2.1B valuation (02:24), Salesforce announcing their AI platform that may be vaporware (06:27), Shopify selling its delivery business (09:50), Nasdaq acquires Adenza for $10.5B (13:40), and TCV and Tiger missing their fund goals (15:43).A word from our sponsor:The team at Ripple is always focused on helping our founders and portfolio companies find the best partners to work with within the tech and venture capital ecosystem. And that is why we are so excited to announce our partnership with the incredible team at Torys LLP. When it comes to legal support and advice, the team at Torys is the best in class. Torys is a storied Canadian law firm with offices in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Halifax and New York City. Torys has been around since its founding in 1941.They have always worked closely with players across the emerging startup ecosystem in all aspects of the creation, acquisition and commercialization of businesses. They help founders determine when and how much to fundraise, how to achieve the right economic structure, how to think about board and control issues and how to successfully navigate different stages of growth. They are also advisors to VC funds, strategic investors, private equity funds and other institutional investors on fund formation and shareholder arrangements to buyouts and other exits.In fact, Torys recently acted as counsel to Maverix PE on the transformative $260M Miovision Technologies growth funding with an advisory team that included Dany Assaf, Konata Lake and Max Schwartz-Labell on that investment.So whether you are negotiating a new business arrangement or developing a new service offering, Torys helps clients seize new opportunities and build creative, market-leading business models in this fast-paced world we live in every day space.Visit torys.com to learn more.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Shaking up the format this week by focusing on what’s happening in the world. We welcome back Mark McQueen to dive into what’s been going on in the world with a lively discussion. Hope you enjoy!A word from our sponsor:The team at Ripple is always focused on helping our founders and portfolio companies find the best partners to work with within the tech and venture capital ecosystem. And that is why we are so excited to announce our partnership with the incredible team at Torys LLP. When it comes to legal support and advice, the team at Torys is the best in class. Torys is a storied Canadian law firm with offices in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Halifax and New York City. Torys has been around since its founding in 1941.They have always worked closely with players across the emerging startup ecosystem in all aspects of the creation, acquisition and commercialization of businesses. They help founders determine when and how much to fundraise, how to achieve the right economic structure, how to think about board and control issues and how to successfully navigate different stages of growth. They are also advisors to VC funds, strategic investors, private equity funds and other institutional investors on fund formation and shareholder arrangements to buyouts and other exits.In fact, Torys recently acted as counsel to Maverix PE on the transformative $260M Miovision Technologies growth funding with an advisory team that included Dany Assaf, Konata Lake and Max Schwartz-Labell on that investment.So whether you are negotiating a new business arrangement or developing a new service offering, Torys helps clients seize new opportunities and build creative, market-leading business models in this fast-paced world we live in every day space.Visit torys.com to learn more.Topics we cover:(01:59) BetaKit’s reporting on the Collision Conference asking for more government support(11:35) BDC report on Government spending in Canada(18:58) The banking environment in Canada for small businesses in the wake of SVB(25:29) How carbon taxes are impacting Canadians in this inflationary market (Mark’s post for further reading)(32:02) The PGA Tour/LIV golf merger This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

It’s always fun to reconnect with past guests and early success stories from our Ripple Community, and today’s guest is both, Emily Lonetto was a Tank Talks guest back when it was a small in-person event at our co-working space, The Tank. Back then she was the first leadership hire at our portfolio-company Voiceflow, now she’s the Director of Community at Webflow as well as a Venture Partner with us at Ripple Ventures. Emily has amazing perspectives on growth and community, and I hope you enjoy our conversation.About Emily Lonetto:Emily Lonetto is the Director of Community at Webflow. She is an expert marketer and growth expert that started her career at Carnivore Club, a subscription food box, and moved onto to Tilt, which was acquired by AirBnB, and then to Voiceflow. She did her undergrad at Western University.In this episode we discuss:(01:34) Emily’s journey to becoming a growth hacker and community expert(04:15) Common challenges to growth for early-stage startups(05:25) Differences between standard marketing and growth(07:04) Her experience helping grow Voiceflow(10:12) The importance of community feedback(10:56) What growth means in a startup context(14:00) How startups should think about growth marketing(15:41) Growth Marketing tactics(18:10) Emily’s Growth Marketing tech stack(21:27) Analytics and testing that you should use to track growth(23:06) Using negative feedback to help hone your offering(24:12) How Emily has evolved as a community builder across her career(27:10) Factors that can hamper a community(30:11) How the Webflow community guided her even before working there(31:55) Positives of having a strong community(34:14) Misconceptions around community for early stage founders(37:27) How growth in community is defined at Webflow(39:51) Emily’s strong contribution to the Ripple ecosystemFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Reply All* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Lenny Rachitsky* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iPhone 14* 📈- Favorite New Trend: The comeback of emo and alternative music* 📚- Favorite Book: Moonwalking with Einstein* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Change is made up of dozens of small iterationsFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

There’s a lot going on in the world today, and one of the Canadians who has been plugged into the pulse of Ottawa, Venture Capital, and Banking is our guest, Mark McQueen, Founder of Wellington Growth Partners and former President of CIBC Innovation Banking.We had a great conversation about what’s happening in Canada and globally in the markets, and how we should think about events as entrepreneurs and investors.About Mark McQueen:Mark McQueen is the Founder of Wellington Growth Partners, a family office and Angel Fund. He led the growth of Wellington Financial LP, a venture debt fund, from conception in 2000 to the firm's acquisition by CIBC in January 2018. He became President of CIBC Innovation Banking until his recent decision to leave the firm in 2022. Prior to his time in finance and banking, he served in Ottawa in various advisory roles to the Treasury Board and Prime Minister, Brian Mulroney.Mark started working as a professional news photographer in High School. By the time he was 16, his photographs had appeared in such publications as Time Magazine, The Globe & Mail, and The Toronto Star. He received his bachelor’s from Western University.In this episode we discuss:(00:01:30) Mark’s life journey that got him here today(00:03:13) Lessons he learned from his Father Rod McQueen(00:05:18) Mark’s time as a photographer(00:06:46) Working in government out of school(00:10:16) Why meeting in person can give a lot of context to who someone is(00:11:34) Jumping into banking instead of getting an MBA(00:13:20) The importance of service in banking(00:14:35) What his training was as a banker and how he views the markets(00:17:25) The importance of doing what the work requires(00:21:02) Raising his first fund in 2000(00:23:27) On choosing the name Wellington (twice)(00:25:27) Surviving the Global Financial Crisis in 2008(00:30:22) Growing his loan book 10x after being acquired by CIBC(00:31:13) How the market has evolved over Mark’s career(00:33:42) The reason behind the SVB implosion(00:36:42) Why the Canadian VC market is so much smaller than the US(00:41:36) Reasons why mining and real estate companies are easier to fund in Canada(00:45:45) Why Canadians seem fine with medium-sized exits(00:48:21) The crisis of small-cap companies de-listing(00:50:09) Has the venture industry left him jaded?(00:51:34) Will Mark return to politics, as some have urged?(00:54:29) On his love for Pearl Jam(00:58:33) The farthest he’s travelled to see the band(01:00:45) How he spends his days nowFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Live On 4 Legs* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Paul Wells* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Eero* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Taking the Summer off* 📚- Favorite Book: The Last Best Hope* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Be frank and authentic in all your endeavoursFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Elements that make up a strong startup ecosystem are founders and talent to execute the vision, investors with capital, and finally journalists that are documenting what the founders and investors are doing. Without that coverage, it’s difficult to attract more founders and more investors which are needed to create a vibrant ecosystem that will hopefully have a larger impact on society.Our guest today is Sean Silcoff a business reporter at the Globe and Mail covering the Canadian startup scene. Sean’s book, Losing the Signal: The Untold Story Behind the Extraordinary Rise and Spectacular Fall of BlackBerry, which he wrote with his co-author Jackie McNish in 2013 was turned into a feature film starring Glenn Howerton and Jay Baruchel. I’ve seen it, and it’s such a great take on the rise and fall of RIM.We also have a news breakdown with John Ruffolo.About Sean Silcoff:Sean Silcoff writes about technology and innovation for the Globe and Mail. He is the winner of three National Newspaper Awards and is the co-author of Losing the Signal: the Spectacular Rise and Fall of BlackBerry, which was released in May 2015. Losing the Signal won Canada’s National Business Book Award and was shortlisted for the International Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year. Sean joined the Globe and Mail in January 2012; he previously worked as a columnist and Montreal correspondent for the National Post and as a staff writer at Canadian Business Magazine.In this episode we discuss:(00:01:11) News recap with John Ruffolo(00:19:25) Sean’s journey to becoming a tech journalist(00:28:02) How Sean ended up conecting and covering with CEOs(00:33:57) Dealing with high-profile people off the record(00:35:45) How Sean’s audience has evolved over the years(00:37:12) The changes Sean has seen in the Canadian ecosystem in the last 20 years(00:39:52) Sean’s duty to his readers to report news when it comes to him(00:40:36) Striving for timelyness and accuracy in a challenging environment(00:44:08) Why the media missed stories like RenoRun and ClearCo(00:47:47) Fighting the urge to put opinions in his writing(00:50:45) Thoughts on the wave of IPOs in 2020 and 2021(00:54:07) Benefits of being a public small cap Canadian tech company vs. the benefits of staying private for longer(00:57:58) Will ChatGPT replace journalists(01:02:55) Writing the story of John Ruffolo’s cycling accident(01:06:30) Watching his book Losing the Signal become a film(01:12:09) When Sean gets jaded by the industryFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Tank Talks, Pivot* 📰- Favorite Newsletter / Blog: Stratechery, Maverix* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Olympus Recorders* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Fluidity* 📚- Favorite Book: Sapiens, Walt Disney, Shoe Dog, The Founder* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Work hard. There are no shortcuts to ultimate success and satisfaction.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

It’s not surprising that one of the pioneers of online dating believes that being open to options and new ideas will help your life and career. Sam Yagan is Co-Founder and Managing Director of Corazon Capital, an early-stage firm based in Chicago with a MidWest focus. But Sam is most known for Co-Founding OKCupid! and moving up to become the CEO of Match Group, where he helped launch Tinder.This was a wonderful and sometimes introspective conversation on the challenges of being a founder, the power of being open to new possibilities, and where we are with the current market.We also have a news recap with John Ruffolo.About Sam Yagan:Sam Yagan serves as Co-Founder and Managing Director of Corazon Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm. He recently served as the CEO of ShopRunner, Inc., leading its 2020 sale to FedEx Corp.Prior to ShopRunner, Sam served as CEO of Match Group where he led the company through the launch of Tinder in 2012 and through Match Group’s IPO in 2015. Sam’s prior entrepreneurial ventures include SparkNotes (founded in 1999) and OkCupid (co-founded in 2004).Sam has a BA from Harvard College and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.In this episode we discuss:(00:01:17) News recap with John Ruffolo(00:20:58) Sam Yagan’s journey to entreprenuership(00:26:14) Was his career all luck?(00:28:20) How the exit of SparkNotes went(00:30:02) Regrets about not buying SparkNotes back(00:34:53) Seeing companies with broken cap tables but functioning businesses(00:36:57) Why they started OkCupid!(00:41:20) Deciding to sell to a larger rival, and then becoming its CEO(00:45:45) How Sam dealt with Imposter Syndrome(00:49:30) The PlentyoFish Acquisition(00:52:05) Deciding to career pivot to ecommerce(00:54:46) Lessons learned as an outsider coming in at ShopRunber(00:58:32) Why Sam chose to be a MidWest VC(01:01:23) How Sam’s investing thesis has evolved(01:03:33) What Sam likes to invest in(01:04:26) Why they missed on Cameo(01:05:24) What Sam is passionate about in the futureFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Succession* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Matt Levine’s Money Stuff* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: 8 Sleep* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Alcohol abstinence * 📚- Favorite Book: Influence* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Be willing to failFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Analytics has led to a revolution in how we approach many aspects of modern life, from how we field a baseball team to when is the right time to send a tweet. And now data and analytics are reinventing how LPs view Venture Funds and how those funds invest. Our guest today uses powerful analytics to help her clients participate in Venture investing at scale, Jamie Rhode, CFA is Principal at Verdis Investment Management, a large Family Office. The analytics she uses and how she communicates with the GPs she invests in are the focus of today’s episode. It’s a fascinating look at putting emotions aside when investing to maximize returns.About Jamie Rhode:Jamie Rhode is Principal at Verdis Investment Management, focused on venture capital, private equity, and hedge fund investment sourcing and due diligence.She joined Verdis from Bloomberg, where she held roles in both equity research and credit analysis. Jamie is a licensed Chartered Financial Analyst, and earned her bachelor’s degree from Drexel University.In this episode we discuss:(01:27) Jamie’s journey into investing(03:14) A history of Verdis Investment Management(06:20) How Verdis’ approach to venture investing has evolved through the use of analytics(10:37) Not needing to be the first investor in a geography(12:23) Fund sizes they prefer based on their data(17:12) Why Jamie thinks follow-on reserves are a flawed investment strategy(20:22) The data around being overly focused on valuation as a GP(23:06) The value to LPs of recycling(23:56) How shots on goal and consistency of investment is more important than finding winners(25:30) The infrastructure Verdis has to monitor its portfolio(28:52) Qualitative factors that Verids uses to evaluate investments when there is little data(32:40) Does the current market still support the data they have been using(36:14) Data around the importance of VC Brand(39:47) What Jamie’s deal funnel looks like and how she manages her meetings(42:27) Why Family Offices are typically very private(43:32) The effect of the current market on Jamie’s investingFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Village Global* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: lifescivc.com* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Tesla Model Y* 📈- Favorite New Trend: ChatGPT* 📚- Favorite Book: Thinking In Bets and Quit* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: There are two things that determine how our lives turn out, the quality of our decisions and luck.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

The tables have turned on our host Matt Cohen who was recently a guest on the BetaKit podcast and had a spirited discussion about the recent meltdown of RenoRun. BetaKit features weekly podcasts discussing Canadian technology news and global startup news from a Canadian perspective and it was an honour to be a guest on the show. You can listen to the whole episode where Matt shares the history of Ripple Ventures and a lot more here.From BetaKit’s post:BetaKit has reported this year on LPs unable to honour capital calls, leaving Canadian VCs to pull out or renegotiate deals with Canadian startups—one of those startups being Montréal-based RenoRun, which recently filed for creditor protection after failing to raise four different rounds to keep the company alive (along with a few other Hail Mary attempts). Most recently, the Globe and Mail reported that Toronto-based Clearco is looking to raise $20 million USD at a $200 million USD valuation—one-tenth of what it was at its height (BetaKit can confirm we’ve heard the same numbers).You know things are bad when pension-backed VCs like OMERS Ventures’ Laura Lenz are trying to encourage downtrodden founders by tweeting that her firm is still investing.This week we also welcome back John Ruffolo to break down the big tech news.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Bringing offline businesses online, known as digital transformation, is a huge opportunity. There are entire industries where the efficiencies of digital tools and workflows haven’t penetrated. That’s changing with the market today valued at $535B and anticipated to grow to $3.3T in the next decade.Out guest today is helping lead that transition in the health and wellness services space. Matt Danna is the Co-Founder and CEO of Boulevard, a vertical SaaS that describes itself as “the first and only client experience platform for appointment-based, self-care businesses.”About Matt Danna:Matt Danna is the co-founder and CEO of Boulevard, a provider of the client experience platform used by more than 25,000 professionals to power more than 2,000 salons, medspas, and other self-care businesses across the US.Prior to co-founding Boulevard in 2016, Matt was head of product for the LA-based talent agency Wasserman. His career also includes product leadership positions with Awesomeness, a multi-media platform company, and the global media company Fullscreen. Matt holds a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and Human-Computer Interaction from the Rochester Institute of Technology.In this episode we discuss:(01:23) How Matt got into tech and startups(04:10) The opportunity they saw with Boulevard(09:52) What market validation Boulevard did(11:00) Why the founders worked for free at salons(14:37) Biggest takeaways from the pre-launch market research(16:35) How they knew their MVP was ready to launch(18:26) The early bootstrapped days of Boulevard(19:51) Early employees and financing(21:38) Leaving stealth and launching publicly(23:45) Early successes and challenges(25:51) Why they spun up their own FinTech solution(27:21) How they reacted to COVID(29:32) Scaling rapidly while sticking to their vision(30:39) Boulevard’s long-term visionFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Asaassins * 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: SaaStr* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Airpods* 📈- Favorite New Trend: People freaking out about AI* 📚- Favorite Book: Hard things about hard things (right now)* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Dont rely on luckFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Finding a big problem to solve with your startup is always the goal, but what happens if that problem lies outside of what is deemed sexy by investors? Our guest today is Josh Domigues, Founder and CEO of Flashfood, an app that allows shoppers to browse food items approaching their best-before date, buy them at a discount and pick them up in-store. Expiring food is a global problem and is one of the leading emitters of greenhouse gasses, but solving a problem like that isn’t as easy to explain as a flavor-of-the-month SaaS business.This was a fun conversation with Josh and it was great to hear his perspective.We also welcome back John Ruffolo to discuss recent startup and tech news.About Josh Domingues:Josh Domingues is the Founder and CEO of Flashfood, which started from his condo above a grocery store when he got a call from his sister who was a chef. She told him that she just threw out $4000 worth of food. Josh was shocked to discover that discarding food was the norm in the restaurant, catering, and grocery industries. He is an alumnus of TechStars and received his bachelor’s from St. Mary’s Univeristy.In this episode we discuss:(0:01:07) News rundown with John Ruffolo(0:30:45) Josh’s path as an athlete to founder(0:33:42) Lessons Josh learned working with Professional Athletes(0:36:28) The path to starting Flashfood(0:39:16) Defining the scope of the problem and surviving in the early days(0:44:22) Josh’s experience on Dragon’s Den(0:48:15) How TechStars opened doors for Flashfood(0:52:53) The Importance of showing up in person to network(0:54:48) Real-world examples of how Flashfood is working(0:58:36) Why investors like General Catalyst and S2G Ventures have backed Flashfood(1:02:06) Advice to early-stage founders struggling in the current market(1:07:13) How they brought on a new COO and President(1:12:00) Flashfood’s future plansFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: 20 Minute VC* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: The Peak* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Apple watch* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Electric car adoption* 📚- Favorite Book: Good to Great, Shoe Dog * 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Hold on to HappinessFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Getting into competitive venture deals is difficult enough when you aren’t a huge name-brand VC, and doing it from another country is even more challenging. Our guest today, Yatong Li is Managing Director at Sixty Degree Capital, a cross-sector firm that invests in software, digital infrastructure, healthcare, and biotech companies across multiple stages as early as Series A and as late as pre-IPO. Yatong talks to us about how he gets into competitive deals and what his view of the market looks like in 2023.We also have Anthony Mouchantaf joining us for another news rundown covering the biggest news in tech this week.About Yatong Li:Yatong Li is the Managing Director of Sixty Degree Capital. He joined in 2017 as an Analyst in the Toronto office and advanced to Managing Director in 2022.Born in China, Yatong moved to Canada and completed the Master of Finance program at the Schulich School of Business, York University. He graduated from Nanjing Agricultural University with a B.Sc. Before joining Sixty Degree Capital, Yatong worked at China Securities (SH: 601066) and as an investment banking analyst at China Galaxy Securities (HK: 06881), a state-owned securities firm in Beijing with a market value of $6.3 billion.In this episode we discuss:(00:59) News roundup with Anthony Mouchantaf(16:10) How Yatong got his start in becoming an investor(17:37) Early investments(19:01) Sixty Degree Capital’s origin story(21:54) How Yatong nurtures relationships in Silicon Valley(23:02) The diligence process at Sixty Degree(24:35) Building relationships with corporate partners(25:55) Why he focuses on infrastructure investments(28:17) Their investment decision process(29:47) How Yatong’s investing thesis has evolved(32:30) Sixty Degree’s process of investing(34:26) How Sixty Degree co-invests(36:23) How early-stage investments are assessed(37:38) What the market looks like right now(39:27) Thoughts on Stripe and others slashing valuation(41:04) Sixty Degree’s recent investment in DataGrail(43:44) Fallout from the SVB collapse(47:03) Biggest lessons learned as an investorFast Favorites:1. 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Tank Talks!2. 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: The Information Tomasz Tunguz and Nikhil from Footwork3. 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: E-scooter4. 📈- Favorite New Trend: Asking ChatGPT questions5. 📚- Favorite Book: Ray Dalio’s Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order6. 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Sacrificing your health for success or wealth isn’t worth itFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Startups take longer than anticipated, the average exit takes between 7 and 10 years. Even overnight successes are the product of years of behind-the-scenes work. This is as it should be, but the problem comes if you’re not in love with finding and solving the core problem of your startup (or if the market itself doesn’t actually have that problem).Our guest today is Adit Gupta, CEO and Co-Founder of Lula Convenience. Adit loves the problem he’s solving but also has advice for other founders on how to find that love as well as a problem that the market wants to solve. Lula Convenience is the operating system for the convenience industry. Their mission is to help stores by providing an all-encompassing platform that connects their stores to the world. Adit also is an alumnus of the RippleX Fellowship.And we have a news round-up with Anthony Mouchantaf.About Adit Gupta:Adit Gupta is co-founder and CEO of Lula Convenience, a verticle-SaaS product disrupting the US convenience retail sector. The Lula Store Platform captured nearly 1% market share within 12 months of product launch. He did his undergrad and is a Doctoral Candidate at Drexel University.In this episode we discuss:(01:10) News rundown with Anthony Mouchantaf(12:28) Adit’s journey to founding Lula Convenience(13:36) How he became a tennis coach using Youtube(16:04) What it took to land some of his first internships(17:57) Lessons he took from his first startup effort(20:30) Finding the problem you want to solve(21:29) How the RippleX Fellowship helped Adit focus on Lula(22:59) The founding of Lula Convenience(26:22) Why Lula was different than his first startup(28:18) Early lessons and pivots at Lula(31:49) The number of SKUs and other issues convenience stores face when focusing on delivery(32:57) How the business model has evolved(34:32) Advice to other early-stage founders on defining ICPs(37:16) Why they decided to rebrand to Lula Convenience(38:56) How Lula has grown with advice and support from their VC partners(40:48) What recent challenges have meant for their growth and development(42:41) Adit’s vision for the next few years of LulaFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Tank Talks (How I built this)* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Nikhil Trivedi (Footwork)* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: My air fryer and my electric scooter* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Using ChatGPT for every computational task* 📚- Favorite Book: Never Split the Difference & Hard thing about hard things * 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Treat people how you want to be treated, Think long term, there’s always creative ways / solutions to problems. Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

We start this week’s episode with John Ruffolo and Matt discussing the SVB and Regional banking crisis taking over the headlines recently. It’s a candid discussion about what went down and how it's affecting the global startup ecosystem.We then talk with Connor Atchison, Founder and CEO of Wisedocs. Wisedocs is helping streamline and transform medical information with its artificial intelligence platform for insurance, legal, and independent medical evaluation firms to review medical records with ease.About Connor Atchison:Connor Atchison is the Founder CEO of Wisedocs. He began his career in the Canadian Armed Forces in the Infantry and left 12 years later supporting the Canadian national mandate of the Directorate of Casualty Support Management (DCSM) and the Canadian Forces Health Services Group (CFHSG).He received his BS from the University of Toronto - University of Trinity College and his Masters in Health Administration from the University of Regina.In this episode we discuss:(00:53) The news rundown with John Ruffolo(26:44) Connor’s background and journey into tech from the military(27:26) Why he stuck with a military career for so long(28:14) Lessons he learned in the military(28:59) How his military career put him in the position to found Wisedocs(30:27) Dealing with imposter syndrome as a new CEO(31:25) The process of actually starting Wisedocs(33:09) The early days as a tech founder(34:26) Wisedocs COVID experience and how they survived(37:00) How Wisedocs expanded into the US market(37:55) Connor’s evolution as a leader(39:37) The importance of focus in the early days(40:51) How AI and ML help power Wisedocs(42:19) Does ChatGPT fit into this use case(43:35) How medical records are currently handled in the US(44:54) Plans for Wisedocs recent seed round(46:43) Where Wisedocs is going to expandFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: The Game* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Forbes* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Apple products* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Talking to ChatGPT* 📚- Favorite Book: How to win friends and influence people* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Define what you value and build your life around thatFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Raising a round of financing is always a stressful endeavour. But in today’s economic climate, it’s even more so. So how can a founder navigate these choppy waters and not lose their shirts? Our guest today is Peter Hass, Associate Partner at Maverix Private Equity. Peter knows the ins and outs of deal structure and has guidance for founders at all stages to help them raise capital. Peter broke all of this down in a tremendous article he share recently here.We also recap tech headlines with Antony Mouchantaf of RBCx.About Peter Hass:Peter Hass is an Associate Partner with Maverix Private Equity. He is focused on leading deal execution including financial modelling and leading due diligence. Peter also works closely with portfolio companies in strategic and financial management as well as the evaluation of add-on acquisitions opportunities.Previously, Peter worked as a Director of Home Services within Mattamy Ventures at Mattamy Asset Management and OMERS where he was a founding member of OMERS Growth Equity.Peter is a graduate of the Richard Ivey School of Business.In this episode we discuss:(01:22) News roundup with Antony Mouchantaf(19:34) Peter’s journey to becoming an investor(21:28) Working at OMERS(23:49) How different investors value investments(25:05) What Maverix invests in(27:24) What is structured financing means in VC(28:55) Items founders should be aware of(30:52) Examples of what new investors will ask for(35:01) How preferred shared get treated in a liquidation event(37:02) What does participating pref or full participation mean(38:11) A liquidation scenario explained(41:56) How should founders manage all these transactions and terms(47:49) Why raising less at times can be smarter for your business(48:46) Terms that Maverix typically offers(50:54) When founders need to take a down roundFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Acquired* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Noahpinion* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Airpods* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Space and Rockets* 📚- Favorite Book: eBoys* 🤔- Favorite Life Lesson: The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stonesFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Seeing life through fresh eyes is a trait that can get lost in today’s noisy world. When you bring a perspective of a beginner, not knowing what is impossible, you can sometimes transcend conventional wisdom and achieve greatness. Immigrants can bring a fresh perspective and couple it with a focused effort to succeed. Our guest today is Hamed Abbasi, Co-Founder and CEO of Plooto, who is both a successful serial founder and has survived the difficult and often underappreciated immigrant journey.About Hamed Abassi:Hamed Abassi is the Co-Founder and CEO of Plooto, a payments platform aimed at simplifying B2B payments. Prior to that he co-founded and was CEO of Vast Labs, a casual gaming company that was acquired in 2014. He started his career in the banking world.In this episode we discuss:(01:24) Hamed’s journey as an immigrant from Iran(05:12) Skills he had to learn as a newcomer to Canada(08:10) Moving from the world of banking to becoming a startup founder(11:15) Creating Flywheel dynamics in a startup scene(12:49) Starting Plooto(15:45) Pivoting from a Bitcoin platform(17:31) Plooto’s first financing round(19:10) Competing against well-established industries(22:59) Why Hamed wanted to compete in the crowded FinTech market(26:14) How and when to raise prices as a founder(29:12) Would they handle their price hike differently(30:10) The importance of data when gathering feedback(32:02) Why revenue is important to startups(33:47) Plooto’s success at venture fundraising(37:32) The prep that went into their fundraise(41:26) How the current financial climate is affecting their businessFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Knowledge Project* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: plooto.com/blog* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Kindle Scribe* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Espresso Extraction* 📚- Favorite Book: Full Castastrophe Living* 🤔- Favorite Life Lesson: Nobody knows anything, and you need to experience things for yourselfFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Finding founders with true visions that have a real plan to execute those visions is rare. So rare that those founders are actually called unicorns. But finding and supporting those founders takes a lot of patience and skill. Today’s guest has both of those traits, Stephanie Palmeri, Partner at NextView Ventures, has been working at the top of the venture industry for more than a decade and has backed impressive founders.About Stephanie Palmeri:Stephanie Palmeri is a Partner at NextView Ventures and is based in San Francisco. She loves supporting founders who share a North Star of building exceptional user-centric experiences for individuals, families, workers, and communities. Her investments in the Everyday Economy have spanned many industries, including social commerce, circular retail, education, digital health, marketplaces, transportation, and finance. Previously, Stephanie was a partner at Uncork Capital, where she spent a decade investing in dozens of seed-stage companies, including Poshmark ($POSH), Clever (acq. by Kahoot!), Chariot (acq. by Ford), ClassDojo, Carrot Fertility, Hallow, Panorama Education, Phil, Wrapbook, and Wonderschool. Before venture investing, Stephanie worked as a technology consultant and marketer at Accenture, Estee Lauder, and several startups.Stephanie holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BS from Villanova University.In this episode we discuss:(0:01:15) News roundup with John Ruffolo(0:22:44) How Stephanie ended up in the venture and startup world(0:27:32) Why she chose NextView instead of creating a new fund(0:29:36) What appeals to Stephanie about investing in Canadian Startups(0:32:17) Becoming comfortable investing in the Canadian ecosystem(0:33:28) The biggest changes to early-stage investing in the last decade(0:36:29) The process of joining NextView(0:41:22) NextView’s current focus and plans for its new $200M fund(0:44:18) Starting NextView’s accelerator program(0:47:29) Founders deciding to have an early exit(0:50:08) Deciding to become a certified coach to help her founders(0:53:50) What makes a great board member(0:58:39) How she advises as an LP and angel investor(1:00:09) Who should contact her and what she invest inFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Acquired* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Stratechry and Ben’s Bites* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Whoop* 📈- Favorite New Trend: The return of in-person events* 📚- Favorite Book: Burn Rate* 🤔- Favorite Life Lesson: Take a leap of faith in yourself and try something newFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

An often undervalued aspect of the startup world is the importance of building a brand. How you represent your company and its values visually can really add value to your company. Our guest today is Sarah Dobson, founder of Design of Brand (affectionately known as D.O.B.), a specialized brand consultancy for Entrepreneurs. She is both a strategist and designer that uses research and creativity to make companies stand out in a cluttered marketplace.About Sarah Dobson:Sarah Dobson is the founding partner of Design of Brand. She started her career working closely under the legendary Paula Scher at Pentagram in NYC. There she developed her sharp, research-focused approach to brand development. Her magnetic creative solutions blend clear concepts and emotional designs to align young brands with their business objectives.Sarah, together with her partner Dani Hall and their nimble team at D.O.B. have created over 60 brands, including Greenhouse Juice, Ace Valley, Rainbo Mushrooms, Mylko, Superette, Sunscoop, Regimen Skincare, Scruncheroo, Thesus Outdoors, Othership, Barbet, nutbar, Fairgrounds, and Outro Health.She studied at Western University and Parsons.In this episode we discuss:(01:33) Sarah’s journey to become a brand designer(03:57) Working at Bumble & Bumble and Pentagram(07:55) Creating the identity for Greenhouse Juice(10:19) How Sarah begins the design process with new clients(11:43) The importance of honesty in the branding process(14:50) Advice to early founders around branding(17:28) Protecting your intellectual property(21:14) Forming partnerships with startups(25:39) The feeling of designing the perfect logo(26:35) Strategy behind DOB(27:31) How DOB chooses clients to work with(30:38) Goals for DOB(32:56) Brands she wishes she could overhaul(34:06) Becoming friends with clientsFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: The Rainbo Podcast* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Sift Queue (technically a playlist newsletter)* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Whoop* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Wearables, and loving your *cringe*.* 📚- Favorite Book: everything by Alain de Botton * 🤔- Favorite Life Lesson: Run your own race, and “enlightenment is the space between your thoughts”Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.ai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

There are many vices but few things can match when you create a business that changes the world. Our guest today, Corey Holmes Co-Founder of Popup, knows that feeling and has literally been around the globe to chase that high. We caught up with him in Dubai to discuss Popup, a no-code platform designed to empower new e-commerce experiences as well as his addiction to entrepreneurship.About Corey Holmes:Corey Holmes is the Co-Founder of Popup. He started his path as an entrepreneur as a flipper on craigslist in his tweens and teenage years.When he was 22 he dropped out of university a week before class began and launched an Auto and Marine Detailing business. Then he moved to Uganda to start a nutraceutical company and one of the fastest-growing fitness classes in the country at the age of 23. He learned to code, won an app development award, and placed first in a provincial app development competition.With that experience, he and his wife started building e-commerce stores and joined Shopify together. After that, he started a successful content creation company, and a dropshipping company which turned into an 8-figure commerce portfolio company (Viceroy Group) comprised of several brands selling in over 100 countries.In this episode we discuss:(00:01:00) News roundup with John Ruffolo(00:19:50) Corey Holmes’ early path to entrepreneurship(00:20:35) The influence of his parents on him(00:23:21) Advice for people who move a lot(00:25:11) Why he dropped out of school — twice(00:27:29) Deciding to start his first business(00:29:52) How Corey’s fear of failure drives him(00:31:41) His early days as a Craigslist flipper(00:34:28) Corey’s time in Uganda(00:38:40) Is it better to not know what you’re getting into as a founder or to have experience(00:38:57) Lessons from working at Shopify(00:45:51) His journey as a content creator(00:51:41) Co-Founding the Viceroy group(00:55:21) How Popup became his first Venture-Backed Startup(00:57:28) What Popup is and the problem it solves(01:01:21) The long-term vision around Popup(01:02:21) Popup’s recent $3.5M pre-seed round led by Accel and investors like Seedcamp, Harry Stebbings 20VC, and a group of executives from Shopify, Hopin and othersFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: The Game* 📰- Favorite Newsletter /Blog: Morning Brew* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Apple products* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Talking to ChatGPT* 📚- Favorite Book: How to win friends and influence people* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Define what you value and build your life around thatFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Being an investor in the early stages of companies has a lot of responsibility. You know the money you are putting in is a vote of confidence, but your role is even more important, you become a sounding board, a mentor, and in the best cases, a friend to the founder. Our guest today is Sam Haffar, Partner at Real Ventures, and he knows this road very well.This was a great chat and it was wonderful to hear Sam’s perspective on investing and the markets.And we also have reactions to the week’s news with John Ruffolo.About Sam Haffar:Sam Haffar is Partner at Real Ventures, where he works with founders on all aspects of their business from organizational development and product strategy to series A fundraising, growth, and scale initiatives.He began in the Silicon Valley startup world barely before he graduated from university and then joined the founding team at Chegg, a leading education technology company that went public in 2013.In this episode we discuss:(0:00:56) News roundup with John Ruffolo talks Thoma Bravo acquiring Magnet Forensics, preventing hollowing out Canada, ChatGPT’s threat to white collar workers, and activist investors(0:19:03) Sam Haffar’s journey to becoming an investor(0:22:39) Where Sam gets his drive(0:25:21) On becoming an extrovert(0:27:57) How Sam came to the Canadian tech scene(0:32:14) Coping with imposter syndrome as an early investor(0:36:14) Processing the emotional rollercoaster of being an early-stage investor(0:43:10) Staying grounded when things may look a bit too rosy(0:48:57) How founders can deal with adversity(0:52:00) Backing founders super early(0:54:43) Work-life balance with young kids at home(0:57:56) What keeps Sam passionate about this space(1:01:07) His vision as a content creator in the space(1:04:18) Content creators he admires(1:06:23) How he supports his portfolio as they growFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Lex Fridman* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Waverly* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: iPhone* 📈- Favorite New Trend: ChatGPT* 📚- Favorite Book: Kitchen Confidential* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: If you live by fear, you create a fearful world. But if you live by love, you create a fear less world, not fearless, but fear less world.Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Building your tech stack as a startup can either help you soar to new highs, or become your biggest nightmare and slow you down. Our guest today is helping founders navigate that path, Taylor Lint is Co-Founder and CEO of Swantide, a platform that automates the configuration and management of your GTM tech stack.Before this week’s episode, we welcome back John Ruffolo to chat about the news making headlines in the Canadian and global tech markets.About Taylor Lint:Taylor Lint is the Founder & CEO of Swantide. Prior, Taylor led engineering and product at Replica, an analytics company that spun out of Alphabet’s Sidewalk Labs. Previously she led engineering for the launch of LinkedIn’s Talent Insights product. Taylor studied Information Science and German at Cornell.In this episode we discuss:(0:00:26) News Roundup with John Ruffolo talking about ClearCo, BMO x Georgian Partners, Quantum Computing, Sequoia’s make good, IP Law, and Microsoft as king of M and A(0:20:10) Taylor’s journey into the tech world(0:21:58) Lessons launching LinkedIn Talent(0:23:28) What Taylor learned at Sidewalk Labs(0:26:32) The process of spinning out Sidewalk Labs into a separate entity from Alphabet(0:27:39) Why Taylor decided to tackle the GTM Tech stack problem(0:29:34) Data you need to infor your GTM strategy(0:31:13) When is the right time to invest in GTM(0:32:36) Typical startup GTM strategies and mistakes(0:35:18) Goal setting for GTM(0:36:06) How Swantide makes the GTM better(0:39:23) Eliminating isolated documents and data with Swantide(0:41:18) Best practices to set up and maintain your CRM(0:44:30) Advice for early-stage startups around data collection(0:46:25) Other considerations around preparing to scale later(0:48:49) How Swantide’s $7M Seeed round came together with Menlo Ventures alongside Village Global, NEO, and a handful of strategic angelsFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: How’s work? With Ester Perel* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Allison Pickens’ Newsletter* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Apple Watch* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Walking* 📚- Favorite Book: Salt Fat Acid Heat by Samin Nosrat* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Change is the only constantFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Finding the next Consumer Packaged Good (CPG) winner can be even more elusive than the next big SaaS Startup. Not only do you face similar challenges to software startups, but you also need a solid supply chain and amazing branding just to stay in business. Our guest today has developed a knack for spotting the next big thing in CPG, Shahir Amin is Partner at Sonoma Brands, a specialist growth-equity firm exclusively dedicated to disruptive, high-growth consumer brands. In addition to selectively incubating original concepts, Sonoma partners with passionate entrepreneurs and founders ushering in a new wave of bold, innovative products. Also in this episode, Matt Cohen chats with John Ruffolo before the interview to break down current events impacting the tech and start-up world.About Shahir Amin:Shahir is Managing Director at Sonoma Brands Capital. He joined the firm in 2017 and is actively involved in all aspects of the investment process, including sourcing, diligence, execution, and portfolio management.Prior to joining Sonoma Brands Capital, Shahir was a member of the Private Investments team at UNC Management Company (“UNCMC”). While at UNCMC, Shahir managed alternative asset classes, including Venture Capital and Private Equity, on behalf of the $8.5 billion UNC Investment Fund. Prior to UNCMC, Shahir was an investment banking analyst at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.Shahir received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.In This Episode We Discuss:(0:00:39) Intro News Rundown w/ John Ruffolo - Elon, Twitter, Tech Layoffs, and ChatGPT/OpenAI(0:23:10) Interview: Shahir’s journey to CPG Investing(0:24:54) His time at UNC’s Endowment Fund(0:30:57) How Shahir landed at Sonoma Brands(0:40:41) What Sonoma looks for in a CPG Founder(0:43:41) The Importance of supply chain transparency and sustainability(0:45:07) How major CPG brands are viewed in the US today(0:49:03) What brands are doing post-pandemic to adjust to new demands(0:51:49) The viability of building DTC in 2023(0:53:55) Current trends in CPG(0:56:15) Risks and viable paths to exit of CPGs(1:00:32) How Sonoma avoids overfunding their companies(1:03:36) What used to be true in CPG but just isn’t anymoreFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: How I Built This* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Dan Primack* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Alexa* 📈- Favorite New Trend: F-1* 📚- Favorite Book: The Blood Telegram* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: The importance of grit and determinationFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Community is a term thrown around quite a bit these days, but it is clear that building genuine networks of people and working to help others can provide real value. Our guest today is Rex Salisbury, Founder and Managing Partner of Cambrian. Cambrian began in 2015 as a community of members and founders interested in the fintech space and that eventually landed him a role at a16z as a partner on the Fintech team where he backed unicorns like Deel and Tally. We talk about launching Cambrian as a Solo-GP fund with $20M in capital and why he thinks now is the best time to build in the fintech space.About Rex Salisbury:Rex Salisbury is the Founder and Manager Partner of Cambrian, which is a community and venture fund focused on FinTech. Formerly he was a partner on the fintech team at Andreessen Horowitz. Previously he worked as an investment banker for Merrill Lynch supporting the real estate industry and as a Product Engineer at Sindeo and Checkr.In this episode we discuss:(01:35) Rex’s journey to becoming an investor(12:07) Making big life choices(14:28) How Rex got hired as an engineer without an engineering background(19:41) Lessons from Rexs’s time at a16z(27:27) The process of turning Cambrian from a pure community into a community driven venture fund(29:04) The power of the Cambrian network(30:18) Further benefits of building a community(34:39) Managing opportunities as a Solo GP(36:20) Rex’s definition of FinTech(40:19) Advice to startups around interest rates(44:11) Where crypto fits into Cambrian’s investing thesis(48:38) The sociology behind crypto(50:44) Being a FinTech super connectorFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Capital Isn’t* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Matt Levine, FinTech Law* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Facebook portal* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Moving back to the Bay Area* 📚- Favorite Book: Ender’s Game* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Invest in relationships, networks matterFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Real Estate is one of the best ways to build wealth, and travelling is a great way to spend it! What if there was a way to combine both of those ideas into a single platform? Our guest today is Ali Nichols, Co-Founder of Getaway, who thinks she has figured out a way to combine both of those passions for millennials. On today’s show, we cover how Getaway is combining the demands of younger generations to not only invest in real estate but also enjoy the perks of that investment along the way. About Ali Nichols:Ali Nichols is the Co-founder and Co-CEO of Getaway. Prior to founding Getaway, Ali spent over 4 years as an executive at Bungalow, a technology-enabled residential real estate company, where she ran Operations, Growth, Marketing, Sales, and Real Estate. She spearheaded raising and operating a $700M real estate fund focused on acquiring single-family rentals. Before that Ali was a Strategy & Planning Sr. Manager at Uber and a Consultant at IBM. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Carnegie Mellon University.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I allowed my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at any time. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:(02:33) Ali’s journey into tech(04:56) Ali’s experience at Uber(05:46) Where Ali’s passion for Real Estate developed(07:35) Uber’s real estate division(10:03) The biggest takeaway from Uber(11:12) Ali’s time at Bungalow and helping it grow(13:52) Bungalow’s model for sourcing(15:18) Why she started Getaway(19:11) Finding her co-founder and why their partnership works(23:03) Why vacation rentals is an exciting asset class(26:11) Who Getaway is targeted at(28:09) How this is different from a traditional timeshare(29:56) How Getaway actually works(32:21) Target annual returns to users on Getaway(35:03) Plans to build out their portfolio of Real Estate holdings(36:53) What Getaway is doing with their recent $5.9M raise led by Cowboy Ventures, XYZ, and Night Ventures(37:59) Benefits from having a strong network of angel investorsFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: All In* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Lenny* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Airpods* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Fractional real estate investing* 📚- Favorite Book: To Kill A Mockingbird* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: You'll always catch more flies with honey than vinegar Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

We talk to another amazing LP this week, Aakar Vachhani, Partner at Fairview Capital. Fairview has over $3.5B in AUM that focuses on fund investing, co-investments, and direct investment. They have built a reputation for finding and backing emerging managers with diverse backgrounds.About Aakar Vachhani:Aakar Vachhani is a Partner and a member of Fairview Capital’s investment committee. He is involved in research, due diligence, investment monitoring, and business development for Fairview's venture capital and private equity partnership and direct co-investment portfolios.Prior to joining Fairview, Aakar was with Cambridge Associates, a leading investment advisor to foundations, endowments and corporate and government entities. He was responsible for analyzing private equity and venture capital investments in support of the firm's clients and consultants. In addition, he led research and data analytics projects on the firm’s private equity and venture capital database. Aakar also spent time with MK Capital, a multi-stage venture capital firm with a sector focus on software and cloud services.He holds a B.S. in Economics-Finance from Bentley University and an MBA in Finance and Entrepreneurship & Innovation from the Kellogg School of Management.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss(02:35) Aakar’s journey to becoming an investor(05:36) Learning about data and analysis of investing at Cambridge Associates(07:37) Investments in underrepresented, emerging managers he’s most proud of at Fairview(11:05) Why Fairview began looking for underrepresented managers when it started 30 years ago(11:56) How Fairview’s investing thesis has evolved over the years(18:19) Common mistakes and red flags that emerging managers make(20:17) What Aakar does to add-value to GPs(22:30) Advice he’s giving to his GPs right now on how to adjust to the market(24:15) How the FTX reflects on the entire venture industry(27:30) What Aakar is doing ot navigate the current seed and early-stage market(29:57) Using secondary funds to make way in the current market(31:57) Adjusting their return expectations in the market(32:40) Investment sectors Fairview is excited about(34:04) How new investors and family offices should think about the current market(35:35) Best career advice he’s receivedFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Plain English with Derek Thompson* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Hacker News, The Verge* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Owlet* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Health and wellness* 📚- Favorite Book: The Big Picture* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Remember to take a step back and remind yourself of what really matters Follow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Those of us in Venture Capital also have bosses called Limited Partners, or LPs, LPs are the folks we raise our funds from, and it’s important to that we find investors that believe in our vision of the future and investing thesis. Our guest today is Dave Sachse, Founder and Managing Partner of the Sachse Family Fund, which does direct investments in early-stage companies as well as being an LP. We talk to Dave about how family offices are navigating the venture market.About Dave Sachse:Dave Sachse is a Tech investor and entrepreneur with experience as a corporate software product manager, startup founder, business development leader, and community builder. In addition to technology investing in the private and public markets, Dave is passionate about demystifying VC as an asset class and democratizing wealth generation.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:(02:25) Dave’s journey into tech(04:49) Origins of the family office from the family business(07:00) How Dave got his start in VC investing(07:41) Types of companies that the Sacshe Family Fund Invests in(08:53) The process of determining their investment thesis(10:27) What their investment committee looks like and their due diligence process(11:52) Assessing emerging managers and using quantitative and qualitative methods(14:22) The timescale of VC investing and working with managers(16:40) Dave’s view on GP commits(19:59) Better metrics than IRR and MOIC to judge funds and managers(23:17) LPs asking to delay capital calls(25:32) Have we hit the bottom of the market and what does the near future hold(28:07) Dave’s approach to the current market(29:23) Why you should avoid pay-to-play pitch scenarios as a manager(33:11) Biggest lessons from being an investorFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Venture Unlocked* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Fred Wilson* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: One Wheel* 📈- Favorite New Trend: It doesn’t matter where you live* 📚- Favorite Book: Democratizing Knowledge by Elizabeth Yin and Hung Pham This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Grit or resiliency is one of the most important traits in modern life, especially if you’re a Founder. Our guest today Reed Switzer is one of the youngest guests on Tank Talks, and he’s been a Founder or Co-Founder of multiple companies. His current venture is Hopscotch, a simple, easy-to-use business payments platform that grew out of Reed’s frustrations as a small business owner.About Reed Switzer:Reed Switzer is an entrepreneur and rising product leader in the financial technology space.Born and raised in New York, Reed got his start bussing tables at a local diner. In his early professional career, he developed a passion for apparel and launched his own brand in partnership with a couple of friends. He later served as Operations Lead for a music streaming startup led by the former CFO of Combs Enterprises.In 2021, studying finance and technology at Wharton, Reed decided to drop out of school to pursue his entrepreneurial spirit. He founded and currently leads Hopscotch, a FinTech startup backed by Stellation Capital, Shine Capital, NOEMIS Ventures, 3KVC, Valar Ventures, NfX, Valor Equity Partners, Red & Blue Ventures, The MBA Fund, Switch Ventures, and Brightlane Ventures.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, the US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:02:47 Reed’s career in startups03:46 Using google to learn early lessons in entrepreneurship05:25 The decision to drop out of school to start Hopscotch06:49 Reed’s tenacious approach to cold reach to find advisors and investors09:32 The decision to bring on more seasoned Co-Founders and advisors10:53 Why business payments was such an exciting field to explore12:49 How Hopscotch is aiming to be Venmo for businesses14:28 The difference between Hopscoth and its competition15:41 What the Hopscotch Risk Score is16:15 The Hopscotch business model16:49 Long term vision for Hopscotch18:29 How Hopscotch leverages its data20:25 Dealing with competition in FinTech and SaaS21:46 Who the ideal customer is for Hopscotch22:52 Who Hopscotch is currently serving24:42 How they are dealing with higher interest rates and protecting their business25:51 Best ways they are attracting customers28:03 Plans for their recent fundraiseFast Favorites:* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: Joe Rogan Experience* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Lenny’s newsletter* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Apple watch* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Hiking* 📚- Favorite Book: Ryan Breslow - Guide to Fundraising* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Everything happens for a reasonFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

Security is another issue we all deal with, but the hassle and complexity of maintaining and proving you are secure can be burdensome, especially to growing startups. Our guest today, Pukar Hamal, Founder and CEO of SecurityPal a platform that aims to be an all-in-one solution that combines bleeding-edge, yet simple, customer-facing technology with in-house squadrons of trained, equipped, and efficient “security analysts in-the-loop” to effectively solve the security review process once and for all. We talk with Pukar about his journey through tech starting as an undergrad at Stanford, and how he navigated being a part of two separate acquisitions in his career, and what the opportunity was in starting SecurityPal.About Pukar Hamal:Pukar Hamal is the Founder and CEO of SecurityPal. He started his career as the first campus ambassador for Square at Stanford. He went on to for the government, PwC, and the Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen Foundation, before landing at TalentBin prior to its acquisition by Monster. He was the first business hire at Teamable Software, which was acquired in 2020. He has a strong track record of angel investing and as a scout for Craft Ventures. He did his undergrad at Stanford.A word from our sponsor:At Ripple, we manage all of our fund expenses and employee credit cards using Jeeves. The team at Jeeves helped get me and my team setup with physical and virtual credit cards in days. I was able to allow my teammates to expense items in multiple currencies allowing them to pay for anything, anywhere at anytime. We weren’t asked for any personal guarantees or to pay any setup or monthly SaaS fees.Not only does Jeeves save us time, but they also give us cash back on our purchases including expenses like Google, Facebook, or AWS every month. New users can earn up to 3% cashback for their first 90 days.The best part is Jeeves puts up the cash, and you settle up once every 30 days in any currency you want, unlike some other corporate card companies that make you pre-pay every month. Jeeves also recently launched its Jeeves Growth and Working Capital initiative for startups and fast-growing companies to enable more financial freedom for companies. The best thing of all is that Jeeves is live in 24 countries including Canada, US and many other countries around the world.Jeeves truly offers the best all-in-one expense management corporate card program for all startups especially the ones at Ripple and we at Tank Talks could not be more excited to officially partner with them. Listeners of Tank Talks can get set up with a demo of Jeeves today and take advantage of our Tank Talks special with a‍ $250 statement credit after the first $2,500 in spend or a $500 statement credit after the first $5000 in spend. Lastly, all Jeeves cardholders receive access to their Lounge Pass program and access to over 1300 airports globally.Visit tryjeeves.com/tanktalks to learn more.In this episode we discuss:02:49 Pukar’s journey into tech06:42 What the environment at Stanford was like and how it inspired him to break into tech10:09 Lessons from the two acquisitions he experienced16:15 How he became a scout with Craft Ventures18:53 The problem SecurityPal works to solve29:25 What is a security questionnaire35:45 Types of questions asked in security questionnaires40:25 What a typical security questionnaire process is like for most startups44:19 Why it is important to be honest on security questionnaires48:45 How SecurityPal instills trust in its clients50:53 How Pukar raised a $21M Series A after bootstrapping to $1M in revenue53:42 The importance of the long game and relationships in successFast Favorites* 🎙- Favorite Podcast: The Memo* 📰- Favorite Newsletter/Blog: Of Dollars and Data* 📲- Favorite Tech Gadget: Air purifiers* 📈- Favorite New Trend: Rising Interest Rates* 📚- Favorite Book: Shoe Dog* 🤔 - Favorite Life Lesson: Play the long gameFollow Matt Cohen and Tank Talks here!Podcast production support provided by Agentbee.Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com