Seb - ex MBB consultant, joined a hyper growth mobility start up, Circ which later sold to Bird and now jumped ship to Balderton, VC - what a career journey so far!
What start up trend is Seb currently excited about? Future of ecommerce! He explores the bifurcation of ecommerce, D2C, purpose brands and ecommerce infrastructure. If you're recruiting for a B2C VC - these are some golden nuggets!
VC recruiting advice? Seb has got you covered with some of these tips on charting a path to stand out: 1) Learning to have confidence to have strong views on spaces; 2) Get on top of an ecosystem; 3) Do your own marketing and sales - blogging, twitting and even podcasting!
Check out the latest Balderton portfolio investments: https://www.balderton.com/companies/
Nina (LBS MBA'19) started Cult Mia during her MBA. She won the LBS Launchpad competition in 2019 and thereafter joined the LBS Incubator, 'The House'.
Cult Mia is a fashion platform bringing unique designer styles from across the globe. Working with over 100 designers from over 26 countries, serving over 20,000 customers. Cult Mia supports local businesses at an international scale. During COVID, Cult Mia's agile business model was in full force allowing for an authentic destination shopping experience without the international travel!
Thinking about co-founding a start up with a friend or joining an early stage start up? Nina gives advice on how to vet those important relationships as you're hitting the ground running
Angela Chou and Sarah Shanfield, investors at Felix Capital, join us the final episode of the āBreaking into VCā series. In this episode, we discuss thematic sourcing at Felix Capital, the creator economy, and what drew them to Creative Fabrica. We also walk through their due diligence process for Creative Fabrica in the hopes that it will help you prepare for your next VC case study.
Check out the Felix Capital portfolio here: https://www.felixcap.com/portfolio
0:55 - 5:35: Intro to Sarah & Angela, and Felix Capital
5:40 - 8:10: Overview of Felix Capital
8:10 - 10:15: What is thematic sourcing?
10:15 - 13:05: Breaking down the creator economy
13:05 - 15:20: What does Creative Fabrica do?
15:20 - 33:20: Felix Capitalās due diligence process and how it was applied to Creative Fabrica
33:20 - 34:30: Investment Process at Felix Capital
34:30 - 36:50: Support post-investment
36:50 - 41:05: Whatās next post-VC on the career side?
Kathy Gromotka, Principal at Downing Ventures, joins us for the fifth episode of the āBreaking into VCā series. In this episode, Kathy walks us through her process for analyzing founder pitches and which metrics matter the most to investors. Later in the episode, we dive into the preparation required for a VC case study and what one should expect. Kathy provides some helpful tips for standing out in the VC recruitment process.
Check out the Downing Ventures portfolio here: https://www.downingventures.com/portfolio
1:50 - 3:00: Overview of Downing Ventures
3:00 - 8:25: Receiving and analyzing founder pitches
8:25 - 16:10: What are investors looking for in pitch decks?
16:10 - 22:40: What are some red flags in a pitch deck?
22:40 - 27:45 : Making an investment and post-investment support
27.45: 30:35: Putting together an investment memo
30:35 - 42:10: What are different case study formats and how do you prepare?
42:10 - 45:05: What skills are VCs looking for in the case study?
45:05 - 50:20: Tips and advice for interviews and case studies
50:20 - 52:35: Key takeaways
How does one prepare for a VC interview? In the fourth episode of the āBreaking into VCā series, Kathryn and Anjum discuss the typical structure of a VC interview, advice for pitching a start up, and the main competencies VCs are screening for in an interview. This episode wraps up with some helpful tips on motivational and technical questions as well as general interview advice.
1:30 - 3:00: What should you expect from a VC interview?
3:00 - 7:15: What are VCs looking for in candidates?
7:15 - 14:30: What should you research and prepare before the interview?
14:30 - 25:20: How to pitch an interesting start up and talk about industry trends
25:20 - 44:20: Motivational questions questions and tips for answering them
44:20 - 51:55: How to prepare for the technical questions
51:55 - 56:46: Key takeaways and interview tips
Dr. Brittany Barreto, fellow podcast host of Femtech Focus discusses the latest investment trends in Femtech - market worth $1 trillion! Did you know that there are 3 femtech IPOs, 39 notable exits out of which 6 over $1 billion. No wonder VCs are focusing on the FemTech space. Be prepared to learn, not only what makes a successful Femtech company but also sextech, orgasms and pelvic floor therapy!
Loved listening to Brittany? Follow her FemTech Focus podcast: https://femtechfocus.org/podcast/
Want to learn more about Femtech? The LBS Women in Business Conference on 4th March 2021 has a very exciting FemTech panel lined up with Dame, Parla, LocalGlobe and moderated by Amy Lewin from Sifted.
Grab your ticket to the hottest LBS event of the year! https://www.lbswib.co.uk/conference-2021.
Now that we have covered what VCs actually do and how firms make money, the next step is landing the coveted interview. In the third episode of the āBreaking into VCā series, Kathryn and Anjum talk about how to articulate an interest in VC and how to stand out as a thoughtful and opinionated applicant. They also discuss VC recruitment channels, leveraging your network, and the dos and don'ts of coffee chats.
2:45 - 4:10: What are the different roles at a VC firm?
4:15 - 7:00: What is a typical VC background?
7:15 - 13:30: How to articulate interest in VC
13:30 - 15:30: How does your skill set position you for a role in VC?
15:30 - 20:30: How to educate yourself about VC
20:30 - 27:40: How to differentiate yourself
28:30 - 33:20: Next steps and VC recruitment channels
33:20 - 52:15: Coffee chats, networking, and follow ups
52:15 - 55:00: Key takeaways
Devon (LBS MBA 2017) discusses latest trends in Agritech - perfect blend of social impact and modernising the sector. Heard of Carbon Chain? LBS founded business, tracking carbon footprint of supply chains in heavy industries
Are you a female founder pitching VCs & angles for money? Promotion vs prevention style questions is something to be aware of and tailor your pitch to. Read this piece by LBS Professor, Dana Kanze: https://www.london.edu/think/iie-what-investors-ask-female-entrepreneurs
Want to hear more from Devon? She's speaking at the flagship, LBS Women in Business Conference on 4th March 2021: https://www.lbswib.co.uk/conference-2021. Grab your ticket to the hottest LBS event of the year!
Alexandra Piedrahita (LBS MBA ā20) joins us for the second episode of the āBreaking into VCā series to tell us about her main responsibilities and typical day (or lack thereof) as a VC Associate at March Capital. Ever wondered what some of the less interesting aspects of the VC associate job are? Ale covers these topics and discusses what she likes most about her role. She also provides some helpful tips for how LBS students should spend their time when navigating the VC job market.
Check out the March Capital portfolio here: https://marchcp.com/portfolio/
2:35 - 5:300: How is a VC firm split internally?
5:00 - 12:00: What are the main responsibilities of a VC associate?
12:05 - 17:10: How do you source deals and screen companies?
17:10 - 22:10: Who do you work with on deals? Do you get carry?
22:15 - 24:45: What are some tasks that you didnāt expect to spend so much time on?
24:45 - 27:20: What are some aspects of the job that are less interesting?
27:20 - 29:20: What really excites you about VC?
30:00 - 32:40: Advice for LBS students looking to break into VC
Are you looking to gain basic knowledge about the world of venture capital to see if itās a career you want to pursue? Or are you trying to land your dream job in venture capital? Either way, youāve come to the right place for a crash course in VC 101.
In the first episode of the āBreaking into VCā series, Kathryn and Anjum discuss how VC is different from other asset classes, different types of VC firms and funding stages, VC fund structure, and how VCs make money.
Check out some of Anjumās thoughts on venture capital, entrepreneurship, and interviews with founders on her blog: https://medium.com/@anjumr27
Episode Cheat Sheet:
3:00 - 8:40: Whatās the difference between VC and PE?
8:40 - 10:30: What are the different types of VC firms?
10:30 - 22:00: What are the different funding stages?
22:40 - 28:30: Overview of VC fund structure
28:30 - 35:30: How do VCs make money?
35:30 - 38:40: What are some of the drawbacks of VC?
40:30 - 43:45: Lifetime of a VC fund
44:00 - 45:30: Term sheets
45:30 - 48:00 : Key takeaways
Elisabeth (LBS MBA'18) started her company Skwire, straight out of LBS MBA. Skwire is scaling residential investment using the latest AI technology - Lizzie reveals all the secrets in this episode as well as the hottest proptech trends
Ever thoughts about intrapreneurship? Lizzie explains how this could be an alternative route to entrepreneurship and why employers are loving the start up vibe even within a bigger company
Farhan (LBS MBA'07) started his career at Yahoo where the founders of Slack, Whatsapp, LinkedIn, Etsy were sitting alongside him in office.
Learn more why Athemis is excited about the latest investment - Wollit, perfect blend of fintech and social impact business. Looking to pursue a career with a venture builder? Or even want to find out what a venture builder does? Tune in to this episode
Nolan (LBS MBA'18) shares his views on the medtech space as a frontline CEO running a ventilator business. Stuck in the dilemma of whether to join a start up or a VC post B school? Nolan unpacks this conundrum. He's been on both sides of the table multiple times. "What MBBs are to Fortune 500 Companies, VCs are to scale ups" - tune in to hear Nolan's take on this
Talis Capital has backed the most LBS businesses from any VC fund in Europe. Vasile explains the main investment themes of Talis Capital: 1) Tech infra; 2) Tech reshaping the way we live; 3) The next generation.
Have you heard of the death valley? We're not talking about Harry Potter and dementors here! Tune in to find how it relates to Series B funding
Juliet discusses future trends in logistics AI and latest investment in Keelvar, leading the 5th industrial revolution in procurement. Are you struggling to break into VC? This episode will be a game changer for you. Are you reading Benedict Evans newsletter? You should be as every VC investor does
Tickitto is the Stripe for Travel and Dana is disrupting the market big time even as the travel sector is being reshaped by the pandemic. Did you know that failure is a noun not a verb? Dana explains how she draws inspiration during turbulent times. Have a heard of the Monk who sold his Ferrari? Tune in to find out
Akriti discusses the massive boom in the gaming industry, fuelled by non gamers reaching for the console as a way to stay connected in a lockdown world. What do Travis Scott and UC Berkeley have in common? (hint: virtual reality game). Bonus: tips on how to get most of your VC coffee chats
Check out the full Octopus Ventures portfolio: https://octopusventures.com/portfolio/
The ex founder & CEO of Hummus Bros, discusses the Tenzo journey so far and the future of restaurant tech industry. Are you a non conformist? This episode is for you. From a computer science major at Cambridge to restaurateur to tech entrepreneur, Chris shares insights into his career journey.
Want to hear more about the restaurant space: head to 'In the Soup', the podcast hosted by Chris.
Alex explains why amidst the pandemic is the right time to grow the franchise side of his business. An idea a day - keeps the corporate at bay? Practical tips on how to ideate if you're stuck for ideas
Sarah discusses ESG and social enterprise trends - why they should matter to us and what the future holds. Career advice - don't underestimate the importance of side hustles!