Viktoriya, Founding Partner of TA Ventures, on Eastern Europe to Southeast Asia in Venture Capital

In this episode, Richard Armstrong chats with Viktoriya, Founding Partner of TA Ventures, about her venture capital journey and early challenges. They discuss the rise of Eastern European tech, bootstrapping culture, and conference networking. Viktoriya shares success stories and TA Ventures' investment philosophy. The conversation highlights TA Ventures' strategic shift from Europe to Southeast Asia, exploring the region's venture capital allure. They cover the firm's partnership model, sector expertise, and team efficiency. Viktoriya also talks about angel clubs, growth plans, and emerging Southeast Asian trends. The episode wraps with quickfire questions and a teaser for future episodes.

Jamie Funfinergi, Co-founder & GP of Nazca VC

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Richard Armstrong engage with Jamie Funfinergi to delve into his early career, the founding of Nazca, and his notable investments. Jamie shares his investment philosophy, focusing on founders and missed opportunities, and discusses overcoming challenges within the Latin American ecosystem. The conversation highlights strategies for managing liquidity and growth, lessons from international investing, and insights into AI. Jamie addresses the growth capital gap and the role of secondaries in Latin America, offering ideas on enhancing the investment climate. The episode wraps up with a quick-fire session and closing remarks.

Juan Pablo Ortega, Co-founder of Rappi & Yuno

In this episode, Richard Armstrong and Jack Richardson engage with Juan Pablo Ortega to explore his journey from early ventures to the founding of Rappi. They discuss Rappi's rapid growth, the challenges of fundraising, and the transformation into a super app. Juan Pablo shares insights into leadership, culture, and the inception of Uno, highlighting its differentiation and AI integration in payments. The conversation touches on global compliance, comparing fintech developments in Southeast Asia and Latin America. They also examine the growth trajectories of Rappi and Uno, the future of payments, and the role of Stablecoins. The episode concludes with a quick-fire round and a look at Uno's future prospects.

Nick Tran, Former Head of Global Marketing @ TikTok, Farfetch

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Richard Armstrong engage with Nick Tran to explore his tech journey and marketing acumen. They delve into TikTok's most notable marketing strategies and how the company navigates scrutiny and challenges. Nick shares insights on building a global marketing team and the impact of TikTok Shop on retail. The discussion covers the evolution of social media and platform comparisons, drawing from Nick's experience at Farfetch. The episode includes a quick-fire session with Nick and insights into his future endeavors, wrapping up with thoughts on the next generation of brands.

Tien Tzuo, CEO and Founder @ Zuora

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Richard Armstrong sit down with Tien Tzuo to discuss his journey from Oracle and Salesforce to becoming CEO of Zuora. They explore Marc Benioff's influence and Tzuo's epiphany about the subscription model. The conversation highlights the challenges faced by CEOs during the shift to subscription models, with insights from Jason Lemkin and the impact of Spotify. They examine consumption-based pricing models, leadership evolution, and the role of funding partners. Tien shares strategies for board dynamics, sustaining motivation, and building company culture in preparation for IPO. The episode concludes with a quick-fire round on career beginnings and contrarian beliefs.

Liz Christo, Partner @ Stage 2 Capital

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Richard Armstrong chat with Liz Christo about her career journey to Stage 2 Capital. Liz shares insights on sales team building and upsell strategies from her time at NetSuite, highlighting her shift from sales to venture capital. They discuss creating sales playbooks, hiring strategies, and compare product-led growth with enterprise sales. The conversation also covers compensation, retention, and prospecting, along with the synergy between sales, marketing, and customer success. Liz offers insights into forecasting for investors and ends with a quick-fire round on contrarian beliefs in venture capital.

Will Bennett & Sivesh Sukumar, Investors @ Balderton, Seedcamp

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Richard Armstrong join Will Bennett and Sivesh Sukumar to explore AI's role in startups. They discuss their venture capital experiences at Seedcamp and Balderton, comparing AI dynamics in startups versus large companies, and cloud versus on-prem storage. The conversation covers how startups are outperforming incumbents, future AI trends, and regulatory challenges. They also address AI development hurdles, enterprise education, talent dynamics, public misconceptions, employment impacts, AI verticals, and hype cycles. The episode wraps up with advice on entering venture capital.

Harrison Rose, Co-founder @ Paddle, Goodfit

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Harrison Rose delve into the founding story of Paddle, discussing the motivation and challenges faced, including the impact of A-level results. They explore Paddle's initial business model, strategic pivots, and the evolution of its sales strategy. The conversation highlights the importance of refining the Ideal Customer Profile and balancing sales-led with product-led growth strategies. The episode also examines the evolution of SaaS pricing models, challenges in rapid scaling, and co-founder dynamics. Harrison shares his personal growth journey, transition from Paddle, and motivation behind joining Goodfair. The episode wraps up with career advice and contrarian beliefs in tech.

James Peyer, Founder @ Cambrian

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Richard Armstrong engage with James Pyre to explore the biotech landscape, delving into his background and the founding of Cambrian. The discussion highlights Cambrian's mission to tackle aging biology and compares biotech to tech investment landscapes. James shares insights into Cambrian's early funding, metabolism research, and drug development efforts. The conversation navigates the complexities of the regulatory environment and data management, emphasizing strategies to accelerate drug development and the future of longevity drugs. The episode wraps up with a quick-fire round of questions with James Pyre, followed by closing remarks.

Chris Tottman, Founding Partner @ Notion Capital

In this episode, Jack Richardson sits down with Chris Tottman to explore his remarkable journey from entrepreneur to investor. They discuss the founding and growth of MessageLabs, its market leadership, and the impact of the 2008 financial crisis on the company. Chris shares insights into founding Notion Capital and its investment strategy, emphasizing the importance of assessing founder resilience and experience. The conversation delves into finding the right balance in founder traits and lessons learned from 15 years in venture capital. Chris reflects on influential board members and shares his personal inspirations. The episode wraps up with a quick-fire round and social media connections.

Markus Fuhrmann, Founder @ DeliveryHero, Cavalry Ventures, Bitkraft Ventures & Gropyus

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Marcus Feumann explore Marcus's entrepreneurial journey, starting with his early ventures and the founding of Delivery Hero. They discuss the scaling challenges faced in food delivery and insights into the industry's evolution. Marcus shares experiences from the hardest fundraising rounds and his views on the future of quick commerce. The conversation transitions to his venture capital career and his involvement with Graphios, a company focused on scalable, sustainable housing and construction technology. They delve into market opportunities in the construction housing industry and compare leadership dynamics at Graphios versus Delivery Hero. The episode wraps up with quick-fire lessons and tech opportunities.

S2E7: Dan Chaplin, Partner @ Dawn Capital

In this episode, Richard Armstrong, Jack Richardson, and Dan Chaplin explore Dan's journey to becoming a partner at Dawn Capital. They discuss Dawn's investment structure and the evolving fintech landscape, highlighting key investment criteria, capital costs, and valuable sectors. The conversation delves into the distinctions between tech and financial services, examining margin profiles, unit economics, and capital efficiency. They discuss profitability expectations and market fragmentation in Europe, along with AI investment trends in fintech. Dan shares insights on board composition, predictions for 2024, and essential characteristics for founders. The episode concludes with valuable advice for founders raising capital.

S2E6: Ertan Can, Founder @ Multiple Capital

In this episode, Jack Richardson and Ertan Can delve into the world of Fund of Funds and Micro VCs in Europe. They discuss the benefits, qualities of investable managers, and structuring pre-seed funds. The conversation covers follow-on strategies, re-upping criteria, and compares emerging and established GPs and LPs. They explore the future of micro funds, regulatory impacts, and LP asset class diversification. The role of late-stage funds in early-stage investment and larger funds as LPs in seed funds are also examined. Ertan shares advice for first-time managers and his vision for the venture capital industry's future.

S2E5: Marc Cohen, Sole GP @ unbundled vc

In this episode, Richard Armstrong and Jack Richardson engage with Mark Cohen, exploring his career journey and transition into venture capital. They contrast the dynamics of venture capital with financial services and delve into Mark's unbundled VC thesis and investment focus. The discussion covers the investment process, decision-making, and the nuances of deep tech investments and founder relationships. They examine price sensitivity, market valuation trends, and the implications of signaling in venture capital. Mark provides insights into the London VC scene, portfolio strategy, and LP investment strategies. The episode concludes with advice for founders and reflections on changes in the venture capital industry.

S2E4: Laura McGinnis, Investor @ Balderton Capital

In this episode, Jack Richardson engages with Laura McGinnis to explore her background and career progression in venture capital, focusing on her role at Balderton Capital. The discussion delves into the consumer market, analyzing deal flow and Balderton's strategic approach to consumer market verticals. They examine evaluation metrics and consumer acquisition within VC, highlighting emerging trends in consumer marketing and the impact of word-of-mouth. Laura shares her experience transitioning from an operator to a VC and discusses the importance of industry diversity. The episode concludes with a quick-fire round offering career paths, advice, and tips for founders.

S2E3: Dan Marcus, CEO @ Ramp <> Paul Lehair, Investment Director @ Albion VC

In this episode, Richard Armstrong and Jack Richardson talk with Dan Marcus and Paul Hill about the intricate world of tech startups. Dan shares his journey from relocation to automating forecasting at Ramp, highlighting poker's influence on his business acumen. Paul discusses his VC background, Richard's experience with Citymapper, and choosing Albion VC. The conversation explores the art versus science of forecasting, the necessity of AI, and the importance of a strong founding team. Challenges in the South African startup scene, attracting talent, and the evolving vision of Ramp are discussed. The episode concludes with advice on raising capital, managing VC expectations, and finding fulfilling problems.

S2E2: Babs Ogundeyi, Founder @ Kuda <> Dr. Ricardo Schäfer, Partner @ Target Global

In this episode, Richard Armstrong and Jack Richardson are joined by Babs Ogundeyi to explore the founding story of CUDA and its mission to build consumer trust in fintech. Babs shares insights into the challenges of traditional banking and the opportunities within the fintech sector. The discussion highlights Target Global's investment philosophy and their early involvement with CUDA, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The episode delves into the dynamics of investor-founder relationships and explores strategies for operating and growing within the Nigerian market. Concluding with quick-fire questions, Babs offers valuable advice for founders navigating the current capital raising climate.

S2E1: Carmen Alfonso Rico, VC turned Angel @ Cocoa

In this episode, Jack Richardson engages with Carmen Alfonzo Rico to explore her journey from her early career to founding Kokoa. Carmen shares insights from her angel investment experience with Hopin and discusses key realizations in investing and the startup world. The conversation delves into Kokoa's pre-seed investment strategies, unique benchmarking approaches, and the assessment of potential investments, focusing on founders and market fit. Carmen highlights the balance of empathy and ruthlessness in founders, the dynamics of small funds, and Kokoa's stance on no follow-ons. The episode also covers strategies for raising a venture fund, comparing direct founder investments with fund investments, and Kokoa's future plans.

S1E5: Nicolas Hourcard, Co-founder @ QuestDB

In this episode, Jack Richardson sits down with Nicholas Wukal to explore the journey behind Quest DB. Nicholas shares his background and the inception of Quest DB, highlighting the growing importance of time series data and its diverse applications. The conversation delves into the fundraising challenges faced in the US versus Europe and the critical role of early product iterations and customer feedback. Nicholas reflects on his Y Combinator experience and the support received post-YC. The discussion also covers strategies for engaging developers, the significance of a public roadmap, and the impact of angel investors. The episode concludes with insights into board control, leadership, and lessons for first-time founders.

S1E4: George Richardson, Founder @ AeroCloud <> Chris Smith, Partner @ Playfair

In this episode, Jack Richardson, Richard Armstrong, George Richards, and Chris Smith explore the venture capital and startup worlds. Chris shares insights from Playfair Capital, stressing operational experience. George discusses his journey to entrepreneurship and AeroCloud's unique story. They cover pandemic challenges, customer feedback, and founder qualities. The conversation includes adding value before term sheets, hiring, and company culture. They also touch on M&A strategies, integration challenges, and founder-investor dynamics, ending with traits of successful founders and advice for seeking VC investment.