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Are you an early stage founder revolutionizing the future of retail? Then you’re in the right place. My name is Sapna Shah and I’m an angel investor investing at the preseed stage in retail tech, ecommerce, marketplaces and consumer. I’m also the founder of Retail X Series, an ecosystem to help early-stage founders in the retail sector. Retail X Series includes events, a YouTube channel, a Slack community, resources for founders, and this podcast. In this podcast, I interview founders, investors and experts in the retail space, and we dig deep into the tactics around key topics that early-stage founders want to hear about. Welcome to the Retail X podcast.
43 Episodes
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How do you craft a customer journey for brick and mortar retail? How do you get to know your customer deeply? How do you build a company with the customer at the center? This episode features Louisa Schneider, CEO and Founder of Rowan, who will talk about how Rowan built a focus on the customer, from the earliest days through their retail expansion to over 40 locations.Topics:How Louisa thinks about fundraising for a brick and mortar businessHow the Rowan model evolved based on the need for b...
When you’re just starting up your company, it may feel too early to be thinking about a future potential exit. But how does that exit ultimately happen? This episode features Ju Rhyu, co-founder and CEO of Hero Cosmetics, who sold her company for $630 million dollars to a strategic acquiror. Ju will talk about the decisions she and her co-founders made along the way that ultimately led them to a great outcome.Topics:Why a focus on what your ultimate outcome is important for how you set up you...
How can a startup with only two full-time employees sell their food product into Costco? This episode features Michelle Razavi, Founder & CEO of Elavi, a startup that specializes in gut-friendly, low-sugar dessert spreads. Michelle will tell us all about her journey getting her product into Costco.Topics:When in Elavi’s growth did Costco appear on their radarWhy Costco was a fit for Elavi, and how they got in the front doorHow Elavi managed diligence and leaned on advisors for helpWhat st...
How do you build a successful large consumer brand without raising any VC dollars? Is VC the best fit for consumer brands? This episode features Sarah Kauss of iconic water bottle brand S’well and Amanda Herson, General Partner at Founder Collective – a founder and investor both talking about when VC is right for consumer brands, and when it isn’t.Topics:How Sarah started her brand S’well and how Amanda become a VCWhy Sarah didn’t raise VC funding for her company – and how she thinks about th...
Selling into wholesale accounts is a really different proposition than selling through your own DTC channel. This episode features Niki & Ritika Shamdasani of Sani, an apparel brand inspired by South Asian culture. They walk us through how they built their brand, pitched to Nordstrom, made their launch at Nordstrom successful and so much more. Topics:How two sisters started the Sani brandHow they turned a warm intro into a pitch meeting by utilizing their strengthsHow they prepared f...
Fundraising at the early stages is hard, and it’s been especially difficult over the last year or so – and even more so for a solo founder. This episode features Ann Wehren of In-seam, a private marketplace and sourcing toolkit for connectors whose relationships power the luxury fashion industry. She walks us through her step-by-step guide to raising a pre-seed round from VCs, from how she found warm intros, dealt with all the no’s, confirmed a lead investor and filled out her round. No...
How do you do customer research before launching your product? This episode features Ann Rosenstein, CEO of Amante 1530, a newly launched aperitif brand. Ana tells us how she developed Amante 1530 from the ground up, based on the research she did early on – both with bartenders and end customers. How Ana’s background led her to launching an aperitif brandHow she identified a hole in the aperitif marketThe critical research insights Ana gained from talking to bartenders and learning from ...
Ever wondered how brands make the decision to implement a particular retail tech product? This episode features Monica Royer, Founder & CEO of Monica & Andy, a baby & children’s apparel brand. Monica gives us an inside look into how she thinks about technology, what types of solutions are interesting to her as a founder, and tips for retail tech founders in selling to brands. The criteria for incorporating new tech products at various stages of the brand’s growthMonica & ...
Hi everyone, a quick Retail X Series update for you. There won’t be any new podcast episodes during the summer. Instead, I’m going to take the summer to plan out and record episodes for the fall. But I’d also like to hear what topics you’re most interested in hearing about in future podcast episodes. So if you’ve got a topic or speaker you’d like to hear from, shoot me an email at info@redgiraffeadvisors.com or reach out to me on Twitter @retailxseries. I’m looking forward to hearing yo...
Marketplaces are notoriously hard to build. This episode features Jaclyn Grauman, CEO of The Verticale, a social shopping platform that enables customers to discover brands that align with their values. Jaclyn discusses her journey building a DTC marketplace that is focused on brand discovery, the challenges of connecting customers to brands, and the pivots along the way.Using community and word of mouth as a tool to build customer acquisition Partnering with brands in a different way ve...
For many founders, raising outside capital, including venture capital, is the accepted path. But is this always the case? This episode features Leigh Sevin, co-founder of Endear, a retail clienteling software startup. Leigh and I talk about her fundraising journey, choices they’ve made and how to think about VC versus other fundraising options. Raising early-stage funding for a tech startup with a profitability-first mindsetThe difference between pre-seed angels and VCs and how they thi...
Cracking the code on B2B sales, particularly in retail tech, is not easy. This episode features Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock, an omni-retail experience platform startup. Casey talks about how she targeted her first customers, utilized her network, and how she is now scaling sales after those first efforts. How to utilize your network to build relationships before you start sellingWhich brands to target in the early daysTrying an unusual approach to get product feedback Getting that ...
Most new brands today want to be omnichannel right from the beginning. This episode features Vanessa Dawson, Founder & CEO of Arber, a startup that specializes in organic plant biologicals. Vanessa talks about why an omnichannel approach was important for her company right from its launch, how she has gotten into wholesale accounts from tastemakers, to independents to Walmart, and how she measures success in a seasonal category. Topics:What organic plant biologicals are, and why they’re i...
Building a beverage brand from the ground up? Then this episode is for you. This episode features Lan Pham, who recently founded Sang, a ready-to-drink Vietnamese coffee brand. Lan talks about how she raised money pre-launch, how she thought about distribution, and the marketing activities she planned for launch.How Lan found the right investors for a beverage business pre-launchWhy using a paid advisory brand incubator was a good move How using expert advisors helped with finding the ri...
Building an apparel brand, particularly in womenswear, is incredibly challenging. This episode features Siyana and Andy Huszar, who founded and scaled Marcella from zero to success by prioritizing slow, profitable growth. Siyana and Andy talk about their early moments on Etsy to dealing with a COVID pivot to fundraising in difficult environments. Topics:Why Etsy was a great place to learn about retail and launch a proof of conceptEarly keys to success on EtsyHow starting small with production...
Should early-stage founders sell their brands on Amazon? And if so, how? This episode features Annalisa DeMarta, who founded and scaled a children’s brand on Amazon, and is also the founder of Ridgeline Insights an agency focused on helping brands succeed on the Amazon platform. Annalisa talks through how built her brand on Amazon, and tips she’s learned along the way.Why Amazon is an important channel for early-stage brands Why understanding your product’s fit on Amazon is critical – an...
How do you build successful partnerships with big brands when you’re still a startup? This episode features Trisha Goyal, Founder & CEO of Break the Love, an early-stage marketplace that connects lovers of racket sports with underused spaces. Trisha talks through how she built some key B2B partnerships with large, marquee brands by starting small and being focused. Topics include:How strategically to use B2B partnerships to build consumer demand for a marketplaceFiguring out your “w...
How do you raise a seed round? This episode features VC Anna Palmer, General Partner at Flybridge Capital. Anna talks through how the fundraising market has changed, why founders need to seek out “true believers,” and how to build relationships with VCs. Don't miss this informative episode, whether you’re a pre-seed or seed stage founder (note: this episode was recorded in late October 2022). What has changed in the seed fundraising environment in the fall of 2022How valuations are shift...
You might have heard that building a consumer app is hard, and scaling it is even harder. In this episode, Genevieve Bellaire, Founder & CEO of Realworld, a “super-app” for adulthood, gives her advice on building consumer apps. Genevieve talks through why an app was important for her business, the launch of the app, how she thinks about user cohorts and more. Thinking through the decision to build an app versus a mobile web siteHow to think about launching a consumer app in terms of ...
Can DTC companies raise early-stage capital right now? Well, it’s a little more complicated right now. This episode features VC Sarah Foley, Partner at SWAT Equity. Sarah talks through how digitally native brands can raise equity rounds right now, what valuations and round sizes are important to note, and where the market is going. Don't miss this informative episode (note: this episode was recorded in mid-October 2022). What kinds of rounds are getting done right now at the early stages...
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