Kuli Kuli Foods’ Post

*Favorite* part of the year: In December I make a list and select 10 Texas entrepreneurs to purchase nearly $5,000 worth of their food products for donations... this year was a combined total of 902 shelf stable items for local food banks! Most I work with are Austin businesses, and 7 are women-owned. A few sent me extra if they knew what I was doing. Had to slap this together last min so a few deliveries I wasn't around for, but the photo below is of the awesome brands + some of the drop offs/pick ups split between the Central Texas Food Bank & Keep Austin Fed. I have a great time working with those organizations, getting to know or re-connecting with them over the years. Now I love CPG so about the food: I wanted to buy from the best & emerging brands, best tasting foods, support the best entrepreneurs... and was more easily convinced if there was added impact like a cause, good for the environment, etc. After making most of the purchases I remembered Cheddies, Shar, Bawi, and a few other Texan brands I could've worked with, so if you have suggestions for next year please connect me/tag the founders below! I'm obviously a little biased toward those who have investors I've worked with, or at least venture capitalists or accelerators in Texas :) I haven't made a lot of noise doing this for 4 years now, but I realize sometimes when you tell people what you do, they want to help! Thanks everyone who made this happen + special shout out to Schusterman Family Philanthropies for supporting my ideas focused on "tikkun olam", or kindness performed to perfect or repair the world.

Ooh yesterday - what a day! First up my first @TICmcr event with Elizabeth Scott MBE, some amazing insights from David Levine and Chris Tottman - I'm not quite ripping up the pitch deck but I am thinking more about the story and 'turning dots into lines' really resonated with me. An excellent panel with a real founder raising story to boot hosted by Laura Sisson, CFA and candid tales from Michael Forster and Kit Muir-Rogers on their journey👏 well done to you both and thank you for sharing. Thank you to the team at TIC for putting this on and for allowing me access (yes I was the nuisance that applied for it three times!) Then off we went to Jessica Jackson fireside event to find out all about Prae-seed - we were the ones trotting in late at the back and it was my fault because I couldn't remember where I parked the car - sorry👩⚕️ Emma-Louise Fusari RGN and thank you for being patient with me whilst we checked every level of Circle car park 🙄 PS that was the hottest room I have ever been in! Finally over to PwC for the Female Founders FLIP MCR event and a room full of female founders sharing their stories. Fair to say that by 7pm I was flagging and had to duck out early to begin the process of unpacking it all with a good nights sleep! Takeaways Raising money is not hard but it also is. Focus on your story not just the pitch. Don't overlook the numbers - can you stand behind them? Traction/PMF is key even at pre-seed. Network, network, network - but also build your product/business. Go to London - I really wish this wasn't here but it just is! Some of these are like a paradox but that is the world of #startups and #investment

💰Is your beverage brand in fundraising mode? If so, this is the Business of Drinks episode for you! We talk with Giuseppe Infusino, managing partner and chief investment officer at InvestBev, a private equity firm that deploys growth capital to drinks brands. In this masterclass, Giuseppe shares his proprietary, 4-part framework for fundraising success — Plan, Path, Pitch, and Process. By the end of the episode you’ll have answers to these questions: 💬 In the PLAN stage: -How should I frame my product, and the opportunity it represents, to investors? -What do investors want to know about my company’s infrastructure? -What should I be prepared to share about my customers and GTM strategy? 🧭 In the PATH stage: -What are the different types of funding I should be aware of? -How can I find potential funding sources? -How should I approach potential funders? ❇️ At the PITCH stage: -How should I think about my pitch deck? -What is the most essential information I need in that deck? -How can I improve my chances of success? 📊 In the PROCESS stage: -What happens after the pitch? -How can I effectively support the process?  -What else should I be thinking about? If you want an edge on pitching to investors in today’s challenging fundraising climate, listen in: https://lnkd.in/e6nYcMvi #investbev #drinksindustry #pitching #beverageindustry #fundraising

This entrepreneur built a £2m+ online business during covid-19. His journey turning his obsession for healthy living into a high growth online business never stops inspiring me. I met Sonny a couple of years ago, shortly after he launched WellEasy. What he achieved with his co-founder since then is remarkable. I had the pleasure to catch up him last week. We had a fascinating discussion around: ▶️ the £1bn+ market opportunity for selling healthy foods online in the UK ▶️ why building an online healthy grocery shop makes sense now more than ever ▶️ how to grow revenues from £150k to £1m per month without raising excessive VC money ▶️ how to navigate the current fundraising environment as a foodtech business DM me if you want to have a chat on these topics

Anyone trying to build a brand should know your newsletter subscribers are your most important followers. Algos can change but email is here to stay. But how do you actually grow a newsletter? I chatted to Tyler Denk 🐝, founder of beehiiv, for Entrepreneur's Handbook. They'e raised a $12.5m Series A and attracted some of the world's top creators (including all brands I'm involved in!). He also helped Morning Brew grow to 3m+ subscribers. Here were 5 lessons for you: (Listen to the full thing in the show notes.

Here’s what you don’t see from just the photos or the digital recaps of “Founder Fridays”. I should know because I read about them for the last two years before finally going to see Fernanda Böhme last week. 👀 A soloprenuer taking notes on measuring success in years, not months. A gal networking to raise money for a startup. Another gal in a marketing role at current job wondering how to give her best self. A dude, paying his way through college running a tshirt business with roommate. Various business pros that lead small and large brands. If you’re not there, you don’t see or experience these things. Founder Friday brings together ambition and capability. Not just in terms of the celebrity speakers. In terms of the audience too. One of the last things you don’t see… the sponsors who make it happen. Thanks to BONCO and Kiln for this round. They’re silently but not subtlety enabling business to happen in these crowds. I’m anxious to bring on more strategic partners for this monthly event series. If you’re interested in seeing, enabling, benefiting from the magic that is Founder Fridays, lets talk.

Two Fridays ago - at 4pm, I might add - we sat with advisor (and 111 Angel investor) Angela Fusaro, MD, MBA, and she said, you have to launch your fundraising campaign soon. *we nod* "Like, by Monday." *we nod, eyes a little bigger* "Morning. Monday morning." *we are now furiously nodding with eyes VERY wide, and finding the nearest taco restaurant to work + eat our fears away* Monday morning we launch. By Friday we have 3 Angels. In 2 weeks, we've: - Hosted 2 webinars (thanks Christy Brown for the recommendation on how to best use our time, spreading our message in the shortest time, 1: many) - Collaborated with our incredible co-creators Lisa Cunningham, Ky Dickens & Ciera Thompson - Secured 8 angels - Are at 9% of goal Like I said before, exhausted, but happily so. If you take anything away from this post, please note: 1. Be bold enough to dream, and even bolder to share those dreams with the world. 2. There are alternative ways to get where you want to go; 111 Angels was an idea that we came up with over a year ago, and it was only in developing this series that we found a home for the strategy. 3. Tacos do, indeed, make fear and hard work more palatable. 4. Small wins are still wins. It's easy for ego to say, "9% is just a little bit. You have a long ways to go," but instead, we're saying, "F*ck yeah - 2 weeks, 9%, look at this progress." Like I said earlier today - sustainable company that scales; not scales at all costs. #walkthewalk

Game On! Success can birth more Success. Having this mindset as a foundation, early in the entrepreneurial journey, is a cornerstone of that foundation.

valuable insights here

Case Study Spotlight: Unveiling the Success Story of Antonia Saint NY At Enventys Partners, we take pride in helping visionary entrepreneurs bring their innovative ideas to life. 👠 The Challenge: Antonia Saint NY approached us with a mission: to create high heels that are as comfortable as they are chic. Balancing the delicate dance between fashion and function was no small feat, but our team was up for the challenge. 🛠️ Our Approach: With a commitment to turning challenges into opportunities, we meticulously crafted a strategy that merged cutting-edge design with advanced engineering. Collaborative brainstorming, prototyping, and iterative refinement allowed us to capture the essence of Antonia Saint NY's vision. 💡 The Solution: Through a fusion of innovative materials and thoughtful design, we transformed the notion of comfortable high heels into a reality. The result? A stunning collection that blends elegance with wear-all-day ease, redefining industry norms. 🌟 The Result: With the help of Enventys Partners, the Antonia Saint NY campaign raised $1,845,714 which was 3,690% of their original $50,000 Kickstarter funding goal. The Enventys Partners’ Facebook advertising strategy was responsible for $439,486 of the total revenue and 1,796 of the total number of backers. The ROI (return on investment) from Facebook ads alone was over 7X. 🙌 We're proud to have played a pivotal role in Antonia Saint NY's journey, showcasing the impact of collaboration, expertise, and a shared passion for innovation. Read the full case study to dive into the details of this transformative partnership: https://bit.ly/45ykXar #CaseStudy #InnovationJourney #Entrepreneurship #FootwearInnovation #EnventysPartners