Andrew Goletka & Franklin Isacson (Coefficient Capital) - Behaviors that changed forever in 2020, Investing in CPG at the Series A, and when to go into retail

My guests today are Franklin Isacson & Andrew Goletka, Founders and Managing Partners of Coefficient Capital. Coefficient partners with entrepreneurs to build brands, tell stories and engage consumers across the digital and physical worlds, typically at the series A. Some of their investments include Magic Spoon, Hawthorne, Haus and Hydrant. We discuss how they think about omnichannel, insights learned from their consumer trends report that was produced in partnership with The New Consumer, and criteria at Series A.

Some of the questions I ask Andrew and Franklin:

1. What was both your attraction to consumer?
2. What's interesting about both your stories is that you came from the consumer world from opposite angles - Andrew from the ecommerce side, Franklin from the retail side. From each of these positions, what is most overlooked when evaluating an ecommerce brand vs. a retail brand?
3. What are some of the differences when analyzing a successful DNVB vs. a brand that has done really well in traditional retail?
4. When DNVBs reach scale and have to expand to retail, what do you find is the most challenging part of that expansion process?
5. When you have a brand that is successful in retail, do they need to have an ecommerce strategy?
6. When does an ecommerce strategy not make sense?
7. When it comes growth marketing, you no longer have the arbitrage opportunities that you had in the late 00s and early 10s. What are some creative strategies that you've seen disruptive brands execute in order to get above the noise?
8. What is a reason why a DNVB might not be able to work in retail?
9. Have you seen online brands having to rebrand themselves in order to position themselves differently when it comes to retail?
10. Walk me through your due diligence process.
11. Has it been harder to establish conviction amongst founders when meeting with them remotely?
12. What's one thing each of you would change as it pertains to venture capital?
13. What's one book that inspired each of you personally and professionally?
14. What's the best piece of advice that you've ever received?
15. What's your most recent investment and what makes you excited about it?
16. What's one piece of advice that you have for founders building brands?