Village Global Podcast

Kevin Gibbon (@kevingibbon), co-founder of Airhouse and formerly co-founder of Shyp, joins Erik on this episode. Airhouse provides modern, all-in-one ecommerce operations for direct-to-consumer companies.They discuss:- Kevin’s entrepreneurial journey and how he came to start Airhouse.- Lessons learned from founding Shyp.- Why entrepreneurs need to be clear about whether they are building a business that is truly VC-backable.- COVID’s implications for ecommerce and which changes endure post-COVID.- Which subspaces in DTC are more likely to be successful than others.- How to start a DTC brand and how Airhouse helps.- Why it’s so difficult to start a DTC brand these days.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.

Join David Perrell, a podcast founder and writing coach, Jeff Umbro, a podcast production expert, and Sachit Gupta, a successful podcast host and consultant, as they navigate the ins and outs of podcasting. They delve into why starting a podcast can expand your network, how to effectively reach out to guests, and the importance of good audio quality. The trio also unveils strategies for growth, monetization options, and techniques for engaging interviews that elicit fresh insights. Whether you're a novice or seasoned podcaster, this conversation is packed with valuable gems!

Ben Reinhardt (@Ben_Reinhardt), independent researcher and host of Idea Machines Podcast, joins Erik to discuss:- Why we don’t have more cool science fiction-like technology in the world.- Why there hasn’t been as much innovation or progress as humanity had hoped for.- How venture should evolve to increase innovation.- The challenges posed by system decay.- The way out of overregulation.- How to fix government grants.- How China balances innovation and regulation and how that compares to the US.- The challenges relating to intellectual property.- Where he agrees or disagrees with other thinkers in the space.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.

Aston Motes, first Dropbox employee, shares insights on startup ideas, attracting talent, finding a co-founder, music industry, and knowing when to shut down a startup. Discusses culture setting, diverse teams, and frameworks for evaluating ideas.

Andy Johns (@ibringtraffic), investor at Unusual Ventures, joins Erik on this episode.They discuss:- His thoughts on transportation at short distances and the business model problem that these companies face.- Where his thinking is at with respect to opportunities in consumer social today.- His thoughts on low-code and no-code.- Why he’s interested in fintech and what a financial social network might look like.- Other areas in fintech that are interesting.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.

Julian Lehr (@lehrjulian) of Stripe joins Erik on this episode. He is the author of the blog post Signalling as a Service.- The background of the post and why he wrote it.- Signalling as a framework and his breakdown of the component parts.- Why there is very little luxury software.- How this intersects with Eugene Wei’s idea of status as a service.- How monetization and signal amplification works in digital products.- His requests for startups in the area.- The next topics that he’s thinking about in the space.- His thoughts on reputation and financial capital.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.

Alexa von Tobel (@alexavontobel) and Mark Batsiyan (@mbatny) of Inspired Capital join Erik on this episode.They discuss:- What fintech 2.0 will look like and their experiences growing a company during the fintech 1.0 era.- The idea of the self-driving wallet and removing friction for consumers.- Their investment thesis and the trends they are seeing in fintech.- How incumbents will react to changes and why they will be just as acquisitive.- The impact of COVID on fintech.- How Gen Z thinks about finances.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.

Marcos Veremis, managing director at Evanston Capital Management, and David Fauchier (@dfauchier), CIO at Cambrial Capital, join Erik to discuss:- How they became interested in crypto.- How institutions have approached the space.- How the space has evolved.- Bitcoin as a store of value in the current market environment.- The impact of COVID on crypto.- Crypto investment strategies.- Why generalist VCs have so far not been able to make good investments in the space.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.

Erik is joined by Anirudh Pai (@ani_pai), co-founder of the Conservative Curious podcast and creator of the Dreams of Electric Sheep newsletter.They discuss:- Why people don’t crave scientific advancement.- What the postmodern solution to the desire to be part of religion might look like.- What “the iPhone moment for cities” might look like.- His thoughts on stagnation.- His analysis of Thiel’s idea that “every bubble is a commentary on capitalism.”- The state of biotech and the future of the FDA post-COVID.- Why COVID will be an accelerant for crypto.- His thoughts on the space industry.- Why he thinks that moreso than “it’s time to build,” it’s time to tinker.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.

Nadia Eghbal (@nayafia), of Substack, and author of Working in Public, and Lenny Rachitsky (@lennysan), author of a newsletter on product and growth and former Airbnb PM, join Erik on this episode to discuss:- The On Deck Writer’s Fellowship in partnership with Substack.- The evolution of newsletters as a medium over time.- Nadia and Lenny’s journeys on Substack.- Their advice for people who want to get started writing their own newsletters.- How they think about what to write about and the right cadence for their newsletters.- How to improve as a writer.- How to think about pricing.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.