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June 2024 Box
The what & why of the brand side to FirstLook + ANOTHER investment + June box brands
FirstLook
September 04, 2024
Welcome to our 53 new subscribers since our last newsletter. I'll keep this fun, light, and informative. Did a friend forward you this? Subscribe here.
Yá'át'ééh! (“Hi/Hello” in Navajo…for all the Windtalkers fans out there 😉 )
Welcome back to another consistently inconsistent newsletter. Let’s jump in.
Funding Announcement 🤑
Congrats to The Coconut Cult on landing a $100,000 (!!!) investment from a FirstLook investor! TCC joins SAYSO from the May box as brands who landed funding. If you haven’t tried this brand yet, they are in 2100+ doors including Whole Foods nationwide. Their Chocolate Mousse is soo good.
It’s been a long time (read: never) since I gave a run down on how FirstLook works. I’ve also never shared my thoughts and strategy behind building. Since we’re now over 2000 fabulous subscribers, let’s unpack this.
FirstLook is a two sided platform: founders and investors. For this newsletter, and keeping my promise of making it short and digestible, I’ll specifically cover the brands side only today. Next time I’ll do the investor side, and then bring it all together. Either way, you’re here riding shotgun with me.
A Quick Primer
FirstLook is a subscription box full of emerging, high-growth consumer brands for early-stage investors. Think "Shark Tank in a box."
Investors love experiencing exciting new products, keeping their finger on the pulse of innovation, and investing in great brands. Brands love jumping in because we help them generate exposure, acquire customers, raise capital, and be better prepared on their fundraising journey.
We work with brands from all categories spanning pre-launch to Series A. We also work with B2B companies who have a physical product. If a founder has something people can hold in their hands, it could be a fit for our boxes.
What’s In It For Brands?
Brands pay an average of $295 all-in to get their samples into the hands of 50-60 consumer brand investors who are chatty and love to share. Other benefits include:
A full pitch deck breakdown and review to help craft their story (much more hands on than the pitch deck classes I teach at Techstars)
Feature in this newsletter of 2300+ subscribers (that’s you!), many of who are investors and early product adopters
Data covering the number of investors who became customers + those who opted-in to a brands future ‘Investor Update’ emails
Ongoing intros for life to key people from our network and support on future fund raises
Access to our private resources, a community, and additional perks when a brand becomes FirstLook Alumni
So far this year we are averaging a brand per box getting funded. I’m proud of this accomplishment given how brutal the fundraising environment is.
The reality, however, is that I can’t make investors write checks nor change the fundraising climate. Even if a brand doesn’t land a big ol’ fat check, FirstLook still provides a ton of support via showcasing their brand and being a resource they can always tap into 24/7.
Who Makes It In The Box?
For starters, brands need to have enough samples for up to 60 boxes (currently). After that, I lean into a few other points during due diligence:
This includes the founding team and their likeability. Being someone people like and warm up to quickly is important because it leads to catching luckily breaks. People like helping people they like.
Next is their ‘Why Now’. I need to understand what they believe the future looks like, and why their brand will thrive in said future. Failure to articulate this makes getting others to believe in the brand difficult. They key here is clearly identifying a whitespace to go after.
Lastly, can this become a big company that will generate an ROI that accounts for the current risk, and do they have the fundamentals to go the distance?
How I Think About The Brand Side
It’s never been my goal to profit off of founders. We’re broke! I instead try to make it as affordable as possible, and am even working on bringing the cost down even more. For now though, I have to charge a little bit to make ends meet.
When you consider the value brands get vs the cost to jump in, I’d like to think the bang-for-your-buck ratio is prettyyyy damn good compared to if you were to individually pay for everything (highly targeted sampling = $1K+, pitch deck consulting = $300+, highly targeted newsletter feature = $1K+, etc.).
When a brand does land an investor check, however, the ROI is in the 10,000’s%. So either way, jumping in the FirstLook boxes more than pays for itself. Like a friend of mine once told me, “Make the value so good they’d be crazy not to do it.”
IMO there are A LOT of sharks in the consumer world who will happily bleed founders dry. I’ve taken the opposite approach since day one. “Why not charge more?” you may be thinking….
How My Brand Strategy Plays Into My Overall Strategy
It is absolutely imperative for me to be extremely selective when picking brands for our boxes. This is a crux to our success.
VC is a signaling game. In theory, if you’re a can’t-miss deal, investors will be begging to join your round. If you’re a once in a generation deal, you can even do things that irritate investors like SBF playing video games on investor calls, and you’ll STILL have investors lining up. Wild, right?!
The inverse here, which I’ve thought about since day one, is “If you have to pay money to get in front of investors, are you that good of a deal?” This can be a stigma to some, but I feel I’ve done well overcoming this in a few ways:
First, it costs so little to jump in versus value received. I’ve structured things in a way where it’s simply smart to jump in regardless of where a brand sits on the 0-100 investability scale, or their thoughts on signaling.
Second, the cost to jump in covers the physical costs I have (shipping samples). Sampling leads to customer acquisition and opening key doors that lead to growth (like SOSHE getting invited to speak on a panel at L'Oréal's Global Summit in Paris in 2023).
What the cost doesn’t go to is to pitch investors AKA access. Yuck 🤮. FirstLook is a sampling platform, but it just so happens the people sampling have the ability to write massive VC checks.
Founders thinking about paying for founder-investor connector platforms, where the main cost and value is simply access to investors, should RUN the opposite way. They create the WRONG signal to investors. IMO these platforms are short sighted, and simply want a short-term cash out on a market inefficiency. To each their own.
I could speak at length about this, but this newsletter is getting lengthy so I’ll stop there. Instead, here is something to ponder about…
The concept of “There should be a better way for founders and investors to connect” is as old as time, or at least the 1970’s when VC first became an asset class. That said, why do you think all founder-investor connection platforms eventually fail? The short answer: They neglect the underlying principles that drive Venture Capital.
Pulling Everything Together
FirstLook provides a low cost, high reward opportunity for founders to generate buzz in VC, acquire customers, and in many cases land investor checks.
Beyond a superb product, we lean into strong, likeable founders with a great ‘Why Now’. Only 6 brands make it into the boxes each month by design.
I’m here to play the long game which is built upon a foundation that champions founders. Join us.
That’s a wrap. Thanks for letting me share with you how I think about the brand side of FirstLook. Investor side is next, and more on why I’m building things this way.
To wrap up, here is John Paul DeJoria’s favorite VC scoreboard:
Founder Pro Tip of the Month 💡
Every so often I meet a founder that dangerously treads the line between confident and cocky. The moment you slip to the cocky side, you’ve (likely) lost that investor. So how do you sound confident but not cocky? It’s more so what not to say/do:
Don’t talk too fast or glide through certain sections of discussion where you give off the “this will be easy” vibe. NOTHING in consumer is easy. You may have great experience from a past company, but every new company has its own nuances and challenges.
DO NOT SAY YOU HAVE PRODUCT MARKET FIT! This is moreso a tip for everyone. PMF doesn’t come into conversation until a Series B round. Sometimes Series A. Saying you have PMF any earlier makes you look like a novice to seasoned investors (the newbie investors however might actually believe you.) Instead, say something like….
“Many of our data points seem to indicate we’re onto something special, and PMF is certainly in our future.”
DO NOT start talking about future rounds when the current isn’t closed, unless an investor specifically asks. Of course you’re thinking years into the future as that’s your job as a founder. However, you need to first get through your current round, deploy that capital, hit your metrics, and then you’ll raise again. Assuming you’ll go from this round to the next with ease makes you look like a 🤡
Do not appear distracted on a call such as checking email, your phone, etc. It’s a quick turnoff.
Did a friend forward you this and now you want to join?
June Box Brands 🚀
Investors: 48 → Apply Here | Brands: 6 → Apply Here | Intros: 40
Investors interested in a brand below, please email [email protected]
LiQure
Founded by Daniel Adix + Logan Kramer | 📍Chicago - Shop / IG / TikTok / Linkedin
How We Met Them: Via an intro from my friend Paul Alshooler
One Liner ✍️ — We keep drinkers in good spirits after good spirits.
What made them stand out: LiQure is the first ever gummy to incorporate DHM in the fast-growing alcohol-aid sector. Love it. With the uptick in the “drinking is bad” movement also comes a bigger focus in hangover recovery because a lot of us still like to drink, but life is moving faster than ever so we don’t have time to be falling behind the Jones’.
Great timing aside, Daniel and Logan are hustlers knocking down bar doors to have them carry their gummies. This includes two of Chicago's largest bars, Barstool River North (Barstool Sports' flagship venue) & Old Crow Smokehouse, who added them to their late-night & brunch/NFL menus. LiQure is early, but hustle is imperative which is also how they LiQure featured at Michael Rubin's White Party. Heyooo! It’d be wise to keep an eye on LiQure.
Loftie
Founded by Matt Hassett | 📍NYC - Shop / IG / Linkedin
How We Met Them: Via their signup on the FirstLook.vc
One Liner ✍️ — Loftie is a wellness company committed to creating stylish, innovative products that help people rest, relax, and recharge.
What made them stand out: Lot to love here. Hardware is tough, but that’s the moat. The Loftie Clock, a well designed sleep machine and alarm clock, has been a Wirecutter top pick for three years running, while last year, it was named a TIME Best Invention. This equates to over 100,000 units sold since launch. Woah! Loftie is also super capital efficient. They’ve reached 8 figures in revenue off only a few million raised. PSA: Investors like it when a company has made more money than what’s been invested.
Loftie also launched a personalized audio monthly subscription late last year that already has reached 6,000 subscribers. A reviewer for WIRED called it "one of my favorite uses of AI so far." All this is to say… Loftie is GOING PLACES.
MāKā
Founded by Brian Hill | 📍Arlington, VA - Shop / IG / TikTok / Linkedin
How We Met Them: Via an intro from Frank Zampardi
One Liner ✍️ — MāKā is an award-winning organic wheatgrass wellness beverage company innovating the $22 billion energy drink category.
What made them stand out: I liked MāKā because I love wheatgrass. The end. Jk. MāKā is pioneering wheatgrass for the masses. The drinks taste great, and I love the energy boost. I can’t believe I’m saying this because the term “clean energy” is soo overused, but in this case MāKā does feel clean to me. The company has enjoyed strong growth from the start including >2x revenue & unit growth annually, and a national footprint in key natural accounts such as Sprouts & Fresh Market. They were also awarded “Best New Beverage of 2023” (NEXTY, Expo West 2023), and just recently reached the semi-finals for Pepperdine University's list of Most Fundable Companies. 2,500 companies applied, and now it’s down to just 30 vying to win it all.
Beverage is tough, but MāKā is innovative and if they manage their cash flows right, they will go a lot further from here.
Mavericks
Founded by Livio Bisterzo + Garrison Jones | 📍LA — Shop / IG / Linkedin
How We Met Them: Via a cold email from Livio 🥶
One Liner ✍️ — Reinventing classic snacks for the modern family
What made them stand out: I liked the team here as the brand is led by Livio, the mastermind behind Green Park Brands, and Garrison, who helped scale numerous venture backed CPG brands including Annie’s Homegrown, Justins, and ONE Brands. I also liked their goal of having Mavericks be a platform brand with extendibility across categories so moms and dads can get simple, healthier alternative snacks for their families. Mavericks has already secured global distribution at Whole Foods where they will have 8 SKUs on shelf come Back to School 2024. Mavericks also recently struck a partnership with Paramount Studios to support their Back-to-School activations at retail and celebrate the upcoming Transformers One movie release. Lastly, I LOVE the shapes of their cookies! Makes it more exciting for kids to enjoy.
MDBio Wellness
Lead by Brenden Dougherty |📍LA — Shop / Linkedin
How We Met Them: Via an intro from my dear friend John Morgan at Pelagic
One Liner ✍️ — America's leading clinically proven nutraceutical company offering pharmaceutical alternatives in the top health sectors of sleeplessness, pain and anxiety.
What made them stand out: MDBio really leans into the clinical side for all things sleep, pain, and anxiety. They develop products that ensure clinically significant results against placebo through in-house proprietary trials. This is a novel approach you don’t see any brands doing (because it’s hard). They also have a unique system and ability to track consumer health data for all customers so they can continue ensuring product effectiveness and drive higher LTV. MDBio is early, but the four doctors who started the brand, along with Brenden as the CEO, may very well propel them to the top. When products work in this space, people keep coming back given how desperate consumers are to solve sleep, pain, and anxiety challenges.
NØRSE CØDE
Founded by Smári Ásmundsson | 📍SF - Shop / IG / Linkedin
How We Met Them: Via their signup on the FirstLook.vc
One Liner ✍️ — NØRSE CØDE is an eco-friendly, plant-based products company starting with protein powders, weight management, and morning nutrition, designed to support overall health and active lifestyles.
What made them stand out: I liked NØRSE CØDE for two main reasons. First, Smári is a talented founder who has launched CPG products in the past. This helps him not make rookie mistakes all while moving faster. Second, NØRSE CØDE uses upcycled barley for their protein source which is eco-friendly and nutritious. It’s also a source of beta-glucans which is an ingredient in creating GLP-1 supplements. NØRSE CØDE is early, but they so far have doubled month-over-month revenue and have a high conversion rate of 1 in 7 during sampling popups. Their protein powder has high margins, and minimal equipment is needed for self-manufacturing. I’m excited to watch this brand grow.
Theo's
Founded by Aaron Brodkey + Theo Mourad | 📍Chitown - Shop / IG / TikTok / Linkedin
How We Met Them: Via their signup on the FirstLook.vc
One Liner ✍️ — THEO's makes eating your veggies easy with delicious, innovative snacks packed with organic vegetables.
Discount Code: use “FirstLook” for 20% Off Sitewide!
What made them stand out: My god is Theo’s addicting, and they’re soo much better for you than something like Harvest Snapea Crisps 🤢. Stellar product aside, THEO's is a portfolio company of Whole Foods and partners directly with category buyers around new vegetable product innovations. Because their products utilize existing dehydration systems and vegetable supply chains, they have the ability to rapidly expand production and execute on innovation. Working so closely with WF is a big win.
I also really enjoyed working with their cofounder, Aaron. He’s worked in the plant-based food space since 2018, most recently as Program Manager at Big Idea Ventures. He gets the ‘VC game’ which imo is an underappreciated skill set because VC is so nuanced. Despite him graduating from ‘that school up north’ with a degree in Food Systems, Theo’s is in great hands. Lastly, they recently launched into Wegmans and Fresh Market so go grab a bag, or 10, at those stores!
That's all she wrote folks. July box is next. Keep on building my friends.