EUVC Newsletter | 21.08.23
EUVC Newsletter | 21.08.23
Blood & Bones - the Future of Food, How to turn your LP base into your own cavalry, and notes on going from the VC Tech Stack to the VC Pill Stack
Welcome to the EUVC Newsletter 🗞️
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Table of Contents
Upcoming events
Blood & Bones - the Future of Food
How to turn your LP base into a Cavalry
From the VC Tech Stack to the VC Pill Stack
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September 13- 14, Copenhagen
7500+ attendees, 2600 startup reps, 340+ speakers, 620+ Scaleup reps , 880 investors and 150+ media reps.
And now 4m€ raised. Clearly, TechBBQ has become the heartbeat of the startup and innovation ecosystem in Scandinavia. It began as a humble BBQ gathering for tech enthusiasts and entrepreneurs in 2013, but has since evolved into a large-scale summit that draws LPs, VCs, Angels, and founders from around the world for two days of inspiration, networking, and growth.
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Blood & Bones - the Future of Food
Ah, the good ol’ future of food – a portfolio company of one of my favorite emerging VCs, Max & Isabella’s Nucleus Capital, are stirring the pot (again). This time with plant-based pork ribs with edible vegan bones. I recently heard Zillow/OpenDoor/Expedia founder Rich Barton say that the magic in earning media lies in getting the balance between tension & importance just right. Think that’s exactly what Juicy Marbles did with this product - I can almost hear the hordes ready their pitchforks while chanting blood & bones, blood & bones!
But before we get into it, let me stress why the future of food is so important and why I’m following the space and putting my money here:
Our problem(s)
1. 🍔 & 🥩 for 10 Billion People. By 2050, we're supposed to feed 10 billion hungry mouths. No pressure, right? The future of food is all about making sure everyone gets their daily dose of sustenance without turning the planet into a wasteland. NBD.
2. 🐄 without 🤠 I love the dream of cowboys as much as the next guy, but who needs that connection between food and actual farms? Vertical farms (ouch, loaded topic!), hydroponics, and even growing meat in labs must be part of our future. Guess it’s gonna be 🐄 with 👨⚕️ going foward.
3. Scrapping 🏭 in favor of ♻️: Replacing the industrialized system with a sustainable, scalable, resilient and decentralized approach needs to be part of the solution.
Our opportunity
As much as I love a good tan, gluing oneself to the roads of Europe’s major capitals quickly gets old, so changing the conversation and focus from the problems to the actual opportunity for the early movers seems to be the smart thing to do - especially considering that venture is all about that: finding the trendline and placing bets one or two steps out to the right of it. Consider this: The Food Industrial Complex makes up 10% of global GDP, equal to $12 trillion.
Seems to be the right time to be investing in this space 🤔 or at least, to sink your teeth into Juicy Marbles’ latest creation.
Read The Guardian’s coverage 👇
New plant-based pork ribs to feature edible vegan bones
Oh, and to the naysayers pointing fingers at the 90% drop in market cap by Beyond Meat, co-founder of Beyond Meat Vladimir Mićkovic says:
“The stock market performance of one company does not make the category viable or not, and nor does a couple of plant-based companies dying,” said Mićković. “Business is hard and companies, including meat and dairy, die. Our sales are only going up, although we are a new company.”
How to turn your LP base into a Cavalry
At eu.vc we’ve found our way into a weird niche affection. TBH, I don’t think there’s any news outlet that has dedicated as much of their attention to talking about GP/LP dynamics as we have. And we’ve even made our angel investing center around this: building syndicates of angels that together form a super powerful line on the fund cap table. So meeting Stefan Walter, Founder and Managing Partner of Cavalry for our pod interview with him (listen to it here) and hearing him reflect on the Cavalry-name was striking:
The Cavalry name symbolizes the united effort of a supportive network, ready to ride in and aid founders on their entrepreneurial journey.
In fact, this is to a level where I think you can talk about the concept of a “Cavalry System” to productize the operational processes of managing and using large LP bases (for Cavalry that number is a whopping >250!).
In our talk with Stefan, we teased points for you to consider if you seek to mimic their success in making your LP base value-add.
Step 1: Identifying Automation Opportunities To Unlock Time and Money
Efficiency drives success. By identifying areas ripe for automation, such as distributing newsletters, tracking investments, and managing reports, you can reallocate valuable time and resources. This not only streamlines operations but also allows your team to concentrate on high-impact tasks, ultimately leading to enhanced operational efficiency and considerable cost savings.
Step 2: Choosing a Centralized and Customized Platform for Improved LP Communication
Effective communication is the cornerstone of fruitful LP relationships. Selecting a specialized platform designed for VC firms that allows for single-account customization fosters improved LP communication. Through a centralized hub, LPs gain easy access to key information, enabling them to stay up-to-date with your firm's progress and investment activities. This level of transparency and engagement translates into more informed and engaged LPs.
Step 6: Building Empathy and Engagement for Stronger LP Relationships
Active engagement is a precursor for empathy which drives involvement. Gaining a deep understanding of your LPs' preferences and requirements allows you to tailor your productization efforts in a way that will garner responsiveness. If you build for LP engagement to be equal to reporting, that’s all you’ll ever get. Instead, by actively engaging LPs, you’ll maintain consistent communication and high empathy levels. Not only will LPs remain informed about your firm's endeavors, but you will also strengthen the sense of community and reinforce their commitment to your shared goals.
One caveat: as much as we all love the power of automation and a smart VC Tech Stack, Stephan also recognized the need for a dedicated platform team to streamline the Cavalry operations. Leveraging his experience as a software entrepreneur, Stefan and his team have now built a world-class team consisting of four individuals, acting as the spiders in the web facilitating connections and introductions across the Cavalry LP network.
Listen to the full interview below 🎧 and read & watch our insights outtakes below 👀
From the VC Tech Stack to the VC Pill Stack
A few weeks ago, I shared that I had embarked on a journey that many of us contemplate at various points in life – the pursuit of longevity. Since then, the journey has led to a plethora of engaging conversations, reflections, and realizations so wanted to continue the oversharing here.
To many, longevity signifies more than just the addition of years to life. It symbolizes the accumulation of experiences, the deepening of connections, and the realization of dreams. My own journey into this realm began with a week that highlighted both the fragility and the resilience of life. The discovery of a genetic predisposition to a challenging arthritic condition, the shocking news of a neighbor's stroke, and the simple joy of witnessing my daughter's newfound bike-riding skills all played their part in igniting my pursuit of a more intentional and optimized life.
Why do I believe this topic is pertinent to our newsletter community? Firstly, I consider each of you to be individuals who excel in making informed decisions and implementing them effectively. The mere spark of an idea can propel you towards meaningful changes which is why you’re a successful capital allocator today. Secondly, the field of longevity is witnessing a surge in innovation of course translating into boundless investable VCs and startups. More to come on this front for sure 👀.
So, what steps have I taken on my journey thus far? I've begun by consciously reducing my meat intake (down 80% by now), devoting full hour daily to exercise, and incorporating Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) into my routine. Enough about the VC Tech Stack, let’s talk about the VC Pill Stack 💊
While I'm only two weeks into my NMN experiment, one effect has been intriguing. Unexpectedly, I find my reliance on coffee waning, reducing from a good 4-5 cups a day to a mere 1 cup which is more my tastebuds calling for a familial touch than anything else. The shift is ironic considering increased energy levels aren't the primary touted benefit of NMN. Could this be a harbinger of more profound transformations within? 🤔
If you’re investing in this space, I’d love to hear from you. Be that in funds, companies or the VC Pill Stack.
This newsletter is not investment advice and the founders of eu.vc may be invested in the success of the firms featured.