Gotham Gal

Mouth Foods

Craig Kanarick was major part of the first round of web 1.0 in NYC.  He was the founder of Razorfish and he is an artist too.  So when we connected a few months back to talk about his latest venture with his partner, Sam Murray, I couldn't help but get excited.  Also, Craig said something to me that has truly resonated, he said "food is the new black."  I love it....and he is so right. 

Mouth Foods is currently just doing New York Mouth which is the place to find the best artisinal food products in NY (eventually the country).  An aggregation of a variety of interesting products from maple syrup to cracker to coffee beans to tomato sauces to jams and honeys.  They are not only buying the products for their ecommerce site they are creating relationships with the food makers and trying to help them grow.

I have thought a lot about what the opportunities are here. Sam and Craig are seasoned business men, understand how to build companies on the web, are very creative and they LOVE food. 

The packaging is clever. 


Here is the Snack Mouth Taster.  A wonderful treat...and a great gift for someone. 

Sign up...check it out!

 

talking about....construction

One of the most stressful things in the world is construction.  I am in the midst of four personal construction projects right now.  Talk about stress.  I would not recommend doing four projects at once but in my case it just happened that way.  As Fred says "but you are so good at it.".  Shoot me.

I was born with an incredible skill...the ability to make decisions quickly and never look back.  That skill is probably the reason I am able to juggle all the moving parts.  It is a serious gift.  I figure that if I make a mistake I can always make another decision.

I just wrapped up on one project, phase 1 and am moving into phase 2.  The reason I am writing this post is to share what I have learned along the way.  Keep in mind that phase 1 finished on time and under budget.  How did that happen?  Most people laugh at you when you tell them you will be done by such and such a date.  I am here to tell you that it is possible to get it done. 

I rarely talk about this particular investment.  I am an investor in the Moon Group.  I am actually the only investor in the Moon Group  That is a story in itself.  They are the key to my success in real estate projects but what I have learned from them can be applied to any project even if you are doing it yourself.

Before I get to what I have learned about construction projects, I want to talk about the Moon Group.  Many years ago, we built our first home in NYC.  As we were attempting to wrap up the project our contractor brought in this guy, Rich Moon, to finish the project.  I called him the sweeper because he was able to bring everyone to the finish line, quickly.  I was impressed and totally hit it off with him.  His mouth and attitude were comparable to mine.  At that point of my life I was trying to figure out what to do next.  I'd come home with a yoga mat under my arm most days while he was getting shit done.  Hmmm, maybe we should go into business together and i'd be a real estate developer.  Ok, that didn't happen. 

Fast forward we sell our place and we build another and I call Rich because there is no way I was going to do a project without him by my side.  Before that he becomes the guy who builds the Gramercy Hotel and then during our project he is hired to build the Standard Hotel.  Not physically build it but be the guy who makes sure shit is getting done.  An owners rep per se, the person you want watching out for you, the number one on the job. 

Keeping on top of the projects is key.  I mean talking to the construction head every single day.  Having a face to face meeting once a week with an agenda.  Buying a lot of the long term lead items yourself because most construction companies float cash so even if you think that they have purchased that hood for your kitchen stove, they haven't.  Things are late not because they are late but because they didn't buy them on time.  Ask your contractor how complete the architects drawings are before shaking hands on the cost.  Guaranteed they aren't 90% done but more like 70% so that 30% ends up not being a fixed cost but a work in progress.  Set goals and dates.  Give a bonus if finished on time that is paid in cash directly to the contractor.  Have a contract that allows you to opt out if goals are not completed.  When things slow down it is probably because subs are not being paid. It is not a exact business each project takes a life on to itself.  I am just getting started. 

This is not an easy business and I am no doubt incredibly lucky to have found Rich who has hired incredible people to run our projects and all of his other clients ( hotels,offices, apartments and homes).  Yet he has proven that you can be on time and on budget.  BTW, on one of our projects the contractor just wasn't hitting the high notes.  What did we do?  Fire them and hire someone else.  On Monday they were fired and on Tuesday the other company jumped in already knowing each sub who was working on the job so we didn't miss a beat.  That is impressive.

Am I looking forward to all these projects being over....for sure.  Is there no doubt that our projects will be on time and on budget....for sure.  Do I hope that what I have learned I can pass on to anyone doing a construction project...absolutely.   What will I come up with to fill the time on these projects....relax??

 

 

How often and when should we pivot?

Women 2.0 has been compiling questions for a book project called 101 Questions About Launching  Your Company.  Of course all the answers are by female investors, founders and CEOs.  Love that!

Here is the question that I chose to answer:  How often and when should we pivot? 

One of the definitions of pivot is; A person or thing on which something depends or turns; the central or crucial factor. 

Pivot is a word frequently used in the start-up world.  Companies pivot but another word to use here is evolve.  One of the definition of evolve is; to develop or achieve gradually. 

Let's say an entrepreneur raises money around an idea.  The idea forms, the company is built and all of a sudden there is a realization that the concept is not getting any traction, that revenue is impossible to capture, the company is just not cutting it and the runway of cash is getting shorter by the day.  After much conversation between the company and the investors there is a realization that if they pivot, in essence change the entire direction of the company, that there is a better outcome for success.  That is a pivot.  The original idea is no longer there but perhaps parts of it still are or perhaps none of it is. 

Most companies evolve.  Success does not happen over night.  It takes years and keep that in mind.  The few companies that just hit the high notes out of the box are few and far between.  As products start to get traction and the business becomes real as companies start to understand where their focus needs to be.  How the business needs to evolve in order to succeed.  Maybe a new product is part of the evolution of the business or a new direction to capture customers and eyeballs. 

Sometimes companies never need to pivot.  You would hope that they don't need to pivot but as an investor you invest in the entrepreneur first.  A good entrepreneur will know if something isn't working and will not stop at anything that is less than success.  They will know that the original plan must change.

What you really hope for is a solid evolution of the business.  So the answer is, you hope you have never to pivot but if you do, pivot quickly and make sure you are pivoting in the right direction because you don't get alot of chances to pivot your business model.  It costs money to pivot your business.  If you have a solid business, you get plenty of time to evolve.

 

 

WE Summit

This past week I was asked to speak on a panel at the WE Summit called The Art of Fundraising: Decoding the Equation.  Amy Millman, the President of Springboard Enterprises was the moderator. Amy was great and I was really glad to finally put a face with the name. 

The event is put on by the US Israel Business Council.  This years mission was to to promote high-growth women-led Israeli businesses.  There was a competition to selection three women entrepreneurs in Israel and then bring those winners to NYC to meet, greet, network and showcase their companies.  The winning companies were HDH Medical that is working on creating innovative surgical solutions, Sol-Chip an innovative solar company and Tipa-Corp that is bringing a new world of biodegradable and recycable package solutions to market.  Each using technology to create innovative products.

I sat on a panel with two women, Dorin Miller, a partner at the Cedar Fund and Michal Tsur a second time entrepreneur currently of Kaltura.  Both women are beyond impressive.  Smart, thoughtful, entrepreneurial, analytical and strategic.  I am looking forward to sitting down with each of them individually in the future because certainly the conversation was for the audience and except for shaking each others hands before and after the event we really did not get a chance to talk. 

Israel has always been an entrepreneurial hub.  It isn't so surprising that many of the ideas that come out of Israel are ripe with new technology platforms.  All Israelis serve in the military where much of that type of training takes place.  I have only had the pleasure of meeting with a few Israeli companies in the past year that have contacted me about their businesses directly and we have talked on Skype.  Each entrepreneur impressed me with their razor focus and intellectual intensity. 

After the panel ended I spoke to a few people including the group behind the conference.  It was small and intimate and I was impressed with everyone I spoke to at this event.  I love that the Israeli Government is focusing their efforts on highlighting women entrepreneurs by supporting them financially and bringing them to the US to showcase their companies globally.  Would love to see more countries to that. 

 

Baking For Good

I am a big believer that every woman should be an entrepreneur.  There are many businesses out there being funded and certainly some of them might have billion dollar market caps while others only have $50 million market caps but the economy needs them both.  We also need smaller entrepreneurs that bootstrap their companies to become maybe $5 million businesses that I refer to as life style businesses.  Those businesses fund their personal lives and many others without investors.  I am a huge fan of that model although it doesn't benefit me as an angel investor it makes me happy to see women creating businesses that they love doing every day and affect the economy at the same time.  We are returning to our roots where there was a local store, a cobbler and perhaps a jeweler but now you can have those local businesses and create a niche community across the globe.  That is pretty powerful. 

I had the pleasure of meeting with Emily Dubner this past week who is the entrepreneur behind Baking For Good.  Her business encompasses every aspect of the life style business I am talking about and Emily has layered a powerful social good piece to her business that resonates with most women. 

Here is what I love about Baking For Good.  Emily boot strapped this business with her own hard saved money.  She created a website that looks good and works.  15% of the proceeds from every treat you buy goes to the non-profit of your choice and you have about 200 to choose from on the Baking For Goods website.  I love the tagline on her card...a little bit of sugar goes a long way.  The packaging, branding and total product looks and feels beautiful.  The business can easily scale doing more parties and weddings, corporate events or just gifts.  The treats are absolutely delicious.  Best part is that Emily is growing the business with her own money, hard work and brain power. 

My advice to her when we met is don't take anyones money.  Continue to do what you are doing.  If you need a short term loan because your business explodes one day and there are 400 orders online in a day then see if you can borrow some money from your parents.  You will quickly pay them back because the turn around time is quick. 

I highly recommend Baking For Good for some gifts this holiday season.  Who can resist a chocolate chip brownie where 15% of the proceeds to go a non-profit organzation. 

More on living in a remote world

Image by Microsoft Sweden via Flickr

I was asked to write a post about living in a remote world from Janet Hanson the brilliant woman behind 85 Broads who is working with Microsoft Office 365.  So here is second of the two posts.

Hand held smart phones have changed the work world in good and bad ways.  On one hand you can be sitting by a pool calling into a conference call, doing email and closing a deal but on the other hand the constant flow of information can distract you from your daily life. 

There is no doubt that there is something about the instant gratification that runs deep in our society perhaps that is the constant obsession with checking our phones for any information.  The problem with that is that you ignore people around you and instead of socializing with the people in the present you socialize with people online.  Having a conversation with someone live in any setting takes a good deal of restraint to keep the steam of information at bay.  Yet these are just social skills that need to be learned.

The best thing is that you can conduct business anywhere at anytime.  I was recently in South Africa for a week and I did not stop blogging for one day.  I spent the summer out of the city and was able to continue to blog, talk to the companies that I was working with and even meet new people and hear their ideas through the beauty of Skype.  That is pretty powerful. 

The ability to function in a virtual world is changing the game especially for women.  We all work on our computers no matter if we are at work or not.  Women tend to be the one who manages the family finances and the day-to-day needs of the household.  There is no reason why someone can’t do their job from anywhere with the commitment to come into the office yet not from 9 – 5.  That workday has disappeared because we are living in a 24/7 world of access to information and you can plug in at 8pm at night if you had to get something done personally at 4pm.

I knew someone that started a company and none of the employees resided under one roof but across the country in different states.  He was able to hire the right people for the jobs and everyone conversed and did business in a virtual world.  There was Skype for conference calls, computers for access and hand-helds for constant communication.  It worked.  At one point a main headquarters was established because there was a time it became necessary but those early beginnings certainly created a culture that is was okay that not every employee live in the vicinity of that office. That culture gave everyone the ability to hire the right person for the right job no matter where they were located.

In essence, the wireless world has let us do everything we need to do when we want and on our own terms.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peck Slip Pickle Festival

All weekend long we were discussing the return to our roots through local businesses, social responsibility and the generosity of each community.  How entrepreneurs are being funded and yet many of them will become singular lifestyle businesses while others could be $50 million dollars businesses and others might have a billion dollar market cap.   Entrepreneurs are alive and well. 

I wandered down for breakfast (sleeping in as long as possible on Sunday morning is so key) Fred pulled out the Sunday Review of the NYTimes and said, this article is exactly what you have been talking about.  William Deresiewicz calls it Generation Sell.  His article is worth the read.  His theory to how we got here is interesting.  Regardless, I love where we are.  I like what this generation is about from the people who are creating the tools that allow us to live in a virtual global world to the community businesses that make us feel grounded and part of something. 

We couldn't have wrapped up this weekend more perfectly than by going to the Peck Slip Pickle Festival at the New Amsterdam Market with Josh.  This market place that now takes place almost every Sunday completely defines what is happening in the world of small businesses around food.  Everyone is hip, everyone is nice and supportive of each other and the feeling of community is everywhere. 

We basically tasted a bunch of things and I tried to support as many local vendors as possible.  Many people just love to taste and never buy a damn thing. I didn't buy one of these Brooklyn Butcher Blocks but I have the card and I am going to buy one online after I post. 

We began with the Mighty Quinns slow smoked brisket sandwich with pickles and red onions.   Can't seem to find the website to link too but they make the rounds from the Brooklyn Smorgasburg and Flea to other events. 

Next stop was La NewYorkina.  Dried orange peels with cayenne pepper, pumpkin seed brittle and a gruyere cheese empanada with strawberry jelly.  The empanada totally worked and the crust was killer. Their tag line is "handmade with love".  No question about that.

Gotta love Porchetta.  There is nothing like the slow roasted pork chopped in a sandwich mixed with the crispy skin. 

Hot Bread Kitchen that is near and dear to my heart was selling bialys today.  Jessamyn, the brilliant founder, got together with Mimi Sheraton before the market at an event to discuss bialys. Wish I caught that.  Mimi Sheraton is one of the mavens of the food industry, wrote a book about bialys and was the food critic for the New York TImes.

When did everyone become a pickler?  Here are all the entries for the pickle challenge.  There were easily a dozen pickle makers there today.  Ricks Picks is still the leader in this space.  Look for some new products as well as bigger and less expensive products coming to you sometime in the spring from Rick.

The musicians.  Sorry the picture is so blurry.  These guys were singing and crooning like they had just come out of the Appalachians.  You have to see and hear that and immediately think about what is going on in our culture.  We have Occupy Wall street happening only blocks away and this group of hipsters making pickles and crooning.  You can't help but take pause. 

This was great.  P & H Soda.  The guy who was doing this was not a young pup.  He had syrup bottles to sell from ginger to sasparilla.  He was making these amazing soda drinks.  We had a ginger lime which was one of the most refreshing clean drinks I have ever had.

Lamb sausage sandwiches at 18NY.  Brilliant idea of using a blow torch to melt the cheese.  Excellent spicy hot sauce.

Blue Bottle Coffee with sweets to sell and a clever drip system. 

First Field was selling their two wares.  New Jersey tomatoes turned into homemade ketchup and a local Jersey cranberries turned into cranberry sauce.  I bought them both.  The cranberry sauce is delicious although they would need some serious capital to stock up on that product to sell all year.

Peanut Butter & Co is a place we have gone to on Sullivan since they opened. They were certainly pioneers in the artisinal food space. Now selling jars of peanut butter from regular to crunchy to honey to chocolate to cinnamon raisin.  Really good. 

I did not get a chance to taste these but they look so beautiful.  The Dumpling Dutch Diva making profittjeres.  I love the pan she is using. Sweet and savory.

I did pick up some greens, apples and such from the farm stands but our last taste was a grilled gouda sandwich with pieces of pancetta from Morris Truck who you can follow on Twitter because they don't have a website.  Just the browning of the bread alone makes your mouth water.

The market was packed, we bumped into more than a handful of friends taking it all in and making their purchases too.  The New Amsterdam Market which was packed more today than others because of the pickle theme defines the times we live in. Smart people creating businesses that they love.  There is a knee jerk reaction to working in structured businesses like banking and people are embracing their lives and what turns them on by becoming entrepreneurs.  They want to enjoy their lives.  I like these times. 

 

the mensch factor

There is so much money being tossed around these days for new ventures that it is a little crazy...and frightening at the same time.  I am talking about the angel community who tend to be investors in the first round of capital in a start-up company although sometimes that cash does come from VC's depending on a variety of things. 

Everyone has a different strategy on how they invest or what they invest in.  I have a few personal rules.  One of them is to remember you are invested in the entrepreneur and the idea.  The original premise is certainly one I need to believe in and get behind but overtime those ideas evolve and sometimes completely pivot but the entrepreneurs remain.  Like buying a house.  The house may change but the location always remains the same. 

Another rule is I don't do convertible debt.  Sometimes I bend those rules when there needs to be a bridge loan but at that point I am already married to the entrepreneur and the deal.  Reality is more transparent.  I don't like convertible debt for a few reasons particularly on the first round of capital.  If I am doing an investment in a business that company has more than likely already launched and hopefully shown some traction.  The foundation has been built and there is a value on that.  Convertible debt is a bit of a wild card for an investor and great for the entreprenreur.  It can be good for the investor but not always.  I like things that have value the same way I like fixed costs but that is for another blog post.

This past week someone came to talk to me about their business.  At first blush they were thinking about convertible debt.  I explained to them why I wouldn't do it.  In addition to the reason being that it isn't always good for the investor is that when first time investors jump into the game early putting their money behind an entrepreneur there is always a risk of failure.  The entrepreneur is risking it all and quite frankly so is the angel investor.  We are getting into the game together from the onset and if together we believe that the upside is going to be good then it will be good for all of us regardless of that initial investment. 

The entrepreneur, who is a seasoned business person, looked at me and said now I get it.  It is about the mensch factor.  Honestly, for me, he hit the nail on the head.  I loved his analysis.  So in the future when anyone asks me why I don't do convertible debt I am just going to say it has to do with the mensch factor. 

 

Cacao Prietro

Cacao Prietro might be one of the most interesting investments that I have ever made.  Cacao Prietro is the brainchild of Daniel Preston.  This is Daniels third entrepreneurial endeavor the others being lightbulbs and jet packs for the armed forces.  That alone has to pique your interest. 

Daniel has family in the Dominican Republic and through his travels there he became interested in the cacao plant.  Daniel has an incredibly curious as well as analytical mind and he began to drill down on the properties of the cacao plant.  Fast forward, he is producing chocolate ( which is exceptionally delicious ) from the beans that the company owns.  What is interesting about this is most of the new chocolate companies that are on the market have to buy their beans in order to produce their product.  We own the beans and make our own chocolate as well as sell beans.  Nice business but that is only one part of this business.

Making Mash from fredwilson on Vimeo.

 

The other part of the business is rum and eventually whiskey.  Believe me there is much more to this because between the chocolate and the liquor business there is also other new food and medical products lurking in the wings. 

When I first met Daniel and he took me through his business and his vision it took about 2.5 hours and in the back to my head I was thinking you have to get this down to 20 minutes dude.  Fred was seriously skeptical and although he rarely expresses an opinion on what I am investing in I thought he should come out and see Daniel.  After another 2.5 hours he was just as blown away as I was.  Then the process began of getting other people excited too. 

Fast forward, Daniel has in his hands the first permit in 87 years to distill in Brooklyn, his chocolate business is growing and so damn good and the food/medical product business is just beginning to percolate.  All of this off the cacao plant. 

Last night was the party to kick off the company.  Located in Red Hook, Brooklyn the neighbors came and so did many friends.  It was fantastic.  I have said this before and will continue to say that I am so lucky to have the opportunity to meet and work with an incredible group of entrepreneurs.  Help them execute on their dream and watch them grow.  At every turn Daniel has impressed me and just when I think he can't possibly impress me anymore he does. He continues to blow me away at every turn. 

Pay attention to Cacao Prietro...more will be coming your way. 

Learning from the Boss

I had breakfast with someone this morning and it made me think about work environments.  Then later in the day I met with someone who is of the same generation and we talked about collaboration among non-profits in Africa.  That collaboration is better for everyone.  When we share resources and ideas the outcome is better for everyone from the top down.  I am a big believer in collaboration but many people of older generations, particularly women, were always of mindset of having sharp elbows to hold down their territory probably because they weren't always embraced to be part of the team. 

When I worked at Macy's, fresh out of college,  I found that there was definitely a group of women who screamed louder, back stabbed better and worked four times as hard as any of the men who were at the same level.  As a young aggressive bull in a China shop, I found that behavior concerning that women didn't seem to be treated as equals and wondered if I should sharpen my elbows too. 

I was in my third job at Macy's which was an assistant store manager of the New Rochelle store.  I loved that job.  I was responsible for 1/3 of the store and I over saw cosmetics and all of womens ready-to-wear.  I loved helping each person who worked for me grow in their career and teach them the business.  Being able to make daily changes that would directly effect the numbers of each individual business was rewarding. 

I learned so much in that job.  I happened to work for an amazing woman who was all about collaboration.  After working for one woman who created the fear of god in everyone and wasn't very warm to a woman who was dumb as a post and just fed on her power over me to a woman that created a cult like atmosphere, the store manager of New Rochelle was so refreshing. 

She taught me about the power of being a woman and using it.  Every 6-8 weeks the men (literally) who were the top brass at Macys at the time would come visit the store.  It gave the store an opportunity to basically clean house prior to the visit.  Every store room would be cleaned, every floor would be organized and the place would shine.  The men would walk through each department and the sales managers would come out to shake hands and introduce themselves and answer a few questions.  As the assistant store manager, I would walk them through my areas and recite data that they wanted to hear and answer questions. 

Every morning, the store manager would always ring me.  Every been in a store and hear those bells.  Every person at a certain level has a certain bell.   I'd hear my bell and I'd call a number which was the store managers to find out what was up.  She would come in the morning and sometimes ask me to come upstairs to give her a fb (french braid).  You spent so many hours there it was like a family and she was wonderful. 

The day of the visit I got there early and as usual heard my bell.  I called and she asked me to come upstairs to prep for the day.  I was wearing my black suit.  I walk upstairs and see that she is wearing a tight black leather mini skirt with a tight red sweater and 4" heels.  She had an incredible figure.  When I saw her my mouth dropped.  I said "did you forget who is coming today?"  She just smiled and said, "I know exactly who is coming today and I believe you should use everything that you got." 

She was incredibly smart saavy and chic.  She taught me an invaluable lesson too.  Be yourself and if that means standing in 4" shoes then do it.