The Story Behind Purple Metrics Closing Their $1.2M Pre-Seed Round (Guta Tolmasquim / Purple Metrics)

Bootstrapping and raising venture capital are two different beasts. Bootstrapping gives you control, but growth is slower. Venture capital speeds things up, but you have to give up some control. There is, however, one thing they both have in common: each requires a leap of faith. Today's guest is pretty unique. She's someone who's gotten to experience building both types of companies - one bootstrapped, one venture backed. That guest is Guta Tolmasquim, founder and CEO of Purple Metrics, which recently closed their first institutional round of capital, a $1.2M pre-seed led by Astella, one of the top venture firms in Brazil! But before Purple Metrics, Guta founded Brand Gym, a company she bootstrapped and built all by herself. As you can imagine, the transition to building a venture backed company was... interesting In this episode, we get to learn about how Guta ended up closing her $1.2M pre-seed round and just how powerful building your network really is.

Most of us have heard the saying "good things don't come easy", and I'd be willing to argue that the majority of people agree with that statement on some level. But sometimes, good things do come easy and THEN they get harder. And it's in those pivotal moments where you really get to see what you're capable of. That was the case for today's guest Mohak Nahta - founder and CEO of Atlys - a company he started as a side project to solve his own problem of getting his visa on time when traveling. In today's episode, we get to hear the story behind not only Mohaks most recent $12M Series A but also his experience raising his $4M Seed round. Grab your notebook, because this guest is dropping all the fundraising knowledge!

There is one thing that almost every single entrepreneur has in common - the drive to change the world in some way, shape, or form. For today's guest, she spent years of her career working for organizations like Doctors Without Borders and the United Nations, living overseas and funding entrepreneurs who were trying to make a difference in their communities. Stacy Edgar is the co-founder and CEO of Venteur, a company revolutionizing the healthcare space. To date, Ventuer has raised a total of $7.72M in venture funding. $120k of that being a pre-seed round from Techstars, the other $7.6M coming from the seed round they closed in August of 2023 led by GSR Ventures. In this episode Stacy shares some of her stories from raising her seed round as well as her success with open enrollment and the hard decisions they had to (and continue to have to) make while raising and scaling the business. Make sure to listen to the full episode!

While most kids were occupied with typical childhood activities, today's guest was already knee-deep in the world of technology. From coding PHP to deconstructing old computers with his pops, his early passion for innovation set the stage for an extraordinary entrepreneurial journey. Fast forward to the present, Igor Marinelli stands as the visionary co-founder of Tractian, a cutting-edge machine intelligence company that has gained significant attention in the startup ecosystem. With an impressive $63 million in funding raised within just four years, including a substantial $45 million Series B led by renowned investor General Catalyst, Igor's achievements are nothing short of awe-inspiring. Join us as we delve into Igor's insightful narrative, exploring the pivotal moments that shaped his entrepreneurial trajectory and propelled Tractian to success.

In the last two decades, the startup industry has seen remarkable transformations, from the emergence of angel investors and venture capital firms to the rise of SaaS, cryptocurrencies, and the global diversification of the field. But what's even more exciting is the increasing presence of female founders, who, despite facing challenges, are making significant strides in entrepreneurship. Today, we're chatting with Joanna Strober, a founder who's witnessed this industry shift firsthand. From being one of the few women in venture capital to securing venture backing for her first company (which was later acquired by Weight Watchers), and raising a total of $39M for her latest venture, Midi Health, Joanna's journey is nothing short of inspiring. Curious about what it was like being apart of a changing industry? Listen to find out.

Just like with any skill, there are beginners, and there are experts. Through practice and experience, the experts become exceptional at what they do. In fundraising, there are also experts. You could call them the "seasoned vets" of venture capital. These are the founders that have raised all the way from small angel rounds to Series B and beyond. It's safe to say that any founder who's raised over 4 rounds of venture capital knows a thing or two about fundraising. Today, Jason got to share his conversation with one of those fundraising experts. Dylan Beynon is a 3x Founder who has raised hundreds of millions of capital throughout his career. His most recent venture is Mindbloom, a company that provides at-home psychedelic care that transforms mental health which he has raised over $50M across 3 rounds for. Dylan's success with Mindbloom is amazing, but his why is even better. Get your tissues, this one might pull on your heartstrings...

2023 was a tough year to fundraise. Almost all venture-backed founders felt the toll of being in a down market this past year. But when you're a female engineer, on top of that a female founder of a tech company - it almost always feels like a tough year to fundraise. For Heather Shoemaker, Founder and CEO of Language I/O, she never expected to fundraise. She ran a profitable company and was growing steadily each year from her headquarters in Cheyenne, Wyoming! But as we know - things change. Competitors come, and there's things you have to do in order to keep moving forward. In Heather's case that meant going out to raise her first venture round. It took awhile, and she met some very interesting VCs along the way, but eventually she ran into the right people and closed her seed round. In this episode, we get to dive into Heather's fundraising journey and how that ultimately led her to raise Language I/O's $8M Series A in July of 2023. Stick around towards the end and you'll also get to hear from some of Heather's investors from Wyoming VC!

Not every entrepreneur starts off knowing what business they want to create. For Bobby Pinero, Co-founder and CEO of Equals, it took him 8 years of building Intercoms Finance Organization to the success it is today until he found the product he wanted to create. Best part? He is building the product he always wished he had while working there. In today's episode we dive into Bobby's background, how he decided on Equals, and ultimately the trials and tribulations that went along with raising a $16M Series A from one of the top VC firms out there - Andreessen Horowitz.

Let me get something straight: fundraising is tough. You will be challenged. You will be knocked down. But if you have true grit and passion for your company, not even the hardest of blows can keep you down. For Tiffany Kelly, CEO and founder of Curastory - she knows all too well what it's like to take a hit. And less than two months ago, she experienced what I call a founder's worst nightmare. In today's episode, you get to hear an unfiltered version of what it's like being a founder raising multiple rounds of capital in a difficult market. Huge shoutout to Tiffany for keeping the conversation so real and authentic. This is why I love these conversations. I love creating opportunities for founders to see all that went into those million dollar round you see on social media. Granted not all are as difficult as Tiffany's was, but they're definitely no walk in the park either. Give this episode a listen to see how one tiny move by a VC firm almost destroyed Curastory.