Justin Bridges

Marketer, Advisor, Creator. Vibe. Currently: 📍Building my 3rd startup.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

Moving online means raising less money and accessing more investors. A pre-seed round helps achieve validation and PMF. It gives us time instead of trying to force a seed round right away to open locations.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

Thinking through problems in real-time to strategize our raise. First issue: We wanted to start with physical retail. But, investors see it as a real estate play. Post-2021, VC funding shifted focus to tech.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

Organic formula that can win:
Entertaining/educational content
Platform rockstar affiliates
Expert curation and trend surfing
Gamification/loyalty
Personalization on steroids

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

5. How will investors see our opportunity size (TAM, SAM, SOM)? Understanding market size is crucial. We’ll use industry data to show our disruptive potential. Thankfully, there's plenty!

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

It's my 2nd time prepping to raise money for a startup. Excitement around our idea is great, but not validation. Key questions I'm asking myself before pitching to VCs:

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

4. How much capital is necessary? Initial projections: $250k per retail door. Aim: $3M-$5M, but pre-revenue startups often start smaller.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

Transparency, proactive planning, and valuing people are essential. We aim to invest in underrepresented founders and support systemic change with our success.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

I attend group therapy. It’s a space for real updates—we're like family. I recently shared my new business idea and its ethical implications, which helped me firm up my stance.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

4 ethical imperatives for my startup:

1. Address ethical questions early to prevent future issues.
2. Build with ethics to ensure a positive work environment.
3. Be transparent about our values to build trust.
4. Have a clear economic success plan to avoid scrambling.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

We try to predict behavior, but we don’t truly know. Test hypotheses, trust intuition, account for error. Be bold but responsible. Take risks, not chances. And when failure comes, show yourself grace.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

Nobody really knows what they're doing. Absolute proof? It’s a myth. Our world humbles us, and language is our tool. Yet, we crave certainty.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

Science gives us the best current model—impermanent but useful. As marketers and founders, our priority is success and survival with limited runway.

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

⚡️It's official: Tiktok converted your FYP into QVC.⚡️

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

You can't convince me that TikTok isn't the new QVC. What if the data and propaganda issues causing the ban are just distractions?

[Justin Bridges @freelancekills]

Fast forward to 2022: TikTok Shop launched and by 2023 became a full-blown shopping network. Creators are the new hosts, selling products on their pages. High commissions drive viral product coverage.