Inside Startup Funding

Inside Startup Funding unpacks founder rounds, VC decisions, and the realities of scaling. Brought to you by @GetAsterHQ and @28thandPark.

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

Full episode links:

📺 YouTube: https://t.co/mga82neqd6

🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/DvafhwzRxm

🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/sS82ZKRJOf

📝 Substack: https://t.co/BrxV4m32oJ

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

An IPO sounds like the finish line.

But Mark Volchek says you quickly realize it’s not really an exit. It’s a transition.

Today on Inside the Fund, Mark joins Helena Fogarty to talk about building Higher One from a dorm room startup to $250M+ in revenue, taking it public, going private, and how that founder journey now shapes the way he invests at Las Olas VC.

Full episode is live now on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Substack.

Links in thread⬇️

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

Before Mark Volchek took Higher One public, the company had less than two weeks of cash in the bank multiple times.

They could barely make one more payroll.

Tomorrow on Inside the Fund, Mark joins Helena Fogarty to talk about raising through the dot-com crash, going from dorm room startup to IPO, and how that founder journey now shapes the way he invests at @lasolasvc.

Full episode available tomorrow on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Substack.

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

📺 YouTube: https://t.co/H6BQNTSuqY
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/jfjDI3DTHQ
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/SzvojqnRPl
📝 Substack: https://t.co/UukaInFAVy

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

NEW EPISODE OF INSIDE THE FUND: Charlie O’Donnell on what really happens after the pitch.

Will your VC fight for you internally, or just mention your company in the partner meeting so they can say they saw it?

Charlie, a 20-year VC turned VC coach and author of Founder Unfriendly, breaks down how funding decisions actually get made.

Full episode out now. Links in thread.

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

Cold outreach doesn’t fail because it’s cold. It fails because it’s generic.

Tomorrow on Inside the Fund, host Helena Fogarty sits down with Charlie O’Donnell, 20-year VC turned VC coach and author of Founder Unfriendly.

We get into what investors actually respond to, how partner meetings really work, and the pitch mistake founders make when the most exciting part comes too late.

Full episode drops tomorrow.

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

@AndreaHippeau @LererHippeau 📺 YouTube: https://t.co/r63oW7kyy8
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/iWnX93I0Ab
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/FsaNFETrgA
📝 Substack: https://t.co/Xv6NRemS6i

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

“You need to present yourself as the person who will figure it out.”

Andrea Hippeau (@AndreaHippeau) of @LererHippeau on what investors need to believe when a founder doesn’t have every answer yet.

If you missed this episode of Inside the Fund, check it out at the links in thread!

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

From the archive: Ella Maloney-Cook on the side of founder life people don’t talk about enough.

Moving to the U.S. without family nearby made it easy to just keep working through the lonely moments.

But she started pushing herself to show up anyway.

Community events.
Founder sessions.
Spaces where she could be more than just “the founder.”

A reminder that resilience doesn’t only come from the company.

Sometimes it comes from finding people who can see all your layers.

Full Inside the Round episode here:
📺 YouTube: https://t.co/iQxCAf9bRl
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/WrZJgCiAe8
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/LvxlCjuOsz

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

@hartvigsen_anna @FemaleInvest 📺 YouTube: https://t.co/58SyGYiSb6
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/fwZN6UcYBO
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/IjDaawwQ3D
📝 Substack: https://t.co/dULvFrSYcC

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

From the archive: Anna Sophie Hartvigsen (@hartvigsen_anna) on going from no investor network to 300 VCs reaching out after YC Demo Day.

In 2021, @FemaleInvest was raising on a SAFE with no lead and no cap set yet.

Investors were offering $1M to $2M five minutes into meetings.

But the filter was still simple:

Who do we like?
Who have they backed?
Are they aligned with the mission?

Full Inside the Round episode links in thread in case you missed this one 👇

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

📺 YouTube: https://t.co/tN7ahdNhmU
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/8RAlFYFllx
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/wIhFf01ylj
📝 Substack: https://t.co/wYs4lzKn0X

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

Every day as a founder is uncomfortable.

In our latest episode of Inside the Fund, Zoe Jakubowich of VHS Ventures breaks down the reality of building the plane while flying it: selling the dream, proving traction, and figuring it out in real time.

Full episode links in thread.

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

📺 YouTube: https://t.co/tN7ahdNhmU
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/8RAlFYFllx
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/wIhFf01ylj
📝 Substack: https://t.co/wYs4lzKn0X

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

“I don't believe venture is the right answer for most CPG brands.”

Venture only works if:

• you already know how to grow
• more money = faster growth
Otherwise, you’re just adding pressure and complexity.

Zoe Jakubowich of VHS Ventures shares:
• when VC actually makes sense
• why most brands raise too early
• what investors are really looking for

A more honest look at when venture helps, and when it doesn’t. Full episode of Inside the Fund is available now on all platforms, links in thread 👇

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

📺 YouTube: https://t.co/0QjAZ1EExQ
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/bwNYA2RmMi
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/LYiLdCmSfP
📝 Substack: https://t.co/gHec36AGba

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Stefanie Francis on the most underrated fundraising move

“If you are looking for money, ask for advice… and by default, that is what ended up happening.”

She stopped running a “process”
Started telling the truth
Called people she trusted
→ They wrote the biggest checks

From an earlier Inside the Round episode. Still one of the most real fundraising stories we’ve heard.

Watch if you missed it 👇

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

@kerry_rupp 📺 YouTube: https://t.co/0hHQReg5bJ
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/xYEc5Krpqd
🎙️ Spotify: https://t.co/H7QEwRwUvT
📝 Substack: https://t.co/uDyzXmfJqj

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

WOMEN-LED COMPANIES ARE OUTPERFORMING.

And they’re doing it with less capital.

Throwing it back to an earlier Inside the Fund episode with @kerry_rupp (GP at True Wealth Ventures). If you missed this one, it’s worth a watch:

• Women-led startups outperform
• They raise less capital
• It’s not a pipeline problem

Women start businesses at 2x the rate of men. The deal flow is there.

So why hasn’t the capital followed?

Full episode in thread ⬇️

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

@SamirBakhru @Orrick YouTube: https://t.co/nhc83FhKIm
Spotify: https://t.co/cW3iNhUpKz
Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/tldPRLZOt9
Substack: https://t.co/s8rroBQJW6

[Inside Startup Funding @insidefunding]

NO NEW EPISODE THIS WEEK. So we’re bringing back one that still hits:

Fundraising isn’t a transaction. It’s a long-term relationship.

In our first Inside the Process episode, @SamirBakhru (Partner at @Orrick) breaks down:
• Why venture deals are closer to a marriage
• What happens when terms get sticky
• The legal mistakes that cost founders leverage

If you’re raising or about to, this one’s worth your time.

Links in thread ⬇️