Future Back Ventures by Bain & Company

Last week, we featured 4 innovative Bain alumni-led Brand Marketplace start-ups as part of our Bain Alumni Spotlight Series. Here's an interview with PARITY | A Group 1001 Company CEO, Leela Srinivasan! ?? Which industry should we explore next? Share your suggestions in the comments! #BainAlumni

Congratulations to Bain Alum, Katlyn Gao, Founder/CEO of LOVB on this major milestone.

We’re excited to announce that one of our portfolio companies, Duckbill, has been named a winner of Fast Company's 2024 Next Big Things in Tech! ????? This award recognizes the most innovative technologies shaping the future of consumers, businesses, and society. This recognition highlights Duckbill’s groundbreaking work combining AI and human expertise to tackle life’s everyday admin tasks, helping people redefine how they spend and value their time. Congratulations to the incredible Duckbill team on this well-deserved honor! ?? We’re so proud of all the team has accomplished and are thrilled to be part of what’s next. ?? ?? Want to learn more? Check out the Fast Company article to see here.

Next up in our Alumni Spotlight Series is Brand Marketplaces! ?? This week's series features 4 innovative Bain alumni-led companies in the Brand Marketplaces space: PARITY | A Group 1001 Company is a platform connecting brands with over 1,000 professional women athletes across more than 80 sports. They facilitate impactful partnerships that elevate brand presence and promote equity in sports. Bain alum Leela Srinivasan is the CEO ? Narrativ, co-founded by Bain alum Benjamin Gottdiener, is a marketplace for advertisers to find AI talent audio while giving talent and their agents to license, manage, and protect their audio likeness ? Passionfroot is a marketplace that’s connects B2B brands with content creators on all platforms, allowing them to scale their influencer marketing. Bain alum Jens Joseph Mannanal is the co-founder and COO ? Influencer.in, co-founded by Bain alum Suneil Chawla, is an influencer marketing platform and agency connecting brands with a diverse network of over 150,000 influencers

Last week, we featured 7 innovative Bain alumni-led Beverage start-ups as part of our Bain Alumni Spotlight Series. Here's an interview with Explorer Cold Brew Founder Cason Crane! ?? Which industry should we explore next? Share your suggestions in the comments! #BainAlumni #Beverages

Our Alumni Spotlight Series continues! ?? ? This week's series features 7 innovative Bain alumni-led companies in the Beverages industry: Ten To One Rum, founded by Bain alum Marc-Kwesi Farrell, is redefining the rum category with premium rums blends. They honor the rich traditions of the Caribbean while offering a fresh, modern take on rum. ? PerfectTed, co-founded by Bain alum Teddie Levenfiche, offers?matcha-infused energy drinks to provide lasting energy without the crashes associated with coffee and traditional energy drinks. Explorer Cold Brew is on a mission to revolutionize your coffee experience with premium cold brews. Bain alum Cason Crane is the founder. ? The Long Drink Company, founded by Bain alum Mikael Taipale, brings the taste of Finland to the world. With its crisp and refreshing blend of gin, grapefruit, and juniper berry, this iconic beverage offers a unique take on ready-to-drink cocktails. ? Cann is a cannabis beverage offering microdosed social tonics crafted to provide a buzz without the hangover. Bain alum Luke Anderson is the co-founder. ? Nc'nean Distillery is producing organic Scottish whisky with sustainability at its core. From grain to glass, NcNean is committed to creating bold, modern spirits while minimizing their environmental impact. Bain alum Annabel Thomas is the CEO. ? Vitaminis offers nutritious, all-natural juice shots designed to support a healthy lifestyle. Bain alum Leslie Danford is the founder. ?

?? Exciting News! ?? Congratulations to Indian-based AamDhanE, a tech-enabled job matching and fulfillment platform focused on labour contractors, on successfully closing a pre-series A round! AamDhanE is founded and led by Bain alumni Krishna Gupta. Learn more: https://aamdhane.com/ #BainAlumni

?? Proud Moments for Our Portfolio Companies ?? Big congrats to two of our standout portfolio companies, HIVED and Chariot, for lighting up the iconic Nasdaq building in Times Square! ?? HIVED was featured for making waves in sustainable logistics, being named to the 2024 Norrsken Impact 100! ??? Their innovative work continues to push boundaries, reshaping parcel delivery for a greener future. Meanwhile, Chariot celebrated the first-ever DAF Day, which turned out to be a record-breaking day of engagement. With over 1,200 organizations joining in, DAF Day and Chariot are shaping the future of giving by making donor-advised funds more accessible and impactful than ever before. ???? From driving sustainability to reshaping how we give, these companies are setting new benchmarks for the future. ????

?? Today is the day! Join us and Chariot, one of our portfolio companies, in celebrating the first-ever DAF Day - an exciting initiative to showcase the power of Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) in making a collective impact. ??? Together, we can show how DAFs can drive real change. Ready to make a difference? ?Visit www.dafday.com to get involved.

What an amazing evening in NYC! ?? Future Back Ventures (FBV) teamed up with First Round Capital Partner and Bain alum, Hayley Bay Barna, to host an event for early-stage Bain alumni entrepreneurs on Tuesday night. The Head of FBV, Ann Scott-Plante, facilited a panel discussion of former Bainies and successful founders, Adam Braun, Jeffrey Raider and Sarah Miyazawa LaFleur. They shared countless insights, some in-line with conventional wisdom and other, more unique perspectives. Some notable nuggets included: - Get to “no” with VCs as fast as possible; it’s the maybe’s that will drain your bandwidth - Minimize the chaos as early as possible in your startup; focus on key, strategic priorities to avoid whiplash - When fundraising, prioritize the VC partner rather than brand name; the partner is the one who will determine how involved and helpful a VC will be throughout your journey A heartfelt thank you to the panellists and attendees! Which city should we visit next? Let us know in the comments!?? #BainAlumni #atBain #VC #Entrepreneurship