BANKNOTES Newsletter No. 15: Raising money outside of VCs
Recession looms, inflation is at a 40-year record high, and supply-chain issues and advertising uncertainty abound. As a result, DTC brands are facing a VC funding drought.??
As BANKNOTES writer Liciê Leite pointed out this week, it's been tough sledding for brands looking to raise capital through VCs. But while one faucet may have turned off, creative founders are looking at other opportunities in the crowdfunding space.?
Over the past month, a group of community-driven DTC brands has turned to crowdfunding as a means to fuel growth. Obvi, CROSSNET, and Wunderkeks publicly launched investment rounds targeting different audiences—from customers, friends, and family to DTC founders and angels.?
“What I found is that venture capitalists now are looking for unicorns, they're looking for that next 10 to 50x valuation. And you’ve got to either have a tech component or a CPG component. And if you're in a consumable hardline space like I am, they probably aren't the best fit. I'll take a call to VC any day, but I'm kind of done after about a month of doing this.”
- Chris Meade , co-founder CROSSNET
Read more about how these founders are utilizing crowdfunding to double-down on their brands ?during an uncertain economic period.?
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