Michael J. Smith

I said it, so here's my take on today's Outdoor Retailer show. There is something new (and old) happening. IMO, they should lean in and position it as the place to discover tomorrow's brands, and the buyers will follow. I love Grassroots Outdoor Alliance but for completely separate reasons. At Grasscon, we see our extended family (our retailers) for a reunion twice a year. It's amazing and helps us build real relationships. But we also need to meet some new people, you know. We're still young! The industry needs a place for the next generation to make their mark. Maybe that's OR again? “We met retailers that are brand new, and they’re going to buy their first assortment and are looking for smaller, newer brands that everybody else doesn’t have. And that’s something that you don’t find at the other shows we attend – retailers are looking for new brands here,” said Andrew Gibbs-Dabney, founder of LIVSN, an exhibitor at Outdoor Retailer. “I love seeing people that I only see once or twice a year. When we’re in our little bubble back in Arkansas designing, we’re not out in the world. This is our chance to go out and test the things that we think are great, get feedback, meet people that we haven’t seen in a long time, and really just be a part of the industry.” #tradeshow #outdoorindustry #outdoors https://lnkd.in/gY-fzkGG

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Awesome new initiative Aviel Ginzburg!! When Sean Sternbach and I launched Venture Out, Aviel and Pablo Brown-Rodriguez were silent cofounders. Aviel freely shared his words of wisdom from years of building community in Seattle. He and Chris DeVore were the first money into our community, followed quickly by Flying Fish Partners, Liquid 2 Ventures, M12, Microsoft's Venture Fund, and a huge list of Seattle angels. After growing to 1200+ members in <3 years, running multiple pre-preseed accelerators, a few learnings about building great community and the Seattle Founder Ecosystem: In the early days, no one knows what they are doing. Seek outside advice and guidance from people just ahead of you. Unicorn founders and tech moguls have great stories, but the woman who left amazon six months ago, launched an MVP, and crashed through her first 2 dozen investor discussions will have golden advice. Be open, honest, and vulnerable. Our best events and discussions happened when people let their guard down. No one will spend their life (which a startup requires) to build your idea. They might build something similar and tackle the same problem, but only your life experience and decision-making will make the difference. Share ideas often. Give first. As a ~10 year Techstars mentor, I saw this as the best part of the community. In my opinion, they have lost this completely. Don't come into a community and take. Give all you can, even when it feels counterproductive. Something might eventually come back that changes your life and direction. Even if it never does, you will 1000% feel great about the decision. Play long-term games with long-term people. Naval Ravikant was the first person I heard say this. Surround yourself with committed doers, makers, and visionaries. There are a lot of want-entrepreneurs in the world (which is a good thing; we need more people to take risks), but spend the most time with people in the ring, putting their time behind what they are doing. Learn how to give advice and direction without being evangelical, condescending, or a jerk. Learn to be direct but helpful. It's what you want on your journey, so invest in being a great thought partner for others. A final few notes: 1) No, you likely will never get paid the same amount or make as much money as a founder as you would as an L7/L8 at Amazon. If that is why you are starting a company, you're already in trouble. But knowing Aviel, he is already filtering for this 😂 2) You will likely learn in 6-18 months in the ring as a founder, than the rest of your life combined. Start to write, share your experience, find a therapist, and get ready to unpack a LOT as you go. The only way to make space for new information is to process it, store it, and then let it go. 3) The relationships are the most important part of the journey. I will always remember meetings with Matt Ehrlichman, Asha Sharma, Kyle Sandburg, and Matthew Neagle and the rest of the Porch Group team. Go Aviel!!!

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True partnerships are transformative catalysts for change. They transcend mere funding, embracing deep listening, dynamic collaboration, and vibrant community-building. Recent experiences at the MARGULF FOUNDATION Grantee Convening, Culture Shifting Summit, EdLoC, and Google Impact Summit have reignited my passion for reimagining how funders can evolve to genuinely empower social impact leaders. In my latest Camelback Ventures blog, I dive into the heart of this crucial conversation: ➡️ How can we build partnerships that fuel innovation? ➡️ What does holistic support for entrepreneurs of color and women really look like? ➡️ How might we create an ecosystem where visionary ideas thrive? Join me in exploring how we can reshape the landscape of social impact. Together, we can craft a future where diverse voices lead the charge in solving our most pressing challenges. Read the full article and let's continue this vital dialogue. How are you reimagining partnerships in your work? 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eW7UrGXu #SocialImpact #EquitablePartnerships #InnovationInFunding #DiversityInEntrepreneurship #SystemicChange

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At New York Climate Week this year, Cascale and I pledged to help companies cut through the jungle of global climate initiatives. Now, we're thrilled to share the first version of our curated list of said initiatives, available exclusively to Cascale members on Cascale Connect: https://lnkd.in/eRAyqCpX This is a living document, and I invite all members to contribute to our collective knowledge here: please review the list, and contribute back. Are we missing relevant initiatives? Have you spotted inaccuracies? Better yet: do you have experience with some of these and can you share your feedback with us to enhance our effectiveness as a coalition? This kind of contribution is really where the Cascale coalition becomes more than just the sum of its parts.

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🌐 The $600 Billion AI Question: A Revolution in the Making? 🚀 At the core of the AI debate is a monumental question: Can AI bridge the $600 billion revenue gap necessary to sustain the massive current investment? This issue, highlighted by David Cahn at Sequoia, underscores the tension between the high hopes placed on AI and the significant challenges it must overcome to fulfill those expectations. But let’s pause and reconsider. Amara’s Law reminds us that we tend to overestimate the impact of technology in the short term and underestimate it in the long term. This principle lies at the heart of the AI debate, making it challenging to distinguish real potential from inflated expectations. Generative AI may be the most capital-intensive technology Silicon Valley has ever encountered. OpenAI is reportedly losing $5 billion annually, with Sam Altman suggesting he’d be willing to spend ten times that amount if necessary. The line between visionary investment and reckless spending is becoming increasingly blurred. This gap between short-term hype and long-term impact is fueling skepticism and talk of an AI bubble. Yet this pattern mirrors every modern tech cycle. We’re likely somewhere between the “inflated expectations” and “disillusionment” phases of generative AI. If history is any guide, this doesn’t spell the end for AI—quite the opposite. Here’s the optimistic view: Every technological revolution has its failures, like Pets.com, but it also produces its Amazons, Googles, and Salesforces. Major technology shifts always demand substantial upfront investment. Recall the billions invested in laying fiber optic cables during the dot-com boom or the immense costs of building out cellular networks. These investments seemed risky at the time, but they laid the foundation for the digital, cloud-based world we now take for granted. According to Goldman Sachs, generative AI could boost U.S. productivity by 9% and GDP growth by 6.1% over the next decade. It’s easy to forget how long it takes for new technologies to achieve widespread adoption. The first PCs hit the market in the mid-1970s, but it wasn’t until the late 1990s that they became household staples. By 2000, 51% of U.S. households had a computer; today, that number stands at 95%. AI is on a similar path, but it’s advancing much more rapidly. The capabilities of AI systems aren’t growing linearly—they’re accelerating. Humans are notoriously poor at thinking exponentially. As LLMs scale, they reveal new, unexpected capabilities. Upcoming breakthroughs in model efficiency and hardware innovation promise to speed up progress even further. The pressing questions are: How deep will that transformation be, and how quickly will it unfold?🚀 Stéphanie Baruk Charles Dally Olivier Garcia Benoit Genest #AIRevolution #TechInvesting #FutureOfWork #GenerativeAI #AI #Innovation #Investment

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https://lnkd.in/epW-S5CY Well worth a read. A very thoughtful market based piece by Alison Grantham on a concerning trend.

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Love these high-level takeaways from my due diligence discussion with Cherub today! So many actionable insights for both founders and investors.

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How do you deliver the modern brand promise - meeting consumers where they are (read social, retail, etc), enabling timely delivery, seamless returns - while protecting the bottom line? Listen to this great conversation led by Rick Watson

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This is solid gold. Obligatory viewing for post-ZIRP, early-stage, pre-product-market-fit startups. Here's the truth about pre-seed to seed stage sales. Jen Abel on "Founder-Led Sales": https://lnkd.in/eHNSkDbt

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I really enjoyed recording this episode of The Digital Industrial Podcast with Ty Findley. We talked about common misconceptions for deep tech, the "Why Now" for the category, and differences between investor diligence for deep tech and traditional tech. https://lnkd.in/eKtwjauu

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Discussion topics I’m most excited about at the upcoming Dealmakers Summit in NYC on 17-18 June 🛀**Bodycare and men’s grooming** have shown steady growth and are full of innovative entrants that could be poised for the next round of exciting exits…I’ll be on the panel with Rebecca Zhou, CEO at Soft Services, Rom Ginzburg, CEO at Maelys and Ashleigh Barker, Head of Beusty at Lincoln International. ♾️**Longevity brands** - consumer interest and investment activity in wellness and a focus on less superficial benefits has been growing steadily for years. What is a longevity brand and are they they a gold mine of financial potential? 🛍️**The retail landscape** - has transformed the past three years alongside rising DTC costs. What and who is the future looking like? 👧🏼👵🏾**Alpha to boomers** - Gen Alpha may be the buzziest cohort of consumers, but in reality, each generation drives the industry forward in varying ways. A holistic look at what the opportunities are in each generation and the value each of these groups specifically brings to beauty and value creation. Beyond this, it’s the best event to genuinely connect with friends + make new in the beauty space, bc if you know him Nader Naeymi-Rad knows how to throw a party. As such, it always sells out, link to final remaining tickets in comments below 👇 Beauty Independent | Nader Naeymi-Rad | Claire McCormack | Paris Farsad-Roche | Taylor Bryant

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Having a Cars and Capital event tomorrow in Southern California with Oren Klaff. If you want to join message me. https://lnkd.in/gDQ4D39u Oren Klaff Bridger Pennington #InvestorEvent #FamilyOffice #InvestmentOpportunity #CarlsbadEvent #PrivateEquity #WealthManagement #InvestmentConference #CapitalRaising #NetworkingEvent #IndustryLeaders #FinancialGrowth #InvestorsMeetup #WealthBuilding #BusinessGrowth #InvestmentForum

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🐾Fitbit for Fido?!🐾 Wearable tech for pets is rapidly advancing and offers various benefits from health monitoring to tracking. It's revolutionizing how we monitor animal health, offering real-time insights into our furry friends' activity levels, heart rate, and overall well-being. This isn't just about keeping pets fit; it's about preemptive healthcare, catching potential issues before they become serious. Here are a few examples: 🐾 Devices that track a pet's location, activity, and health, providing insights into their daily behavior and wellness. 🐾 GPS trackers focused on location tracking and virtual fences and that allow pet owners to see their pet's location in real-time on their smartphone. 🐾 Collars that measure vital signs like temperature, pulse, and respiration. They're quite useful for pets with health issues, providing real-time data to veterinarians. 🐾 Microchip pet doors, while not wearable, use a pet’s existing microchip or an RFID collar tag to allow access in and out of the home, providing security and managing the pet's movements. How does your practice integrate wearable technology into your service offerings? #CVC #Fitbit #Fido #Dogs #GPSTracker

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Anyone that has a Shopify store or works with clients that have one can learn from a financial wizard and should be on this webinar at 11am tomorrow with John Zdanowski

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Get a few founders in a room and this question always comes up. If you're running an ecommerce brand - is there a #3PL that you're actually happy with? Our friend Aaron Alpeter recently launched a cool tool: Slotted—a collaborative RFP platform that connects brands with fulfillment providers, streamlines RFP creation, and simplifies proposal evaluation- check it out. (link in comments) Curious: are there any other tools out there tackling all these challenges? Let me know in the comments! Herman Goihman

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Over the last 9 years, I have had the privilege to work with various startups as well as launching my own businesses: cda Ventures LLC, a consulting and advisory business AND a Strategic Partnership with HomePlace to source and distribute goods in the home and housewares category both domestically and internationally. As most entrepreneurs will tell you.....while talent, hard work, and perseverance are undoubtedly crucial, the alignment of timing and the occasional stroke of luck can significantly influence outcomes. Timing plays a vital role as it can determine when opportunities arise and how prepared one is to seize them. Being in the right place at the right time can open doors that might otherwise remain closed. However, it's essential to recognize that timing alone isn't enough. Luck, on the other hand, can introduce unexpected variables that either propel individuals forward or present unforeseen challenges. Embracing both timing and luck as integral parts of the success equation allows us to remain adaptable, resilient, and open to the possibilities that each moment brings. I've had the good luck to be in the right place, at the right time with the preparedness to take advantage of opportunities. What about you? Are you prepared for when that special opportunity strikes? #Success #Timing #Luck #Opportunity #Adaptability

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