John Fein and Chris Marks of Firebrand Ventures // why two venture firms merged to become one [CC065]

Summary: Interview begins: 8:54 Debrief: 45:54 John Fein and Chris Marks are the managing partners of Firebrand Ventures. John started Firebrand Ventures in 2016, and we interviewed him in 2018. Prior to founding Firebrand, John served as Managing Director for Techstars, a leading startup accelerator with over 40 programs around the world. While at Techstars he ran three accelerator programs in Kansas City and invested in 30 startups. Companies that have gone through Techstars programs have raised a total of over $9 billion in funding and have a collective market cap of over $25 billion. Prior to Firebrand, Chris was the Founder and Managing Partner of Blue Note Ventures, an early-stage venture fund investing in great technology companies and serving entrepreneurs committed to authentic leadership. After co-investing in several companies together out of their respective funds, it became obvious that Chris and John not only shared a similar investment strategy, but also an underlying set of values around how they partnered with entrepreneurs. In late 2019 they decided to join forces and merged Firebrand and Blue Note. Key points: - Disenchanted in the venture space 10:16 - Firebrand and Blue Note starting together 14:19 - Similar Values and investment approach 16:08 - Merging ventures 17:34 - Is there such a thing as good and bad timing? 21:22 - Fund economics change 34:22 - Preset framework for conflict 42:16 Follow John Fein and Chris Marks: - https://www.firebrandvc.com/team-members/john-fein - https://www.firebrandvc.com/team-members/chris-marks Follow upside on Twitter: https://twitter.com/upsidefm – This episode is sponsored by Enterprise Rising Conference. This year, Enterprise Rising is October 20-21 and totally online. If you're an enterprise SaaS startup then this will be the best online event you could attend all year. Get your tickets here and use promo code upside to save an additional 20%. – This episode is sponsored by Taft, Stettinius & Hollister, a full-service law firm known for assisting entrepreneurs across the Heartland. Click here to learn more about Taft – This episode of upside is also sponsored by Ethos Wealth Management. Managing wealth with an eye toward the future demands vigilance and skill in today’s global economy. Over the years, Ethos Wealth Management has worked with clients and their other professional advisors – including attorneys and accountants – to create comprehensive wealth management plans designed to make the best use of their wealth today and help ensure its endurance for future generations. They can do the same for you. Visit upside.fm/ethos to learn more. – Want to share information about your company, or an opportunity with the upside audience? Book a classified advertisement and your advertisement will be read in an upcoming episode of the show. Classified ads are priced at $100, and are: read by Jay and/or Eric on upside linked from the show notes linked from this website, upside.fm