Chris 🫶 Adamo

Drop In Venture Funding To Black-Founded Startups Greatly Outpaces Market Decline Chris MetinkoGené Teare February 27, 2024 Venture funding to Black-founded U.S. startups last year totaled only $705 million — marking the first time since 2016 that the figure failed to even reach $1 billion, Crunchbase data shows. The decline in capital to Black-founded companies greatly outpaces the overall decline in startup funding. While total venture dollars in the U.S. fell 37% last year, funding to Black-founded startups dropped a staggering 71%, according to Crunchbase data. Last year’s total investment in Black-founded startups in the U.S. marks the lowest amount since such startups raised only $582 million in 2016. The drop in total dollars also meant Black-founded startups received their lowest share in the venture market since at least 2016, per Crunchbase. Black-founded startups received less than 0.5% of the $140.4 billion in venture funding all U.S.-based startups received last year. In 2021, Black-founded startups received 1.4% of all U.S. venture funding. In 2022, it was 1.1%.

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Check out this article where I was featured that shared great lessons and stories from a number of leaders. You can check out my featured interview here: https://lnkd.in/eaxhGAgG

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Screens are not just for menus! Use this year lo learn about all of the ways your dispensary may be missing out on key areas of revenue growth! Combine the power of your loyalty outreach with advertising at the point of purchase! Learn how to manage your customer journey! Dopecast is a No-Cost menu board solution!

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TikTok makes starting a business sound as easy as customizing your drink order on the Starbucks app, but as a two-time founder, I can confidently say there's a little more to it than that. 😂 Not everything you write in your business plan will work out. Recently, I shared with Rise25 an unexpected insight we learned early on that had us pivot our game plan. If you want to see some real insights into what's working right now, check out this article on navigating the potholes of entrepreneurship. https://lnkd.in/gqHfERc3 #startup #ecommerce #healthtech

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Who is TVG? When I started this journey with Pat and Zach, our vision for TVG was clear: we didn’t just want to market brands—we wanted to scale them into industry leaders. We saw too many brands with incredible products getting stuck in the noise, missing their potential because they didn’t have the right team or strategy behind them. That’s where we knew we could make a difference. At TVG, we’ve found our sweet spot in the health and wellness space, partnering with some of the most exciting names in fitness. But what truly sets us apart is how we approach growth: 💡 Collaboration: We become an extension of your team, not just another agency. 🎨 Creativity: We’re relentless in crafting bold campaigns that capture attention. 📊 Strategy: Everything we do is data-driven, focused on measurable results. In the last year alone, we’ve seen over 300% growth, doubled down on our niche, and built a team that lives and breathes the industries we work with. Our mission: To help brands stand out, scale up, and dominate their space—whether that’s through disruptive campaigns, innovative creative strategies, or the grit to test, learn, and improve every day. If you’re ready to break through the noise and take your brand to the next level, let’s connect. Here’s to more growth, more wins, and redefining what’s possible in 2025. #TVG #HealthAndWellness #D2C #ScalingBrands #CreativeStrategy #MissionDrivenMarketing

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Wanna see what behind scenes at Pisgah Peaks Ventures ? I see more & more folks going out on there own & wanted to share more about our growth and some lessons. Inspired by Nick Lafferty and his public build. Backstory: I founded PPV after leaving Franny's Farmacy in early 2020 right at beg of COVID lockdowns My wife thought I was nuts I started it with few grand & a laptop. I found one client on Upwork & did some cheap work for a friend who had started a SaaS product. I got testimonials Used those to get a paying client Then another Etc I made literally no money for first 18 ish months. Few hundred bucks here & there My wife had a job with benefits and we made some $ selling a house in a hot market so was able to afford it. I could not have done it without this. Pure facts. Lessons: 1) Don’t niche down right away. You’ll narrow focus too soon & miss out on opportunities IMHO. Learn what you can deliver & how you can make $ doing it 2) Network every day. I used to take ANY (and I mean any lol) networkint call. I spent hundreds and hundreds of hours on random calls. It increases your surface area for luck early on. Take a lot of shots. Most will miss. 3) Don’t over invest in fancy website / logo / CRM / mar tech etc early on. If you’re selling B2B services; people buy YOU not a site. I’ve seen folks close 5-6 fig deals with a google doc. I haven’t updated my site in years 4) Open a biz checking account quickly and expenses everything you can to claim a loss while you can. I see folks co mingling their personal & biz expenses. That’s messy and will cause issues later. 5) Have a cash runway. If you are expecting to replace your income from your old job in first few quarters you’ll most likely be disappointed. You now are paying FICA tax (14.5%) and all other taxes (state & fed). You’re getting no benefits or retirement either. Just assume 50 - 60 cents for every dollar you earn will be not end up in your pocket 6) Grind every day but not all day. Don’t expect to take 2-3 week vacations and maintain momentum. It’s not like the gurus make it seem in their ads or posts. You won’t be posted up on a beach 🏖️ but also remember to give yourself grace and don’t burn yourself out too quickly. 7) Keep notes & build systems once you know your path. I didn’t do this early & am working backwards now. 8) Don’t measure weekly trends or monthly trends. Focus on quarters. You’ll get discouraged if you over analyze. It likely won’t go as fast as you want it to. I’m going on 5 years and last month I netted more than I netted my entire 2nd year doing this biz. We’re on a 7 fig run rate currently 🚀🤯 Keep at it. HMU if you need help

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First Day at CES 2025 The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) kicks off today with exclusive previews for the Media, and it’s clear that #Longevity has taken center stage as the next big trend for the masses. The "Tech Trends to Watch" session was packed, by Brian Comiskey and Melissa Harrison , with longevity technology being a key focus, while the much-anticipated CES Unveiled offered a glimpse of the innovations that visitors will explore starting January 7. For those of us in the #fitness and #wellness industries, it's time to reflect: while the wellness sector is still growing, High Tech has already leapt ahead, aligning itself with longevity as a transformative market opportunity. Are we ready to integrate and adapt to this shift? https://lnkd.in/d3dbjUzw #CES2025 #Longevity #TechTrends #FitnessIndustry #WellnessInnovation

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How do you build meaningful partnerships as a founder? I know I've been guilty of sending partnership agreements in hopes of the best In this episode of How I'm Building This podcast, Alex Witcpalek, the founder of Continuum AI, shares his unconventional path from playing football at the University of Louisville to working in commercial real estate and eventually joining the tech industry. Here are some sound bites from our conversation: ✔️"I'm going to build something on my own and I'm going to build it so that not only do I have a better life, but there's families that don't have to go through what we're going through." ✔️"We have so much pipeline that if we close this, I need to build a team to be able to go deliver it." ✔️"You need to be very upfront and transparent with your partner and have a plan together to cross pollinate your go-to-market motions." ✔️"We became thought leaders and our content now drive sour partner channel." ✔️"I don't think you can silo outbound partner and marketing, because we do a lot of partner marketing together too." ‍ Listen now: Youtube: https://lnkd.in/g5P3nkWZ Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gXUYA_ZF Other episodes as they release: https://lnkd.in/gkxQsmwH #startup #entrepreneurship

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There continues to be more and more sources of funding for specialized startups. This is in retail technology.

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Hello, I'm Anthony and I'm looking for a A+ killer Head of Growth for Equip Foods! Here are some wild stats on Equip: 🚀 Mid 8-figures in revenue, bootstrapped, and highly profitable (no VC BS) ✌️Only 2 FTE at the moment (no micromanaging or endless meetings) ❗️Only currently focusing on one marketing channel (affiliate/influencer) 🛍️ Industry best CR, LTV, and subscription #s (clear product market fit) 🥤Real food supplement products that are clean, transparent, and of the highest-quality that people absolutely love (actually doing something important in CPG) Perfect role for anyone who gives a damn about health, wants to get their hands dirty and build out a growth process, have huge amounts of agency and autonomy, and keen to make a dent every day when they show up to work. Here's a link to why we exist: https://lnkd.in/gGb-qCA4 Here's a link to the job description and app: https://lnkd.in/gxwE7xk7 (TIP: DO NOT APPLY IF YOU ARE PLANT-BASED) Please tag anyone you think could be a good fit! (P.S. I've been a tad quiet here. Are you interested in anything else about this business? Should I share more on LinkedIn?)

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Last month, we interviewed ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY customers, and here's what we learned!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 Gathering customer feedback is fundamental for CPG brands to find PMF. This is what we do: ONE: We send typeform surveys to our email list. As an incentive, we raffle off a few Amazon gift cards. TWO: Reading product reviews THREE: Reading the cancelation reasons on our subscription app FOUR: And my favorite is hopping on calls with customers. These are some of the questions we ask: - What made you try our brand? This will give you insights into their actual problem and how they think about it. - What's the most frustrating thing you've experienced with our products? Will tell you what to fix. - What do you want more of? Will tell you how to increase retention. - How would you describe our products to a friend? This tells you the language you should use in your ads. What other questions do you ask your customers?

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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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I’m super proud to launch Boulevard Capital today. Over the years, I’ve learned that for our customers, the struggle to secure growth financing is real. Traditional means of funding have been largely inaccessible to self-care businesses because lenders just don’t understand how salons and spas operate, or they simply don’t believe they’re legitimate businesses. This always gets me fired up! Not only are these some of the most resilient small businesses you’d find, but the majority are owned by women and people of underrepresented classes who are notoriously underserved by banks and financial institutions.  With Boulevard Capital, we set out to offer a lending product that was designed specifically for our customers. Because we underwrite based on historical performance, our customers are able to receive incredible, transparent terms – no personal guarantees, early payback penalties, hidden fees or other shenanigans. Some of the initial quotes from our pilot customers give me confidence we created something truly special: “HUGE! That was actually so fast! Super Helpful.” “Love the transparency with the flat fee” “...no penalty for early payback is great, big fan!” “OMG. I don’t have to go to a bank and fill out mountains of paperwork only to have them reject me?!” “Loan payback as a percentage of sales is especially great for our slower seasons” One of our company values is “Elevate the Industry” and this is one of the many ways we are living that purpose. 🖤

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What does it take to lead a billion-dollar startup—and still live with intention? In Owl & Key ‘s latest episode of UNLOCKED, I sat down with Jonathan Poma, Founder and Executive Director at Loop, one of Forbes’ Next Billion-Dollar Startups. Jonathan has led Loop through extraordinary growth and transformation. Now, he’s sharing the lessons he learned in building a billion-dollar business and how those insights translate into living a more intentional and fulfilling life. This conversation is packed with actionable insights for leaders, entrepreneurs, and anyone looking to design a life and career with purpose. Tune into the full episode in the comments below! #Leadership #Entrepreneurship #Podcast #BillionDollarStartup #PersonalGrowth #IntentionalLiving #SelfAwareness

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I am going to be on an awesome panel put together by James from Startup Grind this Wednesday! Come join!! If you want a ticket let me know!! I have a few for friends! See you Wednesday for an awesome panel! Great networking too! #ceo #startup #event #fundraising #entrepreneurship #geCKoMaterials

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The right food curated for an individual's disease risk factors can certainly serve as medicine. In addition, at Bento (gobento.com) we see that the right foods provided to low income community members in a convenient and stigma free way will not only close their nutrition security gap, but can also serve as a powerful bridge needed to connect those community members with critical healthcare services and resources. https://lnkd.in/g2nbEyYz

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Client Spotlight: Kenneth Robinson We're thrilled to share this fantastic testimonial from Kenneth Robinson! "We recommend B. The Entrepreneur for custom-tailored business plans, pitch decks, and startup business formations. They have helped us in multiple ways, and we're now on our way to securing financing with multiple lenders. Thanks, Brandi!" Are you ready to secure your business financing? Message us today and let’s take your venture to the next level! #ClientSuccess #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #BTheEntrepreneur #TestimonialTuesday #CLTBlackowned

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The best thing we can do for ourselves is to spend more time doing what brings us joy. Maybe that's continuing on your current path or perhaps it's shifting course. If you've ever thought about opening your own studio, join us for a webinar with Jordan Ware- our incredible New Studio Development Manager.

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