Okay, I’ll get again to my procession of Startup Land Warmth Checks shortly, however within the meantime, right here’s a bunch of sensible stuff I’ve loved studying over the previous few weeks:
It’s Not Your Fault, However It’s Your Downside [Charles Hudson, Precursor] – I vigorously agree with a lot of what Charles writes, and so glad he’s getting posts out extra often lately. This paen is a reminder that a number of the time you’ll encounter actual roadblocks attributable to points outdoors of your management, however the place you continue to have to navigate them to maneuver ahead.
“Proper now, we’re in a second the place many founders discover themselves confronting issues they didn’t create however should deal with. This isn’t the time to complain or lament your destiny – it’s your alternative to rise to the event and push by regardless of the challenges.“
What makes this value studying is that Charles has empathy for founders (he’s been one), and can proceed to indicate up as one in all their traders in a supportive method. So it’s not “rah rah go do the work and make me my cash” bs content material advertising and marketing. It’s phrases (and recommendation) he’s been given and needed to take himself.
Preempting the Spherical [Jared Hecht, Founder – GroupMe, Fundera] – The primary time a founder hears an investor counsel they may wish to ‘preempt their subsequent spherical’ they 🍾. The second time a founder hears this they 🙄. Jared takes you thru why. It occurs typically sufficient that I’ll write a submit later about what to do when you get this advance from an investor, however even that one shall be largely primarily based on the knowledge and battle scars shared right here.
“I’ve been burned by entertaining preemptive rounds on a number of events. It’s like touching the recent range repeatedly.“
The Air Jordan Drop So Sizzling It Blew Up an Alleged $85 Million Ponzi Scheme [Misyrlena Egkolfopoulou and Kim Bhasin/Bloomberg] – My goodness ZIRP and COVID was an ideal storm for a ton of fraud. I’m wondering how a lot of the expansion within the sneaker exchanges was pushed by pure hypothesis, enterprise {dollars}, and unsustainable economics. I” understand it’s an enormous trade general and sneaker heads are an actual neighborhood however simply learn this text earlier than flaming me.
“However there was no secret shoe pipeline. In actual fact, Malekzadeh would merely wait till the sneakers he’d presold had been launched, then buy them on the open market from retailers reminiscent of StockX, in keeping with individuals accustomed to his operation who requested to stay nameless as a result of the matter is delicate. Supply delays might persist so long as a yr, however he managed to satisfy most orders—till in the future he couldn’t.”
Mixtape Websites Like DatPiff Propelled Rap. Can They Be Preserved? [Brian Josephs/New York Times] – Save the tradition! I want we might at the very least freeze these in some format that acknowledged their essential position in hip hop.
“That freedom unlocked an period of unfettered creativity for a technology of artists and constructed a essential digital-first viewers that may later result in rap’s dominance in streaming. It additionally led to the present dilemma: How do you protect part of hip-hop historical past that isn’t essentially authorized?”
After “Barbie,” Mattel Is Raiding Its Whole Toybox [Alex Barasch/NewYorker] – Got here out earlier than the film opened, so the insider account of how the IP negotiations occurred is much more astounding as field workplace approaches $1B. I interned at Mattel in the summertime of 1999 so have some mild first-person tales about how this firm works.
“Firstly of the “Barbie” course of, Gerwig determined to put in writing the screenplay along with her associate, the writer-director Noah Baumbach. Mattel and Warner Bros. insisted on seeing a preview of the script’s contents. The couple balked—they wanted the liberty to experiment. Jeremy Barber, an agent at U.T.A. who represents Gerwig and Baumbach, is shut with Brenner, so he could possibly be blunt. “Are you loopy?” he instructed her. “You need to’ve come into this workplace and thanked me when Greta and Noah confirmed as much as write a fucking Barbie film!”“
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