A note….

I am not sure when it is appropriate to send mass communications about anything other than the preservation of innocent lives. Emotions are heightened, productivity seems irrelevant, and a feeling of helplessness has permeated. We are all being bombarded by unshakable images, unverified headlines, and angst amongst our communities. On a personal level, besides giving to vetted organizations, I am recommitting to being radically compassionate; even those spitting vitriol on social media are really just trying to regulate their own nervous systems amongst the chaos and heartbreak. Sending everyone reading this an ocean of love.

What I’ve been up to…

Since last time, Annie Evans and I hosted a celebration dinner of the Dream Ventures Summer Accelerator at the Nexus Club in NYC. With support from sponsors at JP Morgan Chase and Gunderson Dettmer, we clinked glasses of SAYSO and Une Femme with our founders, VCs, and angel investors. The event culminated in a Pitch Competition showcasing NImbi, kozekoze, Inclusion Unopacked, SAYSO, and JJ’s Flower Shop.

Our Pitch Competition winner was Nimbi (which is on a mission to replace every plastic disposable razor with their landfill compostable one). They took home a prize package worth over $12k of cash and services and are now on a fundraising tear- if you are interested in learning more, let me know.

This week, I was lucky enough to be extended an invite by Josh and Alyssa Wand to The Family Fund’s Summit in Ojai and am blown away by the community of founders and investors they have cultivated. Some takeaways:

From the fireside chat with human performance expert Dr. Andy Walshe: yes, technological developments are exponentially increasing and we will no longer be able to intellectually compete. Where do we, as humans, have competitive advantage? Our intrinsic HUMANITY. Leaning into our intuition, creativity, empathy, compassion, and dream states (in other words…the future is female…or at least feminine energy will be more valuable than ever)

From Bill Weiland, natural and lifestyle foods expert, consumer goods Kingmaker: What is OUT- overly processed fake meats, veganism, seed oils. What is IN: high quality animal products, mushrooms and adaptogens, unprocessed fruit oils (olive, avocado, coconut) and BEEF TALLOW all around (the anti-heated seed oils demographic was in full effect- we have united against a common enemy)

Consumer start-ups that pitched and had me SO EXCITED about what’s to come: MASA (there is that beef tallow), ELEMIND (wearable neurotechnology that augments sleep, attention, and ultimately the human experience), A Dozen Cousins, Chareau Aloe Liquor…and one of my very own portcos, Kristin from Nomadica showcased her rapidly growing canned wine company

Self Plug 🙂 Check out my conversation with Courtlyn Jones and Kia Minor on the the Fearless Narratives Podcast

Hot Deals 🔥

Golden Hour is working on securing an allocation in Uni for our angel network. More to come on this one, but reach out to secure interest!

Uni is reef safe, toxin-free, zero waste refillable bodycare focused on sustainable packaging

Powered by smart tracking technology and API to follow product throughout lifecycle

Rolling out in D2C, retail, and B2B settings (big B2B contracts secured)

Leadership: Alexandra Keating (Founder & CEO), Marissa Dangovian (Head of Marketing) Designed by Marc Atlan (Tom Ford, Saint Laurent, Prada, Marc Jacobs)

Named to Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies List in 2022, BeautyMatter Next Award Finalist, Named to Byrdie’s 2022 Eco Beauty Awards, #2 in category at Erewhon, sold out Goop 2x

Round led by SoundWaves, Trousdale Ventures, many notable investors

For the brilliant folks who are taking their first foray into angel investing; syndicates are the perfect on-ramp. Syndicates offer a smaller barrier to entry (average minimum check size of $2,500-10,000) and the opportunity to learn by doing.

Consumer Opportunity

SuperMush is a lifestyle brand that uses the power of functional mushrooms and superfoods to support mental and physical well being

Raise to support distribution of just launched hero products: SuperMush Gummies!

Notable Investors: Vibrant VC, Humans VC, Mystic VC and the founders of Hu Kitchen, Netflix, Zumba & Thrive Market

Request deal access here, min check size $2,500, or reach out for more info

Consumer Tech / Saas Opportunity

Pointment is the “Open Table” meets “Toast” of nail salons – an end-to-end, cloud-based integrated SaaS solution that ensures success for small businesses largely owned by women of color.

Nail salons are a $23B industry in the US: and Pointment offers the first to market platform that solves their unique business problems: frequency, price point, multi-locations, simultaneous services, add-ons, waitlists and group bookings

Founder Michelle Baden Foss is serial founder and current owner of Archer Nails

Request deal access here, min check size $5,000, or reach out for more info

🍰 Shop Women-Founded Brands/Current Obsessions

Seriously, don’t sleep on these mushroom gummies.

This pen saved my son’s moquito-beloved legs – he said he IMMEDIATELY stopped itching (and thus, complaining) upon applications

Young menstruators in your life? The founders of Marlow have brought the first lubricated tampon to market.

Minority owned A Dozen Cousins is upleveling my work-from-home lunch game. This rice, tinned fish, game over. I saw the founder pitch at the Family Fun summit and loved his story.

🙌 Portfolio Company High Fives

Une Femme, which counts Delta Airlines and luxury Marriott properties among their partnerships, is popping up in a stadium near you. Grab some right now at the Chase Center and Huntington Bank Stadium.

Also- for the entire month of October, 50% of online sales of the Callie will got to Breast Cancer Research Foundation (as featured on the Today Show!)

Hearth Display, the digital calendar/family management system that will change your life, has a drop day coming Nov 9! The last 2 drops sold out FAST- secure yours now here.

📰 News and Food For Thought

I am, perhaps, the last person to have watched this due to my X aversion, but this talk by Bill Gurley at the All-In Summit is a masterclass in story telling, and truly landing the plane on a complex subject. It really is a must watch, even if talks on Big Regulation as anti-anti trust doesn’t get you going.

🌈 Founder Resources and Grants

Creciendo Grant Opportunity for Latinx Founders Deadline Oct 23

UNICEF Funding Opportunity for Health Tech Startups– Deadline TODAY!

Six things to know about Beauty Buyers

🍦Other Things No One Asked For

The insta account Please Hate These Things is a safe place to channel all my righteous indignation.

Instagram post by @pleasehatethesethings