222. Crisis Coverage w/ Leah Solivan - Building TaskRabbit in a Recession; COVID Effects on the Independent/Gig Economy; and Key Factors for Early-Stage Marketplace Success

Leah Solivan of Fuel Capital joins Nick on a special Crisis Coverage installment to discuss Building TaskRabbit in a Recession; COVID Effects on the Independent/Gig Economy; and Key Factors for Early-Stage Marketplace Success. In this episode, we cover:

• Background -- path to venture?
• How is the current climate affecting your investing?
• Differing viewpoints on how much runway to plan for w/ a new capital raise... are you suggesting founders raise for more than 18-months or does the standard runway guidance hold?
• This crisis has had a pretty profound impact on the sharing economy/the gig economy/the independent economy. As someone with experience working in this space, what are your observations?
• Key lessons learned from building TaskRabbit in 2008/2009 during a recession?
• What will be the big opportunities post-covid, given the changes to consumer behavior?
• What are the main 3-5 things your looking for in a consumer marketplace business at the seed stage?
• Are there GMV levels that you're looking for?
• How about take rate?
• Best advice on investing in marketplace businesses that you've come across and incorporated into your approach?
• I've seen a number of consumer marketplace business that start w/ an auction-style format where vendors bid for consumer business, like thumbtack... then they flip to more of an affiliate/referral model where the consumer enters the specs for their job, those leads are sent to vendors and the vendors reach out individually w/ proposals. Why have we seen this shift?
• Does the transaction interface/format between vendors and customers influence your interest as an investor?
• You've said that you think investor's should stand in a founder's corner, not their kitchen. What do you mean by that?
• How involved do you get w/ founders, and how has that changed as the portfolio continues to grow?
• Advice for founders that are approaching an exit process w/ strategics?
• I know you pride yourself on your efficiency... do you have any efficiency hacks or tips for investors young in their career?

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