While celebrity investors can significantly boost consumer companies through marketing and promotion, their value proposition for B2B startups is less defined. However, Alex Pall and Drew Taggart, the duo behind The Chainsmokers, are convinced that their venture capital fund, Mantis VC, offers a unique advantage that sets it apart from traditional VC firms. Mantis VC was launched in 2020 as a partnership between The Chainsmokers and venture capital professionals and entrepreneurs Milan Koch and Jeffry Evans. The firm invests in early-stage tech startups.
Alex Pall recently shared his motivation for venturing into B2B investing alongside Dan Lorenc, co-founder and CEO of cybersecurity startup Chainguard. Pall expressed frustration with their previous experiences in consumer investing, where companies primarily sought their involvement for promotional purposes, reducing them to a “QVC-like” role.
Pall and Taggart saw immense potential in the B2B market and decided to dive in, despite lacking direct experience. “It felt like a market opportunity to kind of stand out and maybe provide, you know, a different perspective or different type of value back to those types of companies,” Pall explained, “Our strategy and the way we model our fund is to kind of be this like Robin to everyone’s Batman, and kind of provide a different level of support and perspective and connectivity that maybe the traditional fund isn’t so focused on.”
Drew Taggart clarified that Mantis VC doesn’t aspire to replicate established venture capital firms like Sequoia, recognizing the value they already bring. Instead, Taggart outlined a humble approach for Mantis. “Our goal at Mantis was to just get into these deals, outwork every other person on the cap table, figure out whatever scrappy way we could add value, and then in the hopes that our founders would turn around and kind of help us build our brand within that community,” he explained.
Alex Pall revealed that The Chainsmokers’ extensive corporate event history provides a valuable networking opportunity for their portfolio companies. Having performed private shows for nearly every Fortune 500 company, Pall acknowledged that these connections were initially unforeseen as investment opportunities. However, they now leverage this network to facilitate introductions between their portfolio founders and prominent corporations, fostering potential partnerships and growth.
“It worked out really well for us, because these are, you know, some really powerful decision-makers or leaders in their respective spaces,” Pall said.
Dan Lorenc corroborated the value of Mantis VC’s network. Beyond facilitating introductions to potential customers, Lorenc revealed that The Chainsmokers’ influence has also aided in hiring top talent.
The deal-breaker was overcome thanks to an unconventional intervention: a five-minute Cameo video from Alex Pall. Pall enthusiastically endorsed Chainguard and emphasized why the candidate should join the team. This personal endorsement successfully swayed the candidate, ultimately sealing the deal. Lorenc credited Pall’s persuasive message as the decisive factor in securing the employee.
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