Back in 2009 I became so frustrated by the distractions commonly found at live events like people on their phones, talking over performances, jam-packed venues and subpar stereo systems that I set out to create an alternative. Out of that sprung Sofar Sounds, intimate gigs in unusual spaces to engaged audiences. Not much has changed about our mission since then, but I can’t say the same for the world around us.
1. What inspired you to become a VC and was there a particular ‘lightbulb’ moment?
I didn’t go to Harvard, I’m not technical and I have a short attention span. Oh, and I’m from Texas. When I finished school, I wanted to figure out who I was and have life experiences. So I moved to London and had the opportunity to work at a big co for a year.. Thereafter, I was a nanny (I suppose one would say manny), worked in an antique shop, worked in A&R and haphazardly became a researcher and learned how to use MATLAB (I thought I had always hated math until I had a good teacher). This led me to a commercial role at a startup and the rest is history.
Since the on-set of the coronavirus pandemic, many people have lost their jobs following the closure of unessential businesses. As a result, more and more people are looking to find another stream of income. Starting an online business has become increasingly attractive during these unprecedented times. Some online e-commerce opportunities require you to pay a monthly fee, registration, or supply costs. However, putting in hours of labor and hundreds of dollars into a new business without the certainty of success is a risk that not everyone is willing to take.
Insurtech has successfully broken away from its older sibling, fintech, into its own growing, disruptive category. And quite rightly so, as there are some really great innovations happening in the space. Insurtech unicorns like Lemonade and Hippo have garnered well-deserved column inches for their innovations in consumer insurance, but we’re yet to see the same from insurtechs for business insurance.
What should be my priorities as a CEO Founder? – Being a CEO at a tech startup is a very tough job. You work on average about 300 days a year with 14 hours a day. That is 4’200 hours a year and the worst is for most CEOs that is not enough. You are constantly under time pressure and need to make sure you allocate enough time and resources to the things that matter most:
What inspired you to become a VC and was there a particular ‘lightbulb’ moment?
The COVID-19 pandemic has hit every corner of the globe in a truly seismic way. As an investor, entrepreneur and parent, I’m with all of you in continuing to struggle to adapt to the day-to-day uncertainty. 
“We should boycott the restaurant” said my eight year-old Goddaughter. We were sitting in a burger joint, musing over the container of plastic straws on our table. Instead of thinking about the food, she was thinking about the environment. 
I was 24 when my life changed forever. It was the Saturday before Christmas, and my mum, 56 at the time, was diagnosed with early onset dementia. In truth, I’d known something was off for a while, but that doesn’t prepare you for when your worst fears become reality. 
At smol we are driven and inspired by an ethos of revolution; bringing our eco-friendly laundry capsules and dishwash tablets to consumers who have barely seen innovation within these household cleaning sectors for decades. 
