In this episode, Juan Garcia Mansilla, the founder of Unit One, shares his journey from being a product designer in Argentina to successfully closing a $3.5 million Series A round.
Juan's story showcases the resilience and adaptability required to navigate the challenges of entrepreneurship and successfully pivot a business. He shares the process of designing, building, funding, branding, and launching a product. Tune in to hear about the pivot that Juan and his team made along the way.
Here are some of the key points in this episode
06:11- Unique ski and snowboard helmet.
10:57 - Communicating with stakeholders.
15:03 - Designing and launching FARO.
16:50 - Revenue growth and product market fit.
21:21 - VC introduction at the worst moment.
25:15 - Focusing on product market fit.
28:24 - Traumatic due diligence process.
32:31 - Starting on the right side.
37:16 - Getting in front of investors.
39:49 - Too many rounds hurt the cap table.
44:07 - Morale and dilution in fundraising.
About Juan Garcia Mansilla
Juan Garcia Mansilla is the founder of Unit One, a company that designs and builds safety accessories for urban mobility, with a focus on cycling. He started his career as a product designer in Argentina and partnered with his boss to build their product and company. After a pivot from the snow industry to urban mobility, Juan and his team successfully launched a new product called FARO, which received great reception and sold out quickly. They recently closed a $3.5 million Series A round with investors including Slingshot Ventures and PANUK. Juan's journey showcases his resilience, adaptability, and ability to build strong relationships with investors.
Links mentioned:
You can learn more about Unit One's products here at unit1gear.com
Hosted by Jason Kirby - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonrkirby/
Thunder website - https://web.thunder.vc
Email Jason at jason@thunder.vc
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