The Pitch

When women started curling their hair with bathrobes, Emily Kenison didn't see a silly TikTok trend. She saw the creation of a new market – heatless hair care. This lawyer-turned-inventor decided to capitalize on the craze by designing her own patented line of heatless curling headbands. Will the investors see a big vision in big curls, or is this just another one of those 'lifestyle' businesses investors love to hate? Featuring investors Jillian Manus, Beck Bamberger and Mac Conwell. ... Watch the RobeCurls pitch on YouTube @thepitchshow To invest with the VCs on the show, join our investor community at thepitch.fund Superfans can join The Pitch UNCUT and get early access to unedited versions of all ten pitches on season 11. ... *Disclaimer: The information provided on this show is not intended to be investment advice and should not be relied upon as such. The investors on today’s episode are providing their opinions based on their own assessment of the business presented. Those opinions should not be consid

We thought it would take years before AI could replace a podcast host. That is, until founder Edward Brawer slid into Josh’s DMs to pitch his startup, PodcastAI. Edward thinks he can make podcast producers 10x more productive and he already signed two big name podcasters. Now can he convince the big name investors that PodcastAI will deliver 100x returns? Featuring investors Elizabeth Yin, Charles Hudson, Beck Bamberger, Pascal Unger and Mac Conwell. ... Watch the Podcast AI pitch on YouTube @thepitchshow To invest with the VCs on the show, join our investor community at thepitch.fund Founders can apply to pitch at our next recording event in San Francisco this June. No intro required, just go to pitch.show/apply Superfans can join The Pitch UNCUT and get early access to unedited versions of all ten pitches on season 11. ... *Disclaimer: The information provided on this show is not intended to be investment advice and should not be relied upon as such. The investors on today’s episode are providing their opin

Since the beginning of The Pitch, we’ve told one story: what it’s like to raise money for a startup. But what about the rest of the journey? On our new segment, The Exit, we talk to startup founders who’ve done the impossible, sold their startup for hundreds of millions. How does it feel to finally accomplish the dream? And is that dream all it’s cracked up to be? In our first exit interview, we talk to Bill Smith, a high school dropout from Alabama who started, scaled and sold Shipt for $550 million in three years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What if your favorite online store had models that look like you: your skin tone, your height, your body shape? That question propelled Vita Mallela to start Flock AI. Their AI generated models could help brands eliminate pricey photoshoots. But with AI startups so en vogue, how will the investors know if this AI startup is the one to walk the runway with? Featuring investors Elizabeth Yin, Charles Hudson, Beck Bamberger, Pascal Unger and Mac Conwell. ... Watch the Flock AI pitch on YouTube @thepitchshow To invest with the VCs on the show, join our investor community at thepitch.fund Founders can apply to pitch at our next recording event in San Francisco this June. No intro required, just go to pitch.show/apply Superfans can join The Pitch UNCUT and get early access to unedited versions of all ten pitches on season 11. ... *Disclaimer: The information provided on this show is not intended to be investment advice and should not be relied upon as such. The investors on today’s episode are providing their opini

After spending a decade as a franchise broker, Kenny Rose decided to break out on his own and start FranShares. An alternative investment platform where anyone can invest in franchises. Now you can own a piece of your local fast food joint, a medspa, even a car wash! But will the investors be able to see big tech returns for a company that sounds like small fries? Featuring investors Jillian Manus, Beck Bamberger and Mac Conwell. ... Watch the FranShares pitch on YouTube @thepitchshow To invest with the VCs on the show, join our investor community at thepitch.fund Founders can apply to pitch at our next recording event in San Francisco this June. No intro required, just go to pitch.show/apply Superfans can join The Pitch UNCUT and get early access to unedited versions of all ten pitches on season 11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Monica Williams wants to revolutionize the period experience for tweens. With $5 million in sales in just two years, she’s on her way. Now she wants to raise venture to scale her bootstrapped company. Will Monica get to pitch the big vision for RedDrop or will investors write her off from the start? Featuring investors Elizabeth Yin, Charles Hudson, Beck Bamberger, Pascal Unger and Mac Conwell. ... Watch the RedDrop pitch on YouTube @thepitchshow To invest with the VCs on the show, join our investor community at thepitch.fund Founders can apply to pitch at our next recording event in San Francisco this June. No intro required, just go to pitch.show/apply Superfans can join The Pitch UNCUT and get early access to unedited versions of all ten pitches on season 11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Growing up as a pastor's kid, Emmanuel Brown saw what a financial burden church real estate can be. Churches sit empty 70% of the week even though they have commercial kitchens and professional sound systems and oh so much space for activities! So Emmanuel built ChurchSpace, a church rental marketplace. He has faith in his business – but can he convert investors if they believe congregations are shrinking? Featuring investors Jillian Manus, Beck Bamberger and Mac Conwell. ... Watch the ChurchSpace pitch on YouTube @thepitchshow To invest with the VCs on the show, join our investor community at thepitch.fund Founders can apply to pitch at our next recording event in San Francisco this June. No intro required, just go to pitch.show/apply Superfans can join The Pitch UNCUT and get early access to unedited versions of all ten pitches on season 11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kavitta Ghai struggled in school due to autism and ADHD until a positive experience with a college professor transformed her academic journey. Convinced this was the future, she launched a startup to make classrooms more accessible. Now, she just needs a VC to lead her $3 million seed round. Will Kavitta pass the test with the investors in The Pitch Room? Featuring investors Cyan Banister, Charles Hudson, Elizabeth Yin, Mac Conwell and Paige Finn Doherty. ... Watch the Nectir pitch on YouTube @thepitchshow To invest with the VCs on the show, join our investor community at thepitch.fund Founders can apply to pitch at our next recording event in San Francisco this June. No intro required, just go to pitch.show/apply Superfans can join The Pitch UNCUT and get early access to unedited versions of all ten pitches on season 11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Pitch is back for season 11! Recorded for the first time in front of a live studio audience, we invited the top startup founders and VCs from across the country to join us in Miami. Visionary founders will pitch everything from pants you can pee in, to Airbnb for churches. And it wouldn’t be 2024 if we didn’t throw in some AI and alternative investments! Tune in to season 11 to hear the true story of how venture deals get done. And this season, a LOT of deals get done. Watch FULL episodes on YouTube this season @thepitchshow. Invest with us alongside top VCs via The Pitch Fund. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For our season 10 finale, we’re trying something crazy. We’re giving you a full pitch from start to finish with no editing whatsoever! Founder Chase Robbins presents his snack delivery business, Handle, to investors Paige Doherty, Neal Bloom, Elizabeth Yin, Mark Phillips and Charles Hudson. Will they back this college dropout who promises on-campus deliveries in 15-minutes or less? Or will they steer clear of a space that's seen billions of VC dollars go up in flames? You can also watch the Handle pitch on YouTube. To learn more about Chase's snack delivery startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Handle show page. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Online shopping was supposed to make things easier. But with so many options, it’s also made our shopping experience more fragmented than ever. Kristine Locker set out to fix that with her social shopping app Locker. However, her target demographic is a couple generations behind most VCs. Can Kristine convince investors she has the solution to a problem they don’t experience or will they abandon this startup in the cart? You can also watch the Locker pitch on YouTube. Today’s investors are Beck Bamberger, Al Bsharah, Jillian Manus, and Howie Diamond. To learn more about Kristine's retail tech startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Locker show page. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ever stood at the recycling bin wondering, “Is this cup really recyclable?'' Enter Nicole Toole, the founder of ECGO, an AI-powered app designed to tackle this confusion. With ECGO, you snap a photo of any item, and the app will tell you how to properly dispose of it. But as mind-blowingly awesome as this is, the investors wonder how much money can you really make from trash when you’re selling to universities.  You can also watch the ECGO pitch on YouTube. Today’s investors are Elizabeth Yin, Erica Wenger, Jillian Manus, Martin Tobias and Charles Hudson. To learn more about Nicole's recycling startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the ECGO show page. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Luke Barkley Young was tired of two things: companies that don’t take responsibility for products they put in the world and moldy shower liners. So he created Outlines, a circular subscription for all your home essentials. Their first product is a recyclable shower curtain. But it’s a rough environment out there for direct to consumer products. Will the VCs invest in Luke’s big vision for replenishables – or would that just be pouring money down the drain? You can also watch the Outlines pitch on YouTube. Today’s investors are Beck Bamberger, Al Bsharah, Jillian Manus, and Howie Diamond. If you would like to invest in Outlines, go to pitch.show/outlines To learn more about Luke's replenishment startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Outlines show page. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Venture investors have spent the last decade searching for the killer use case for VR. Today’s founder, Andrew McHugh, thinks he’s found it with his startup, Wist. But days before Andrew gave his pitch, Apple sent shockwaves through the industry by announcing their new headset, the Vision Pro. Will investors be skittish about the tech giant entering the space? Or is it a sign that VR’s big moment has finally arrived? You can also watch the Wist pitch on YouTube. Today’s investors are Paige Doherty, Neal Bloom, Elizabeth Yin, Mark Phillips and Charles Hudson. If you would like to invest in Wist, go to pitch.show/wist To learn more about Andrew's augmented reality startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Wist show page. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Cofounding sisters Kinsey and Jessa Lux think they’ve found the next big opportunity in sports tech, audio lessons for horseback riders. But the equestrian market is way smaller than say, running or cycling. Is a passionate market enough to excite investors, or is Ride iQ too niche to become a billion dollar business? Today’s investors are Beck Bamberger, Al Bsharah, Jillian Manus, and Howie Diamond. To learn more about Kinsey and Jessa's equestrian startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Ride iQ show page. And for a deep dive on the companies featured on the show, subscribe to The Pitch Insider. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jason Vego wants to disrupt an industry so old school he has to sell door to door. Yet somehow his SaaS platform for convenience stores boasts a 95% conversion rate from free trial. Another number comes up in The Pitch Room though, Jason’s ownership percentage in Bevz. Will this founder win over the investors or get the door slammed in his face? Today’s investors are Paige Doherty, Neal Bloom, Elizabeth Yin, Mark Phillips and Charles Hudson. To learn more about Jason's startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Bevz show page. And for a deep dive on the companies featured on the show, subscribe to The Pitch Insider. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dan Hershberg loves golf. So much so that he founded the Amateur Golf Society – a PGA-style tour that any golfer can participate in. The investors think his flexible tournament model is a hole in one. But things get complicated when they discover a majority of the company is owned by a private equity firm, not the founder. Will the VCs and the PEs come together for the love of golf? Or will this deal land in the bunker. Today’s investors are Beck Bamberger, Al Bsharah, Jillian Manus, and Howie Diamond. To learn more about Dan's golf startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Amateur Golf Society show page. And for a deep dive on the companies featured on the show, subscribe to The Pitch Insider. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you're murdered in the US, there's only a 57% chance your killer will be found. Jim Brown aims to change this statistic by enabling the massive true crime community to solve cold cases on his website Uncovered.com. But mysterious circumstances in the studio lead us to a question. Can a media company produce venture scale returns by… solving murders? Today’s investors are Elizabeth Yin, Erica Wenger, Jillian Manus, Martin Tobias and Charles Hudson. To learn more about Jim's crime solving startup and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Uncovered show page. If you want to go deeper on each company featured on the show, subscribe to our newsletter The Pitch Insider. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Despite a decade in engineering at Apple, Dhaval Patel didn’t have any smart technology in his home. So he designed a ring that converts every home into a smart home – using old technology found in your typical TV remote. But hardware startups are extremely difficult to get off the ground and many VC’s avoid investing in them altogether. Can Dhaval convince our investors that his 10 prototype rings will turn into a 10 billion dollar business? Today’s investors are Paige Doherty, Neal Bloom, Elizabeth Yin, Mark Phillips and Charles Hudson. To learn more about Dhaval's hardware startup, Lotus, and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Lotus show page. If you want to go deeper on each company featured on the show, subscribe to our newsletter The Pitch Insider. Enjoying the podcast? Use this link to text a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When Mariam Braimah led product design at Netflix she struggled to find participants in Africa to test new products. So she started Kimoyo Insights, a research analytics platform that helps companies like Microsoft & Flutterwave gather feedback from African consumers. But Kimoyo doesn’t quite fit the venture mold. Can Mariam convince investors to make a bet on user research in the data desert of Africa? Today’s investors are Erica Wenger, Jillian Manus, Martin Tobias and Charles Hudson. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices