This episode of Adventure Capital is a little different — in it, we interview Haley "Zap" Zapolski — an angel investor and startup ecosystem builder in Nashville. Zap fell in love with startups after working for one out of college, and also fell in love with Nashville, the city she now calls home. Putting those two passions together, over the last few years, she has worked tirelessly (and incredibly effectively) to develop the Nashville startup scene. Both through her "day job" at the Nashville Entrepreneur Center, and as an independent, rogue, maverick cowgirl. In this episode she talks about how she is doing that. If you're trying to build the local startup ecosystem in your city — this interview with Zap will give you some great ideas on how to do that. A true queen of LinkedIn, you can find Zap there to follow along with her journey, insights and musings. Or you can subscribe to her Beehiiv newsletter at zapswrap.beehiiv.com.

In this episode, we interview Lanny Smith, founder & CEO of Actively Black — a premium athleisure wear brand. Actively Black has been worn by President Obama, established brand partnerships with Marvel, Disney and the NBA, and outfitted Team Nigeria at the 2024 Paris Olympics. In late 2024, Actively Black ran a successful community round on Wefunder, raising over a million dollars from 1,267 investors. In this episode, Lanny talks about why and how he raised capital on Wefunder, as well as his personal journey of extreme grit and perseverance, from NBA player to startup founder. To check out the Actively Black Wefunder page, visit: wefunder.com/activelyblack. 

In this episode, we interview Niles Lichtenstein (linkedin.com/in/nileslichtenstein), founder and CEO of Nestment — a San Francisco-based startup helping first-time homebuyers hack the outdated housing system. A three-time startup founder, Niles saw the massive, growing problem of declining home-ownership in America, and determined to do something about it. And being committed to expanding economic opportunity for more citizens, it made perfect sense for Nestment to invite their community to invest in a community round. To check out their Wefunder page, visit wefunder.com/nestment.

In this episode, we interview Maria Springer, founder of Capital Department (www.capitaldept.com). Capital Department is an agency that helps founders raise capital — both through conventional funding rounds (VCs, Angels, etc.), and community rounds (Reg CF). Maria and her team have helped founders raise hundreds of millions of dollars, and they are outstanding at what they do. In this interview, we explore how to identify, pitch and close investors.

In this episode, we interview the founder of Cxffeeblack, Bartholomew Jones. An artist, musician and coffee lover, Bartholomew and his team at Cxffeeblack have a bold vision for a more sustainable, equitable coffee supply chain. Based in Memphis, Cxffeeblack recently closed on a community round on Wefunder, funded by 568 investors. 

In this episode, we interview the co-founder and CEO of NasaClip, Liz Clayborne. Liz had the idea for NasaClip — a simple device that stops nosebleeds — while working as an ER doctor. And in case starting a startup isn't enough of a challenge, she still works several shifts in the ER each week. After raising a $1M pre-seed round, Liz and her co-founder Romil Patel recently raised $500K on Wefunder, as part of a larger round. In this interview, Liz discusses how and why they did it.

In this episode, we interview the co-founder and CEO of Sen-Jam, Jim Iversen. A community round veteran, Jim has run a number of Regulation Crowdfunding raises — both on Wefunder, and other inferior platforms. (Boooooo!!!!). Of the thousands of founders that have raised capital on Wefunder over the years, Jim stands out as someone who's deeply committed to transparently communicating with his investors, and building community around his company. One of the best examples of this, is that wherever he travels around the country, he reaches out to any of his investors in that city, and grabs a drink or dinner with them. You've got to love it. 

In this episode, we interview the founder of Pirouette Pharma, Conor Cullinane. After graduating from Y Combinator's S21 batch, and raising from angels and VCs, Pirouette launched a community round on Wefunder in 2024. It was one of the largest ever — raising $7.9 million from a combination of Regulation Crowdfunding and Regulation D. You can view Pirouette's page here (wefunder.com/pirouette), and the 1,072 investor notes here (wefunder.com/pirouette/buzz). One of our favorites: Stanley Forward, a semi-retired cardiologist, simply said he was investing "for my grandchildren". This is what community rounds are all about.

This week, we talk with Micha Mikailian, the CEO of Geoship. Towards the end of 2024, Geoship closed on $1.9 million in capital, raised from 1,151 investors on Wefunder. A serial entrepreneur, Micha has raised loads o dough for a number of companies he's founded, and been involved in down the years. And he's also raising from institutional investors for Geoship — in parallel to his customers and community. But he also sees great value in inviting his community to become owners and investors in Geoship — which he articulates beautifully in this episode.

On today's episode of Adventure Capital, we interview the co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of the Oakland Roots & Soul, Edreece Arghandiwal. In late 2023, the Oakland Roots & Soul launched an explosive community round on Wefunder, raising $3M from thousands of their fans. Edreece was instrumental in orchestrating the raise, and in this interview he shares about how — and why — the Oakland Roots & Soul invited their fans to invest in the club.

You can also check this episode on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7p4vYenaHNg&t=2224s

On this episode of Adventure Capital, we interview Olivia Chen, the founder of Twrl Milk Tea. We often interview founders who have successfully run community rounds on the podcast, but in this episode we interview a founder who is considering running a community round. It's interesting to dive into her thought process, and the pros and cons of running a Wefunder raise, as she sees it.