AION - Navigating Capital: Strategies for Brand Growth
The Story of a Brand Show
Ramon Vela
4.9 • 147 Ratings
🗓️ 12 July 2024
⏱️ 59 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Welcome to another episode of The Story of a Brand Show!
Today, host Ramon Vela brings you a fantastic conversation with Carly Spatt, Head of Business Development, and Jim Shehigian, Senior Vice President and Credit Department Business Head at AION.
In this episode, we dive into the crucial role of financial support for emerging brands, especially during challenging economic times. Carly and Jim share their insights on how AION helps brands navigate the complex world of financing, providing invaluable advice for founders and entrepreneurs.
We discuss everything from the importance of planning for success to the specific financial tools that can help businesses grow without giving up equity too early.
This episode is packed with practical tips and inspirational moments that you won't want to miss.
Key Moments:
- Jim's remarkable story of early career mentorship and its lasting impact on his professional journey.
- Carly's passion for supporting small entrepreneurs and her journey into the CPG industry.
- Insights into the current market trends and the challenges brands face in securing capital.
- Detailed explanation of AION's flexible financing options and how they support brand growth.
- Advice on preparing for financial success and the importance of having accurate financial records.
Join us as we explore the incredible work Carly and Jim are doing at AION to support brands in their journey toward success.
For more on AION, visit: https://www.aionfi.com/
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Today's Sponsors:
Compass Rose Ventures - Advisor for CPG Brands: https://compassroseventures.com/ramon/
Compass Rose Ventures is offering "no-cost" CPG advice exclusively for the Founders and CEOs featured on The Story of a Brand Show and listeners. The calendar is limited, so book your one-on-one call (a $500 Value) with the Compass Rose team today. Visit using our unique link.
Shopline - An All-in-One Commerce Solution for Brands: https://www.us.shopline.com/story
Shopline is offering a complimentary three-month trial when you schedule a demo. Seamlessly manage multi-channel sales, create user-friendly websites, and drive conversions with targeted marketing. Ready to streamline operations and accelerate your business? Visit our unique link.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | you want to think about the credit or the financing of your business, just like any other |
| 0:06.0 | ingredient in your product. So, you know, you want to choose the one that's the right fit for what |
| 0:12.7 | you're trying to do. And that changes over time. You don't go straight from, I've, you know, |
| 0:19.8 | perfected my recipe in my kitchen to doing a series A venture capital around usually. |
| 0:26.4 | And so a lot of what we do is just educate them on what the alternatives are. |
| 0:31.1 | And they are at some point when you do have great margins and you've had a five-year track record and you're profitable |
| 0:38.9 | things like bank loans, series A's of several million dollars, all that stuff becomes possible. |
| 0:46.1 | But there's a big gap in there where those things are not an option for you. |
| 0:50.2 | A bank is not going to give you an unsecured loan just because you have a great |
| 0:54.2 | product, usually. So that's when things, it's a whole range of equity and debt. And we're taught |
| 1:03.9 | as individuals that debt is usually bad. I don't want to load up a lot of debt on my credit |
| 1:09.2 | card because if I just go to Best Buy and get a TV, |
| 1:12.4 | it's worth less than a minute I walk out with it. Debt for your business is different. You are |
| 1:19.0 | scaling yourself. You're doing a multiplier effect. If you're on the cusp of selling to one of the big |
| 1:24.8 | chains and you need $300,000 for ingredients for your product, |
| 1:30.1 | inventory. Taking on debt is going to be one of the fastest and smartest ways for you to do that, |
| 1:35.9 | as opposed to selling shares in your business at that stage. Low valuation. When you go to exit, |
| 1:41.4 | you realize, oh, gosh, I don't control my fate or benefit in the sale of my company like I thought I would. |
| 1:57.8 | Hey, everyone, this is Ramon Vela, and this is another episode of the story of a brand. |
| 2:02.7 | Like always, we have an amazing guest in brand that we're going to feature on today's show. |
| 2:06.5 | But before we do, I have a brief announcement. |
| 2:09.4 | Hi, I speak to hundreds of founders and CEOs of consumer brands each year, |
... |
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