20VC: Why Companies Going Bust Is Part Of The Plan, Why Most VCs Are Later Stage Than They Think & Why Venture Capital Is Humbling with Charlie O'Donnell, Founder @ Brooklyn Bridge Ventures

Charlie O’Donnell is the Founder and Sole Partner @ Brooklyn Bridge Ventures, the first venture capital fund based in Brooklyn, who manage $23m across 2 funds. Prior to founding Brooklyn Bridge, Charlie worked at the prestigious First Round Capital, with the likes of Josh Koppelman and Union Square Ventures with Fred Wilson. If that wasn’t enough Charlie is one of only a dozen to be named to Business Insider’s 100 Most Influential People in NY Tech five or more times and has served on the founding board of the New York Tech Meetup and is one of the group’s first 100 members. His blog, This is Going to Be BIG!, is one of the ten most widely read VC blogs in the country with over 8,000 readers.

In Today’s Episode You Will Learn:

1.) How Charlie made his move from college to venture and then struck out on his own from USV?

2.) Charlie has previously said that 'venture capital is humbling'. How does Charlie look to construct his portfolio with Brooklyn Bridge? How does he come to terms with the fact he will be wrong most of the time?

3.) What are Charlie's views towards follow-on funding and allocating reserves of the fund? How important is this from a return multiple perspective? How much of a difference does it make for founders to raise a next round with 100% of seed investors committed?

4.) Charlie has previously suggested the importance of being helpful and hard working. Is that really enough to build a brand in today's competitive VC environment? Is brand a form of defensible IP?

5.) How does Charlie react to Ben Lerer's suggestion that Jet.com and Dollar Shave Club are the first dominoes of an incoming wave of e-commerce M&A?

Items Mentioned In Today’s Show:

Charlie’s Fave Blog: Wait But Why

Charlie's Most Recent Investment: Industrial Organic

As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Charlie on Twitter here!