Mark Mullen of Bonfire Ventures on going from a solo capitalist to joining forces with Jim Andelman, the state of seed markets, and his view on what makes fund managers differentiated

Follow me @samirkaji for my thoughts on the venture market, with a focus on the continued evolution of the VC landscape.This week brings us Mark Mullen, Co-Founding partner of LA-based seed firm Bonfire Ventures.Bonfire is based in Santa Monica and manages three Venture Capital funds with over $400MM in AUM. Mark spent 20 years as an I-banker before focusing on startup investing in 2012 with Double M capital. Mark has also been an active LP, investing in over 20 managers over the years. On the show, we talked about how he and Jim Andelman (formerly Rincon) decided to join forces to start Bonfire after each running their own VC firms. We also spoke about things like what he looks for in a great manager, his view on the seed market today, and what helped him gain so much early success as a fund manager when he was just getting started.First, a word from our sponsor:Allocate is the digital operating system for investors looking to build and manage world-class private portfolios within venture capital and other technology-focused private assets.Despite the enormous growth of the private markets and the rapid increase of retail demand for private alternatives, investing in the highest quality private assets within the innovation sector remains inaccessible and opaque.Go to allocate.co to apply to be an early-access member and join 500+ active Allocate users.About Mark MullenMark is Co-Founder and Managing Director of Bonfire Ventures. He is also the Founder of the early-stage firm Double M Partners.Prior to his investing career, Mark spent the first 20 years of his career as a telco, cable, and tech M&A investment banker working for Bill Daniels, often referred to as the father of cable TV in the US. He also served as COO of the City of Los Angeles and Senior Advisor to then-Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.In this episode we discuss:01:12 Mark’s journey to starting Bonfire Ventures and partnering with Jim09:33 How Mark found early success getting into competitive deals12:12 The power of effective scouts17:28 His view on investing in emerging managers23:01 Balancing the Firm’s brand and the individual brands when it comes to building a reputation27:00 Why Mark and Jim decided to partner up and form Bonfire31:30 Why mergers of VC firms are challenging and why raising Fund II will be a huge challenge for emerging managers35:01 How were their conversations with LPs when raising Bonfire when he and Jim decided to join forces?38:40 The health of the seed market in 202242:43 The lesson Mark has taken as his true north in investingI’d love to know what you took away from this conversation with Mark. Follow me @SamirKaji and give me your insights and questions with the hashtag #ventureunlocked. If you’d like to be considered as a guest or have someone you’d like to hear from (GP or LP), drop me a direct message on Twitter.Podcast Production support provided by Agent Bee Agency This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ventureunlocked.substack.com