Capitalizing with Kamenetzky-Wetzel
What Every Founder Needs to Know from a Billion-Dollar Investor
January 2nd, 2025 • 5 min read
At FounderMade, we were thrilled to host Anna-Lena Kamenetzky-Wetzel, founder and CEO of Touch Capital, for a captivating panel discussion. With her impressive track record (over $17 billion of capital raised and invested, and a career that includes transformative roles at Coty, Keurig Dr Pepper, and Jimmy Choo), Anna-Lena shared invaluable advice for founders looking to navigate the ever-evolving consumer brand space. Here’s what we learned:
The Power of an Exceptional Team
Anna-Lena drove home the importance of having the right team in place. “The team is such a big part of the success of these companies. An A team can even make a B idea really shine and be successful,” she shared. She emphasized that grit, hustle, and determination are key traits founders need to look for in their hires. “From the outside, it always looks like a straight line to success, but it almost never is, and so being able to work through these valleys and through these setbacks and still get there — that’s really kind of the team,” she added. A great team doesn’t just execute; they find ways to overcome setbacks and thrive.
Adaptability is Key
“Strategy always needs to meet opportunity,” she noted, encouraging founders to set clear goals but remain adaptable. “You need to be flexible enough to adjust because buyer attitudes and appetites change,” she added. Founders must balance having a clear vision with the ability to pivot when the market demands it.
Rollups: Not for Everyone
Anna-Lena’s experience with large-scale rollups, like creating the world’s #2 coffee company, is unparalleled. However, she cautioned against applying this approach to early-stage brands. “Rollups, especially if you do them on a large scale as we used to do them, obviously have massive opportunities to generate synergies,” she explained. “ I think when I look at the earlier stage investing landscape personally, I actually don't think rollups are such a good idea because it's really a different skill set, you need a lot of operating leverage to make these synergies actually work, you need big teams, you need good M&A teams who can actually execute these deals, and that's usually not something that is available in small companies.” She advised startups to focus on organic growth and refining their unique value propositions first.
Community Building
Community building has become a buzzword in the industry, but Anna-Lena encouraged founders to think critically about its role. “It becomes more and more expensive to build [communities],” she said, adding that some categories are better suited to community engagement than others. She pointed out that you can’t underestimate “the marketing effect of actually being in stores and being on these shelves where people walk past you, and they do that probably at least twice a week.” Leveraging retail visibility can be as impactful as online community-building efforts.
Crafting a Winning Pitch Deck
As an investor who reviews hundreds of pitches each year, Anna-Lena shared invaluable tips for founders preparing to raise funds:
Be Concise: “Make it very clear what’s different and unique about your product.” Investors are short on time, so clarity is key.
Know Your Market: “I mean, I don’t know how many oat milks, for example, I’ve seen over the last years, and I always think, okay, there are already like three or four really big brands in there. There’s not going to be a market for the 17th one.”
Highlight Your “Why”: Authenticity and a compelling story are crucial to standing out. What’s your “reason for being?” Why should this product exist?.
Spotting the Next Big Thing
Looking ahead, Anna-Lena identified GLP-1’s potential impact on the food industry as a game-changer. “That's certainly an area where we are looking and seeing a lot of interesting concepts and where we also see a lot of interest from the large incumbents.” Staying ahead of emerging trends is critical for founders aiming to capture market interest early.
Final Thoughts
Anna-Lena’s panel was packed with actionable insights for founders looking to build the next big consumer brand. At FounderMade, we’re inspired by her journey and her unwavering commitment to transforming bold ideas into global success stories. She reminds us that success isn’t a straight line, but with the right team and a clear purpose, founders can turn even the toughest challenges into opportunities.
Want to learn more about Touch Capital and how they’re empowering the next generation of consumer brands? Discover their mission and portfolio here.
If you’ve enjoyed reading these insights, make sure you're subscribed to Weekly Insights mailer for fresh Founder Stories delivered straight to your inbox every week! Dive deeper into more success strategies by reading more exclusive snippets from our show’s, or join us in person to experience it firsthand!