A VC - Latest Comments in Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

danhayter — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 03:52:57 -0000

Very interesting comments from everybody. While I agree that member-only retailing is nothing new (read Costco...) I do think the vente-privee approach is innovative and that their recent expansion into Spain, Germany, Italy and the UK is a testiment to their growing appeal and strength. The UK site launched two months ago and I think that this will be a real 'test' for vente-privee, as the UK retailing market is already flooded with sales, and I also believe member recruitment could prove difficult in a country with such savvy internet users. Time will tell!

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Sebastian — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:46:39 -0000

Great post. As a German living and working in the tech scene in NYC I am thrilled to see an investor crossing the pond. NYC is certainly unique, but it's crazy on how many business opportunities companies in the US and Europe miss out by staying local.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Mike — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:00:01 -0000

Europe is hot right now, and only will get hotter, especially casual gaming in the US. Look at some of the information in this site amazing, especially the excerpts... www.readtheanswer.com/index...

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Carrie — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:13:28 -0000

Glad to hear you stopped in to see them :) I've heard there site is wonderful for reaching customers beyond the US.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 02:42:04 -0000

Yes, I spent about 10 minutes at Dwanda and met the two founders. Very nice
people.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

mee_z — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 16:36:15 -0000

Next time in Germany, stop by and I show you around our new bicycle showroom in Munich. Or maybe we have one in Berlin by then.... Owning a bike is much more emotional and rewarding than renting one.
And yes the website needs improvement - but this is just a very young side-project at the moment.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Carrie — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:58:17 -0000

Have to wonder if your German "Handmade Goods Market" is Dwanda?

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Anthony Kuhn — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:06:51 -0000

Good on you for pumping up the pedaling of bikes around distant locales. What we need these days is such enthusiasm for bikes Stateside! Keep up the good work, VC and otherwise, and get the word out.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

venkat — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 15:28:39 -0000

this is what i call smart !

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Take control over red weevil and save the trees, visit www.redweevil.com now!!!

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Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 02:56:04 -0000

That's true but there are some unique aspects of how its done online, with
the short window. It reminds me of woot in parts, and also HSN

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

royw — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 19:12:55 -0000

Fred, enjoyed your update from Europe and Berlin. The Vente Privee, or private sale, you cite as a European invented business model has been very active in this country in a variety of forms for at least 30 years. While online its relatively new, offline Membership sales organizations have existed in the US for a while. Costco, BJ's, Sam's Club and who can forget CUC (the electronics membership club) which became Cendant. CUC's original model was that, for the annual fee, you could purchase electronics almost at their factory cost. Major retailers also have been doing "private sales" for a long time, offering early access or previews to their best customers. As for sales of overstock, that is how many of the BJ's of the world started. While perhaps in its exact implementation some of the private sales of today could be unique, the concept has essentially existed for a long time in the US.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

jensbest — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:24:50 -0000

good ideas and action spreading around the world. we share the same thoughts of how to involve the economy and the society to a greater good with online innovation improving our daily life.

Nice to hear that you like Berlin on the bike. Next time visting make a visit at another great online platform started in Berlin:
www.betterplace.org a online donation (and soon micro-credit) people-2-people platform which takes the kiva-model to the next level. I am sure Lukasz also knows about it.

.....and continue have a good time in Berlin

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:52:07 -0000

Or pick up the trends emerging in the world

Not every trend starts in silicon valley as much as the people who live and
work there think it does

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Chang — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:44:19 -0000

So I think a non-US (or non-Valley, perhaps to be more precise) startup has two choices - either a) pick up the new trends emerging in the valley and quickly build a local player (a copycat approach), or b) build a unique business model, roll it out locally first and show initial success, and then go global. Of course b) would be a more difficult route as creating something new is way harder than copying someone's product, and also just because one thing succeeded in one market doesn't mean it will succeed in the rest of the world.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 07:52:39 -0000

Great stuff Fred. I'm really enjoying these posts about entrepreneurship in Europe. What a great idea to bike from start-up to start-up...probably helps with the mental acuity of the investors and entrepreneurs to get out and about!

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 06:15:03 -0000

I was a better blogger back then!

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Sebastian — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 06:11:37 -0000

Thanks - it's a really good read!

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 06:00:39 -0000

here's the link to the venture fratricide post

http://avc.blogs.com/a_vc/2...

it's over four years old but it's timeless

this is an issue that will never go away

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:57:58 -0000

congratulations on your marriage! that's wonderful news.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:39:05 -0000

This is the age old debate between vcs and entrepreneurs

I posted a long time ago about 'venture fratricide' and got a lesson in how entrepreneurs think about this issue in the comments

Try googling 'venture fratricide' and see if you can that post. Its probably four or five years old now

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

Sebastian — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:28:51 -0000

Most other competitors are based in the US, which is a very different market culturally. Also, they are small - they don't concentrate on the European market (or fail in doing so, if they try).

I know that the German market isn't big enough to support 10 versions of each project. It supports one or two of them, but if three are funded and two go nowhere, the time all three work on their products concurrently will make the "winning" product(s) much better.

For VCs, this of course isn't desirable (on the short term), because the chance of having the own investment succeeding is reduced, but for the overall market, it would be important.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:13:04 -0000

That's a good point about lack of competition

But there are competitors globally for every one of the startups I saw in berlin

I am not sure if the german market is large enough to support 10 versons of each

I am pretty sure the US market isn't either

'Me too" companies have been the bane of my existence for as long as I've been a VC. So I wish the market in the US was more like berlin

But I realize it can never be that way in an open free market

Fred

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

fredwilson — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:09:04 -0000

Yes, I should spend a month in berlin, not a day!

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

davidporter — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 04:50:26 -0000

Fred, you should check out the music scene while you're in town. Over the last 8 years, the center of the electronic scene has shifted from London to Berlin. There's so much amazing creativity going on there these days.

Re: Biking Around Berlin With Lukasz

terra210 — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 03:38:26 -0000

Markets generate meaning already don't they? We are pushed towards new products and pulled away from others. We work to invest in or create a technology which generates a market. If instead, we found a way to merge the nature of markets with information we generate, our participation in markets would fundamentally be changed. This would alter our role as consumers.