This week on In The Money, I sat down with Asher Hochberg, Partner at Rootspring Ventures and former GP at CircleUp, to break down the state of early-stage investing and brand building in 2025.💥 What’s changed?• No more vibe rounds. Investors are trading buzz for margin discipline.• Being “cool” isn’t enough. Brands need a reason to exist and a loyal repeat customer.• Growth equity is back—but with teeth. PE-backed strategics want EBITDA, not just traction.• Storytelling ≠ Instagram ads. Narrative now means LTV, retention, and product moat.⚖️ We talked about how smart founders are navigating:The risk/growth balance in a tighter capital marketWhen to scale retail vs. when to say noWhat investors are actually looking for at seed and Series B🧠 Favorite line from Asher:"Strong brands used to get funded on buzz. Now, they get funded on retention."

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