From Nike to Next Ventures, Mel Strong has mentored talent from every end of the spectrum - leading giant teams at Nike in their women's, running and skateboarding divisions, and now investing in early stage startups through Next Ventures. We dig into her history at Nike, and how that informed and motivated a big shift to the world of venture capital. In the outdoor industry, understanding the impact of a VC has many pros and cons, and in this podcast, we tackle both sides of it.   Mel Strong: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-strong/   Nike SB: https://www.nike.com/skateboarding   Sandy Bodecker: https://www.sneakerfreaker.com/news/r-i-p-the-godfather-of-nike-sb-sandy-bodecker/   Breaking 2 Project: https://www.nike.com/gb/running/breaking2   Joan Benoit Samuelson: https://www.instagram.com/joanbenoitsamuelson/   Next Ventures: https://www.nextventures.com/   Oura x Dexcom News: https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/19/oura-valued-at-5b-following-deal-with-medical-device-firm-dexcom/   Oura Ring: https://ouraring.com/   Swimming With Allocators: https://swimmingwithallocators.com/   Join us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/second-nature-media Meet us on Slack: https://www.launchpass.com/second-nature Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secondnature.media Subscribe to our newsletter: https://www.secondnature.media Subscribe to the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@secondnaturemedia

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